Uprgrading!

[ironlionzion]

Hello all, i have been playin a hundred dollar rover mandolin for about a year and half now and am looking to upgrade. Heres the situation, i am a left handed player on a limited budget and have been lookling at Michael Kelly's, ive heard all klinds of mixed opinions but overall things have sounded good. I have never played one or have never played any F-style for that matter so im convinced that any upgrade will be a good one...? Heres my real question...Should i go for the Radiused finger board being as ive never played one before but have heard such good things.... i wont be able to play it beforer i buy it cuase it would be special order....what if i like it and want to continue playing this type of finer board?? would i eventuallty be able to get a gibson with a radiused board...i cant seem to find a good music shop around me that had\s a mandolin selection that i would be able to test some out even just top see what the baords are like(in northern new jersey if anyone knows of one) Dont want to make a bad choice any info will help
~Steve

Radius really isn't a big thing. I feel comfortable playing either. It will not be that hard to get used to. A Micheal Kelly would be a great upgrade over a rover. The other question is yes you can get a Gibson with a radius fretboard on some models (Sam Bush, Steffey).You can get them on the other models also but it would be a custom job.

[John Flynn]

I like the radiused board on my Rigel a lot and I played flat boards for 10 years. The radius has really helped me improve my playing. I won't go back. I think that being a lefty, you are going to have to do mostly custom orders in the future anyway, so adding a radius to the order should be no problem. There was another thread where the Gibson guys said that thier mandos can have a radius on customer order. I think most builders would be able to do a one by order. I have no experience with the Kellys, but people on the board here really seem to like them. I have my eyes on that new Kelly oval.

[cutbait2]

most (but not all) builders are radiusing fretboards these days. i'd say most prefer it, but its not essential. MK's,MM's are an acceptable entry at a certain price point, however the upgrades many folks do to them bring the price near that of some domestic models making the choice less clear. even though it may seem difficult, after some research, you may find a area dealer, festival, or jam to try some of these at. of course the MC classified with a 48-72 approval period and some dickering on the price is not a bad place to look........

[craig]

what about Mandolin Brothers (http://www.mandoweb.com) on Staten Island? is that close enough to you?

[Lee]

Ironlionzion, in the long run it will be to your benefit to get to know as many left-handed mandolin players as possible. Network with them and use the power of word-of-mouth to get your inquiry out over the airwaves. For starters, in the Wanted to Buy section of the Classifieds there's someone else looking for lefty mandolins. Contact him/her and see what you can learn.

[doanepoole]

When it comes to radius fingerboards, you really need to try some out and see what you prefer.

I find fingerboards with a pronounced radius quite uncomfortable, as do the huge majority of people I pick with. On this board, however, there seem to be many who love it. It's all a matter of personal comfort, so try some different boards out and see what you're most comfortable with personally.

[fatt-dad]

Buy yourself a nice (used) A-5 (i.e., flatiron or gibson), remove the pickguard (if it it had one), get a luthier to make you a new nut, turn the bridge around and there you go. I can't comment on the radius board as I do not have one.

good luck,

f-d

[Don]

There was an Oldwave A style oval hole on the classifieds for $1250 that I would be tempted to check out.Have it sent to Bill to re do the nut or anything else you might want.He's very easy to work with.

[ironlionzion]

thank you all so much i cant explain how much information these message boards have given me.. i am very grateful thank you all....i think i am going to go with the MK, next week i will be in boston and heard about a good little in lexington that im gonna check out. hope to talk to you all soon...be good
"...maybe you had too much to fast....or you just over played your part"

[Jim Garber]

i cant seem to find a good music shop around me that had\s a mandolin selection that i would be able to test some out even just top see what the baords are like(in northern new jersey if anyone knows of one)
What about Lark Street (http://www.larkstreet.com/) in Teaneck? I know they have a selection of mandolins there.

Jim