Il Globo mandolin

[Keith Miller]

Having been converted from F styles by listening to the classical recordings by Ralf Leenen on his site. I have decided to try bowlback. I have a chance of an Il Globo mandolin, in reasonable condition, neck straight, no cracks separations or sinkage, but know nothing about bowlbacks. Is this make any good or were they mass produced for the tourist trade? I can not try it out without a 4 hour trip and am loath to travel if its not a decent quality instrument. I can never aspire to the quality of Embergher etc but would like something that sounds good.
Thanks
Keith

[Jim Garber]

I have not played on in person, but even if I had, it might not make a difference, since the one you would be considering would be different in terms of condition etc.

Il Globo looks like another of the many Neapolitan makers of the early part of the last century. They look (from the pics) to be well made). Unless are offered this at a very good price and it is in good shape, I can't imagine making a long trip just for this one mandolin. I would have the seller send you details pics first and a detailed description of the condition. If you have a friend -- esp one who is familiar with these or is a luthier (even better!) -- who lives near to it, have him, her check it out.

Otherwise, I would think there are plenty of mandolins of this quality around. Condition is all important as well since you may have to spend additional money on it to get it to playing level.

Hopefully, someone who plays and owns an Il Globo can chime in with more info on the specific make.

BTW, Keith, which side of the ocean are you located? In the US, yes, Italian-made mandolins are more scarce. In Europe, esp the UK and Germany they seem to be very common.

Jim

[Keith Miller]

Jim,
Thanks for the reply. I'm in Scotland and yes there are a fair number around, especially on ebay but...they seem to be attracting silly money, everyone seems to think that Granny's old mandolin is now worth a lot and a decent priced playable one is rare as hens teeth these days. That guy Corelli has a lot to answer for http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif
Keith

[vkioulaphides]

Hello —on board, too— Keith.

I would also suggest that you contact Martin (username: martinjonas) who lives in the U.K. and has a true knack for locating, ah... the flower atop the manure-heap. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif He may be aware of whatever mandolin(s) are being traded at this time. Also, of course, there is your fellow-highlander, Sir Trebleclef, who is a veritable living encyclopedia in such matters.

Cheers,

Victor

[Martin Jonas]

The Il Globo brand pops up very frequently indeed on Ebay, and as Jim says, they seem rather nondescript, reasonably well-made but don't stand out from the crowd. I've never played one or seen one in person, so I can't say whether they're worthwhile.

The only substantive mention I recall is a post from Jon Springall on page 86 of the bowlbacks of note (http://www.mandolincafe.net/cgi-bin/ikonboard.cgi?act=ST;f=6;t=14886;st=2125) thread, where he says:


To change the subject (at least momentarily) back to instruments for sale (though not as noteworthy as these eighteenth century rarities) - I was passing through Ware today, and decided to take the opportunity to visit the current location of "John Alvey Turner", run by Doug Parry since 1976. He has an "El Globo" mandolin there which, while a fairly modest instrument, has a good soundboard of nicely grained spruce. The price on his website is very reasonable, so it could make a nice first bowlback for any one looking - especially considering that, unlike most on ebay, it should have no issues.

Now, Jon does know quality bowlback mandolins very well (he's worked on both my Embergher and my Vinaccia and he owns a lovely Vega), but of course the one you're looking at may be different, and in any case Jon is not exactly wildly enthusiastic. The instrument is still on the John Alvey Turner web site, at a price of £185. That's pretty good for a restored bowlback from a reputable music shop.

Personally, I do not have the impression that bowlback prices on Ebay UK are going up in general. As has been the case since I started looking, there are always some auctions that develop into a battle between bidders and reach ridiculous prices, but then there are others for much more worthwhile mandolins that nobody goes for. The secret to a good Ebay buy is to walk away as soon as it gets into real money and to wait for a cheaper and better one. It will come. The other secret is to be prepared for surprises when you get the instrument, both of the nasty and the pleasant sort, as auction listings and photographs are pretty invariably misleading.

If you're prepared to wait, you should be able to get a good Neapolitan mandolin for around £100, and should budget for another £50 to £75 to get it fully playable or be prepared to do the work yourself. Good names that are fairly common in the UK are de Meglio, Ceccherini, Loveri, Angara & d'Isanto and Ferrari. Of these, Ceccherini is the highest quality of tone and workmanship, and tend to be higher in price, but the others are very decent, too, particularly de Meglio, which are very reliably good and sturdy instruments. Angara & d'Isanto get some reflected glory from being Vinaccia pupils, and sometimes get bid up to Vinaccia prices. Some people like Stridente and Puglisi, both of them extremely common, but I've never seen a Puglisi and didn't like the only Stridente I've seen.

Good luck!

Martin

[Keith Miller]

well I decided against the 4 hrs travel, the mando was up north and he wanted well over £150 for it. I got an Il Globo from ebay yesterday though, seems OK according to the seller, no sinkage, cracks or splits and the neck is straight and true but we will see when it arrives. At £38.50 it seemed to cheap to miss . Will post pictures etc when it arrives.
Keith

[dave17120]

Hi Keith, I have to say that I am not an expert on the 'more highly regarded' mandolins like Ceccherini etc, but I have repaired several Globos. They have varied enormously, because of date of construction and the vicissitudes of their lives since, but several have sounds quite reasonable to my humble ear. I can't say they have sounded markedly different to the Ferrari or the Loveri that I repaired.
At that sort of price you can't go wrong.
For what its worth, Dave

[Keith Miller]

Well it arrived this morning. No issues at all that I can see except that it needs new strings and a good clean. The case is virtually finished though. The back has 21 strips to it and the tuners appear to have bone buttons, the tuners all turn easily. It came with some extra, old black diamond strings and what looks to be a torteshell sleeve guard. The picts are from the ebay listing, will try and get better ones when I get home from work.
Keith

[Keith Miller]

front

[vkioulaphides]

Looks healthy, Keith. Congratulations! And, as per the "no such thing as a dead mandolin" signature http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif there is nothing wrong with an inexpensive, functional instrument. You've done well. Enjoy! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif

[Keith Miller]

Thanks Victor, new strings and I'm going to try De Grote Markt http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif
Keith

[Martin Jonas]

Congratulations from me, too -- that looks like a healthy instrument with healthy hardware. I've seen far worse instruments, both regarding condition and workmanship, go for two or three times the money. Yours seems to be a fairly similar instrument from the level of decorations/workmanship to the Ferrari I mentioned to you in my PM, so you should be OK. I'd throw the Black Diamond strings away: they're likely to be dead. The tortoiseshell piece is meant to be put on the strings between tailpiece and bridge, held in place by the string tension of the outer strings. Bowlbacks that haven't been played for a few decades are likely to take weeks or months to settle down to their best tone, so give it a bit of time. Also, even with no visible top deformation or neck movement, it is quite likely that the bridge needs to move a few millimetres back from its original place to get decent intonation, and you may also have to shave it down by a few tenths of a millimetre to get the action comfortable. With this style of bridge, with a bone insert saddle, adjustment of action is best done by taking wood from the saddle support (assuming of course that the bridge is well-fitted to start with). It is also fairly straightforward to replace the saddle with a compensated saddle to get better intonation across the courses.

Congratulations again -- let us know you first impressions once you have it strung up and playable!

Martin
(just back from holiday)

[Keith Miller]

am having problems finding ultra light strings in Edinburgh, Lightest I can find are a 9 would this be OK or should I try and find 8s,
Keith

[Martin Jonas]

9 to 32 is fine -- those are the gauges for the GHS extralight classical mandolin set. As far as I'm aware, the only one who makes 8 is Newtone, and they are really too light even for a vintage bowlback. The GHS will do nicely. There are better and longer-lived strings around, e.g. by Dogal and Fisoma, but they are international mail order only.

Martin

[Keith Miller]

Thanks for that Martin!
Keith