View Full Version : Quick Question...
SeanFan
Jun-10-2004, 6:17pm
Just wondering if anybody knows where you can get a descent mandolin on the Internet for a descent price...
Damnation Gulch
Jun-10-2004, 6:30pm
Ebay's your best bet...but if you hang around here long enough you'll read things that will make you want to be there when they cut down the tree thats used to make your mando! Thats not sarcasm BTW... http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif
Jim M.
Jun-10-2004, 7:17pm
"Decent" is a pretty relative term but the best buys on the internet are here in the Cafe classifieds. Everything from beginner level $150 Kentuckys to $25K Monteleones. A lot more trustworthy people here than on Ebay, and they generally know a lot more about mandos.
fatt-dad
Jun-10-2004, 7:29pm
I have several mandolins in the $220 to $350 range. Kentucky, Ibanez, Alvarez, Aria, etc. All play well, have cases and straps. Shipping extra - fatt-dad@richmond.com for information.
fatt-dad
richmond, virginia
GTison
Jun-10-2004, 7:50pm
when I first started playing the mandolin I thought a good mando was cheaper than a good guitar. In the words of my friend Scott Andersons song, "how much wronger could I be"
kebmando
Jun-10-2004, 8:02pm
lol...I thought mandolins would be cheaper because there is less raw material...boy, was I surprised!
Well, I think you are talking about the "Bill Gates-class" mandos, but I think the general high cost of "middle-class mandos" is in the carving of the top and the scroll-work.
I was amazed what $375 bought in a Chinese made Rover F-style. The black one at Gruhn's was respectable and tought to beat at the price.
GTison
Jun-12-2004, 6:26pm
It's like the old paying the electrician or mechanic story.
cost 50 cents for the screw and $ 50 to know which one to turn.
It's not the materials it's the skill...
SeanFan
Jun-14-2004, 7:21pm
Yeah, I must admit, Mandolins do cost a fortune!! That's pretty much the reason for this topic. I mostly play Guitar, but I would very much like to get a Mandolin soon. The sound of it is just amazing!! ALso, CHris Thile never stops inspiring me with his songs. =D
rhetoric
Jun-15-2004, 5:31am
Your spelling error must have been some sort of Freudian slip. "Descant" prices abound -- what we need are more "basso" prices (Sorry).
Don't you think it's a market issue? Just not enough people playing the mandolin to make building them well and affordably a sensible business move. I was astonished at how high the jump is from entry level to mid-range -- at least a thousand dollars new. You can buy all sorts of mid-range guitars under a thousand.
ALso, CHris Thile never stops inspiring me with his songs.
This site www.m-w.com (http://www.m-w.com) might come in handy since Noah Webster has clearly not been an inspiration. #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/laugh.gif
GVD
Oh, man, you guys are bad, drive the new guy away. Seanfan -tongues are planted firmly in cheeks around here.
If you want a decent mando for pretty inexpensive, search Flood in the classifieds, this fellow sells some older stuff he buys off ebay or wherever, fixes them up and sells them for nest to nothing, comparitively speaking. They're usually older oval hole mandos, but he's been here for quite a while. No I'm not him and have never met him, just like the looks of his offerings.