SD-1
Art Davis on the inspiration behind the SD-1
"The second model I designed was the SD-1. SD for 'Super Dreadnought' - based on the one everyone dreams about, only the twelve fret body size. SD could also stand for Sam Davis, my bluegrass-loving brother, who was selling guitars for me at the time as well as throwing bombs, saving lives and breaking hearts for the Snowbird Ski Patrol.
Sam put me up to it as a result of inquiries from dealers and clients that he was working with. It could also stand for San Diego where these guitars are built.
The SD-1 is basically an enlarged M1. You could take an SD-1 top, saw it in the M1 outline, recarve the braces and place it right on an M1. The back bracing is spread out a little for the longer body.
The concepts applied are all the same and the gentle yet uninterrupted (by straight parts or bumps).
Curves in the outline continue the concept of strength through ingenuity, as opposed to overkill in the construction. It sounds just like you'd expect a dreadnought to sound. Big and powerful, with that 'back bass' kind of thing going on, like someone is playing along with you. It's trademark and the original reason for it's predecessors existence - keeping up with fiddle and banjo - is volume.
Hit it hard. Really hard. Enough to break a pick, a string or put a big gouge in the top or slice your thumb if you make a crappy stroke and you'll see what we mean."