Gold Tone "Rigel" on eBay

[glauber]

I wanted to give you a heads-up on this: this mandolin (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7355234749&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&rd=1) has no physical connection with Rigel. It's an authorized Rigel "clone" built by Gold Tone (http://www.goldtone.com/products/pages/gm-110.asp). That's all i know. I thought of making an offer, but i decided i don't like the color. I have no connection to the seller. Caveat emptor. Et Pluribus Unum. Amem.

[Roydw3]

I saw one of these at a liquidation sale on Saturday. It was brand new in excellent with a fantastic hard shell case for $400. I almost bought it, but it seems like people on the list do not have a good opinion of Gold Tone. I will tell you that this mandolin sounded fantastic and it has the built in pickup for those who need it. I have thought about calling the people and seeing if any of their mandolins sold...they had 5 different models, all Gold Tone or Hohner...and if they still have them, asking what they would take for them. Maybe I could get an even better deal even though they are not fantastic mandolins. Is it worth my time and effort to drive a couple of hours for one of these?

[Thomas]

Sorry, but I don't understand the reason for the heads up. #Is it because you think it's a good deal, or are you warning that it isn't a Rigel? #Rigel did license these to be made by Gold Tone, so I guess you think it's a good deal? #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif

[Michael Gowell]

Dunno about the Gold Tone mandos, but in cruising other boards I've noted that their resonator guitars and banjos are well-regarded as good economy instruments.

[glauber]

Sorry, but I don't understand the reason for the heads up. Is it because you think it's a good deal, or are you warning that it isn't a Rigel? Rigel did license these to be made by Gold Tone, so I guess you think it's a good deal? http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif
Because i didn't know about this, and initially i thought it was a mandolin made by Rigel (i thought "Gold Tone" could be a label used by Rigel to sell mandolins with cosmetic flaws). I think the verbiage in the ebay page is a little ambiguous; if you don't know about these mandolins you could think it's a Rigel. I don't know if it's a good deal or not. (Pricewise, it's cheaper than, say, Janet Davis, for this mandolin.)