Huss & Dalton 30th Anniversary Dreadnought

A stunning Brazilian rosewood guitar with elaborate custom inlay.

September 10, 2025

Founded in 1995, the Huss & Dalton Guitar Company is now one of the most respected small-shop makers of high-end flattop guitars (as well as electric guitars and banjos). To celebrate 30 years in business, Huss & Dalton created a special anniversary design, available in OM and dreadnought formats. And even as Huss & Dalton celebrates its history to date, the company is looking to the future. Following cofounder Jeff Huss’s retirement in 2021, long-time employee (and fabulous flatpicker) Brian Dickel was made partner. With the retirement this month of the company’s other founder Mark Dalton and his wife Kimberly (who handled H&D’s sales and marketing), the company will continue with Brian as sole owner. We congratulate the entire Huss & Dalton team, and look forward to a bright future with Brian at the helm.

Huss & Dalton’s 30th anniversary guitars are limited to just ten builds. We reviewed the OM version of the model earlier this year, and now we are happy to demo the 30th Anniversary Dreadnought, delivered to us straight from its showcase at the 2025 Fretboard Summit, courtesy of The Fretted Buffalo in Buffalo New York.

The 30th Anniversary Dreadnought is based on Huss & Dalton’s Traditional series T-DR model. The standard T-DR is H&D’s interpretation of a prewar D-28 style guitar, and the anniversary instrument uses the platform as a canvas for creative embellishment. Naturally, Huss & Dalton chose premium woods for these special instruments. For the tops, the choice was master-grade Italian bear-claw spruce, and the guitars are available with either figured koa or Brazilian rosewood for backs and sides. The OM we spotlighted featured the koa option, so I was happy to see the Brazilian rosewood on this dreadnought. The woods on this guitar are breathtaking: As had been the case on the OM, the top’s bear-claw figure is some of the most amazing I’ve ever seen, and the Brazilian rosewood is like what you might see on the best pre-war instruments: straight-grained, beautifully colored, and perfectly book-matched. The woods alone would make the guitar distinctive, but it also features a unique inlay. Paying homage to Huss & Dalton’s home in the Shenandoah Valley, the design highlights Virginia’s state flower, the dogwood, and the inlay covers the length of the fingerboard and extends into the peghead and rosette. The design includes elements of pearl and brass, which is also used for the guitar’s rosette and purfling. The design even continues on the instrument’s back, which has a small flower inlaid alongside the back-strip. The guitar is bound with cocobolo, which contrasts nicely with both the spruce top and the rosewood back and sides. The instrument’s fit and finish is flawless.

Huss & Dalton T-DRs are favorites among fans of traditional dreadnought tones, and not surprisingly, the anniversary version delivers in spades. The guitar has the big, powerful voice you hope for with a vintage-style dreadnought, and it has the reverberant, multidimensional quality associated with Brazilian rosewood, too. The guitar’s huge dynamic range sang whether I dug in with a pick or gently fingerpicked. It’s a grand musical tool—much more than just a fancy showpiece.

Huss & Dalton has had an amazing 30 years, and I look forward to seeing the company continue its legacy into the next phase. The 30th Anniversary Dreadnought is a stunning instrument that is bound to be appreciated for its looks and tones alike!