What is the most you paid? [Archive]

allenhopkins

Mar-04-2008, 9:15pm

Never have paid more than $2K for a mando-family instrument. Looking at my inventory, you can tell I've hung on to some of them for quite a while. Couldn't buy them for that price now.

I do wish I'd bought a Loar when they weren't twice as pricey as my house...

Doug Edwards

Mar-04-2008, 9:16pm

Tone Monster... come clean... you're just posing as Tone Monster. You're really my good wife, right? #Com'on, Susan... #this is not gonna work.:p
How many wives do you have?

pjlama

Mar-04-2008, 9:18pm

12.5k, three separate times. MM, Ellis, MM. I still have two. I really hope my wife never sees this.

pjlama

Mar-04-2008, 9:20pm

I'd really like to hear what the Loar owners on the board paid. I'm sure there's a couple good deals.

Crowder

Mar-04-2008, 9:35pm

Never have paid more than $2K for a mando-family instrument. #Looking at my inventory, you can tell I've hung on to some of them for quite a while. #Couldn't buy them for that price now.

I do wish I'd bought a Loar when they weren't twice as pricey as my house...
Yes, it is fairly easy for us to see your inventory, isn't it?

homeslice

Mar-04-2008, 10:05pm

The rest of my life!

JeffD

Mar-04-2008, 10:16pm

I have four working mandolins, and one mandola. Two of the mandolins are bowlbacks. I had a bouzouki that I subsequently sold. Only one of those instruments cost me more than $1K, and that one was under $2K.

Dave Cohen

Mar-04-2008, 10:37pm

I paid $50 for a Gibson A40 (used) in 1971(?). I built all of the mandolins that I've played since then.

http://www.Cohenmando.com

pjlama

Mar-04-2008, 10:39pm

Jeff, I'll give you 2k for that old ,brown Gibson of yours http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

JeffD

Mar-04-2008, 11:01pm

Jeff, I'll give you 2k for that old ,brown Gibson of yours http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif
That old brown thing? http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

I bought that in 1985, in a music store in Boston, for $1K, complete with original case. Not a single scratch on it. It is a 1923.

Next to it on the shelf, I remember, was a Gibson F5 of the same year, not a scratch on it. I took it down and played on it. He wanted $1250 for it, and I did not have that much.

pjlama

Mar-04-2008, 11:16pm

OK, $2250 and no more.

I read the Sheraton Brown thread so I already knew about your old brown mando.

I need a time machine $1250 for a Loar F5.

goose 2

Mar-04-2008, 11:43pm

I bought a new Gilchrist back in the day for 9500 and somehow turned that 9500 mandolin into a Gibson DMM.

Pez D. Spencer

Mar-05-2008, 1:58am

I paid $3200 for my 1993 Nugget F5 Delux,and $300 extra for the Calton case. The case hasn't gone up much in value.

robbyford

Mar-05-2008, 3:37am

800 for my used f9.

Ivan Kelsall

Mar-05-2008, 5:14am

£3,395 UK ($6,790 US) for my Weber 'Fern' 16 months ago.It's gone up in price $400 since then,don't suppose they'll come down again either,
Saska

billkilpatrick

Mar-05-2008, 5:15am

heaps ... not just one but for way too many "cheap" instruments on ebay.

post MAS burnt out - bill

Peter Hackman

Mar-05-2008, 5:38am

$ 7,200 for the Collings. Not worth it.

Chris Biorkman

Mar-05-2008, 7:03am

$11,600 for my Ellis. Ouch.

fishdawg40

Mar-05-2008, 7:11am

$ 7,200 for the Collings. Not worth it.
Darn, I'm sorry about that.

I paid $2750 for an F5 June mandolin. A small builder that used to be out of West Palm Beach but has since relocated to S Carolina. Great mandolin. It's starting to get a really sweet tone. Now if I could just get an oval then I think I'll be content.

Siminole

Mar-05-2008, 7:11am

I paid $400. for a used Korean Kentucky 675 a few years back, and bartered about $500. of labor for a used Eastman 515. I know they are used but was what I could afford and they both play much better than my skill level.

Al http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

AlanN

Mar-05-2008, 7:15am

$0 for my Sekova, found in trash bin.

red7flag

Mar-05-2008, 7:16am

$7200 for the Collings MF5. Worth it.
Tony

300win

Mar-05-2008, 8:57am

$ 2000 including tax, etc. for my new A-9.

Nick Triesch

Mar-05-2008, 9:14am

$3500 in 04 for a Weber Fern but I made up for that years ago when my wife found me my 23 Gibson A for $175 24 years ago from a junk collector. Nice shape too! Nick

sgarrity

Mar-05-2008, 9:19am

$4500 for a brand new Bill Davis F5. Wish I still had it....

gh_mando

Mar-05-2008, 10:00am

$573.67 a month.

chip

Mar-05-2008, 10:04am

Let's see...96 Gilchrist F5...alot
02 Gibson F5-V-MM-alot
22 Gibson F4...alot
95 Flatiron A5..reasonable.. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

lovethemf5s

Mar-05-2008, 10:07am

$5400 for my Collings last November. Worth every dime. It hadn't been played a lot when I first got it but I put an end to that. It just keeps getting better all the time. I think it's rewarding me with it's new found attention.

Bill Van Liere

Mar-05-2008, 10:09am

How about best deal ya ever got? I paid $386.00 for a Flatiron A5-JR in 1984.

Back to high dollar programming.

f5loar

Mar-05-2008, 10:17am

$250,000 plus overnight shipping.

Steve Perry

Mar-05-2008, 10:20am

I paid about $4500 for mine at the store.... #and will be paying hell for the rest of my life at home. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

MikeEdgerton

Mar-05-2008, 11:14am

$250,000 plus overnight shipping.
The shipping will always kill you, I swear http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

billhay4

Mar-05-2008, 11:56am

Hundreds of hours (perhaps thousands) of my own labor. Got four in the bag and four on the bench. We'll see if any is the last one. I think there are hundreds more hours out there to be spent.
Bill

Lee

Mar-05-2008, 12:12pm

I just hit the $3000 mark, plus the $40 for shipping. The Phoenix Jazz is sitting next to me as I write, temperature acclimating from it's trip from Kentucky, and driving me crazy. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

Philphool

Mar-05-2008, 12:35pm

$500 more than the guy asked me for it.
(Plus ~$1000 gas money.) (Plus untold orders of KFC)

Phil

Denny Gies

Mar-05-2008, 12:48pm

$6,000 for a 1993 Randy Wood. Hurt at the time but haven't regretted one penny of the investment.

acousticphd

Mar-05-2008, 1:32pm

I used to have three kids. #After my recent Kimble arrival, I've found two children to be quite sufficient.

That's good. #Family (or lack of) has got to be a major consideration on the individual instruments we buy, as well as the collection we amass....

So far, I believe ~$1400 was my max. #I spent about that for an Old Wave A-oval and on an Old Wave C# which is my current high-price winner. #My other main in play/"working" instruments (2 Gibson As, Old Wave A5, Ratcliff A5, Givens Legacy A5, Jon Mann A5, Howard Morris F4), have tended to be in the $600 - $1000 range when I bought them. #All were used except for the Morris F4, and other than the C#, the rest are all A styles, which kept the prices down.

I have had a lot of trouble so far spending much above ~$1 K on any individual mandolin, but I couldn't replace anything I have for less than probably $1500 now. #Good for my instruments' value and possible resale, but not so good for my ongoing M.A.S. #Of all the significant mandolins I've ever bought in 6-7 years, I have sold only one so far. But now I think more and more about selling several and using the combined $$ for something special.

acousticphd

Mar-05-2008, 1:34pm

I guess I would add that to me, they've all been very good deals too.

OregonMike

Mar-05-2008, 2:05pm

[quote=pjlama,Mar. 04 2008, 23:39]

I bought that in 1985... Next to it on the shelf, I remember, was a Gibson F5 of the same year, not a scratch on it. I took it down and played on it. He wanted $1250 for it, and I did not have that much.
Wow... did '23 F-5 MMs really sell for $1250 in 1985? That puts it all in perspective.

I have a minty '16 A-0 I paid $500 for in 1997 and a Snakehead I paid $2700 for in 2004.

AlanN

Mar-05-2008, 2:24pm

Next to it on the shelf, I remember, was a Gibson F5 of the same year, not a scratch on it. I took it down and played on it. He wanted $1250 for it, and I did not have that much.
http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif

tnpathfinder

Mar-05-2008, 2:41pm

$1500 for my Glenn F5 Fern and lovin it.

tkdboyd

Mar-05-2008, 3:12pm

Most I have paid is 1200.00 for a locally made mandolin. Its neck is twice as thick as it should be, but it is loud and the gentleman who made it has been a central figure to Bluegrass music in these parts for 30 years or so.

Well worth the money considering it is a piece of Wabash Valley American Folk Art. The end pin/strap button has a small MOP inlay of Indiana in it. Only instrument I am going to bequeath to my wife who is a an American history teacher; Rather than passing it along to my brothers or nephews who play. They can divide up all the other instruments I have acquired over the years.

Best deal has been a John Jorgenson model Paris Swing on eBay with minor blemishes for 325.00

allenhopkins

Mar-05-2008, 3:24pm

Yes, it is fairly easy for us to see your inventory, isn't it?
I sense a put-down...

woodwizard

Mar-05-2008, 4:10pm

In 1980 I gave $20.00 for 1947 Gibson L7 archtop. (still have it). My best deal ever.
In 1982 $1500 for a 1972 Gibson F5 used for 10 yrs and sold for $1500 (I know ... it wasn't the good years) but I got my money back.
$600 for a '42 A50. Then a brand new A5L '03 for $2540. Traded it for a '01 F5G. Then traded my HD35 for a custom '04 F9. Then ... finally traded the F9 & F5G for my current '06 Goldrush. Talk about MAS attacks. I'm good for now though. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

Landgrass

Mar-05-2008, 4:27pm

$950 for my 2004 (new) A9 during the GC Clearance event.

mandroid

Mar-05-2008, 5:27pm

Considering the Scrooge I worked for and it was San Francisco I was attempting to live in, the lenient lay away plan that I got from Larry at the Geary street 5th string makes my 22 A extra special.
breaking up with the BiPolar girlfriend ... was the beginning of my end of trying to survive in that town.

pjlama

Mar-05-2008, 5:41pm

Yes, it is fairly easy for us to see your inventory, isn't it?
I sense a put-down...
I was wondering the same thing. Anyway, I enjoy your list, there's some unusual pieces.

allenhopkins

Mar-05-2008, 6:27pm

I enjoy your list, there's some unusual pieces.
Thanx. I really don't list them to brag; it's just a 30+ year accumulation. I get responses from time to time -- "I see you have a '50's F-5; does it have such and such kind of tailpiece," that sort of thing. I treasure an e-mail I got from Butch Baldassari when I first joined the Cafe, asking what I thought of my Howe-Orme mandolinetto.

Since I've been playing music -- I started doing "professional" gigs around 1970 -- I've plowed some of what I've made back into picking up instruments that interested me. Luckily I've never had to live on the unreliable income stream that acoustic music has provided.

But I do have a lot of affection for my little "herd" of mandolins, and the banjos, guitars, Autoharps, concertinas etc. that have come my way. Someday, they'll all get released back into that musical stream out there, and new hands will coax better music from them than I ever could. I'm just grateful to be the temporary custodian of such varied, fascinating instruments.

pager

Mar-05-2008, 8:00pm

Allen:
I LOVE your list. I have to admit it makes me a tad jealous! That is a fun list. I can tell from your list you are a very interesting person and you would be a hoot to jam with.

niaflsbob

Mar-05-2008, 8:52pm

$2800 for my new ratliff r5. just a great mando. 700 for a capek a-5 standard (from the classifieds). took a chance, but a fine a mando for 1/2 of what else
is going for out there. and a washburn f-style from the early 80s. $600 (from the classifieds) again well worth what i paid, but maybe for sale soon.

woodwizard

Mar-05-2008, 9:24pm

Allen quote: I'm just grateful to be the temporary custodian of such varied, fascinating instruments.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Well said Allen ... all.

Crowder

Mar-05-2008, 9:34pm

Yes, it is fairly easy for us to see your inventory, isn't it?
I sense a put-down...
Nothing personal, in fact you're not the only "offender", and for the record I have nothing against you sharing your collection with all of us. But your sig list is three inches tall. For those of us who browse the board on a small laptop screen, or at least for me, it's frustrating to have to scroll through the longer sigs over and over again.

Just my two cents.

Chris Biorkman

Mar-05-2008, 9:42pm

lovethemf5s

Mar-05-2008, 10:05pm

$ 7,200 for the Collings. Not worth it.
Wow, that's a bummer. Did you play it before you bought it? http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/sad.gif

Mental Floss

Mar-05-2008, 10:12pm

Joe F

Mar-05-2008, 10:21pm

First mandolin was a plywood Lotus that cost $39.

The second was a Japanese Kentucky KM-200S that I bought in 1982 for $200 plus the Lotus trade-in. I still use it as my main instrument, and have invested in new frets, nut, tuners and a Doug Edwards pickguard. (It's pictured in my Avatar).

Third was a Freshwater deep-box mando that ran about $500 including import duty, back in 2002.

I'm on the list for a new F5 from Austin Clark, which will push me into the four-figure region for the first time.

pjlama

Mar-05-2008, 11:55pm

Well I sold off nearly 30 instruments in the last year so it could be much worse http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

Rick Schmidlin

Mar-06-2008, 12:15am

Tone Monster... come clean... you're just posing as Tone Monster. You're really my good wife, right? #Com'on, Susan... #this is not gonna work.:p
No I'm not http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/laugh.gif

JeffD

Mar-06-2008, 10:46am

Well I sold off nearly 30 instruments in the last year so it could be much worse http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif
Is that organ a Hammond B, the staple of rock and roll throughout the 60s and early 70s, and the go to organ for those television serials before that?

Jeff Hildreth

Mar-06-2008, 10:57am

As a frugal soul and never buying unless the instrument is stellar and the price in the cellar

for an original and genuine Givens A-6 in mint condition... # $850

A couple German made modern classicals for $1100

fatt-dad

Mar-06-2008, 11:52am

Once I paid $4,000.00 for an F-style mandolin and another time I paid about $2,700.00 for another F-style mandolin. Returned the first and sold the second one, in both cases realizing that my Flatiron A5-1 is all the mandolin I need. It cost about $1,200.00 and I wouldn't sell it for twice that. It remains my most costly mandolin.

f-d

fwoompf

Mar-06-2008, 12:16pm

$1750 for a Newell A, and I couldn't be happier http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

Jim Hilburn

Mar-06-2008, 12:28pm

The last mandolin I paid for was in 1975. It was Ome #2 and it was made by Nugget. Something like his third or forth. At the same time he was also working on Tim O'Brien's blackface A. But the Ome was the first mandolin to feature the vine and flower inlay's which can be found on Tim's and now the Collings Tim O'Brien model. I paid $600 for the Ome.
I've made everything else I've played ever since. Unfortunately after making my first I sold the Ome...for $700.

pjlama

Mar-06-2008, 1:15pm

Jeff it's not a B3, just a pawn shop prize but still fun.

allenhopkins

Mar-06-2008, 2:18pm

Nothing personal, in fact you're not the only "offender", and for the record I have nothing against you sharing your collection with all of us. But your sig list is three inches tall. For those of us who browse the board on a small laptop screen, or at least for me, it's frustrating to have to scroll through the longer sigs over and over again.

Just my two cents.
I'd put it in two columns if I could...maybe I'll fratz around with it a little and see if I could make it less lengthy.

Rick Schmidlin

Mar-06-2008, 2:36pm

$ 7,200 for the Collings. Not worth it.
http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif

Griffis

Mar-06-2008, 2:43pm

It will be some time before I can afford a truly nice mandolin. My ultimate would be a 19-teens or 1920s Gibson A2...pumpkintop oval hole. Although I really love the look of two-point mandolins as well.

For the moment, I have $50 sunk into a Rogue A style with f-holes (I bought a $40 case for it), $328 in a Kentucky KM-172 that came with a nice hardshell case and a strap. It is currently getting set up. Plus, I have a 1920s-30s banjo mandolin for which I traded a ukulele.

I really have my eyes set on an octave mandolin more than anything at the moment, but unless I begin selling off instruments it will be a ways on down the road.

bienkow1

Mar-06-2008, 2:53pm

1600 for my Breedlove Quartz FF...brand new.

Couldn't be happier.

mando_dan

Mar-06-2008, 4:11pm

Best deal? Picked up a nearly unplayed blackface 1987 Flatiron A last year for $750 from the classifieds. Felt guilty buying it...

Matt the Mead Maker

Mar-06-2008, 4:50pm

My spendiest mando was something like $450 for a Mid-Missouri A style. My youngest son recently drooled through the soundhole, so the label's a little unreadable and I'm not sure which model it is. I've never played a vintage Gibson or anything but I can sure tell you that Mid Missouri makes some wonderful mandolins for the price. The tone on my MidMo is just beautiful. I just wish it were a little louder for the bigger jams.

micall5

Mar-06-2008, 5:17pm

$29.95 with free shipping for my Rouge.
$375.00 for my Mid Mo 4 (pre-Big Muddy)
Planing (hoping) to spend 2-3000 by summer. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

Jason Holmes

Mar-06-2008, 5:21pm

$1750 for a Newell A, and I couldn't be happier http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif
Same for me, and worth every penny.

Crowder

Mar-06-2008, 5:34pm

Jeff it's not a B3, just a pawn shop prize but still fun.
Big hitter, the lama.

pjlama

Mar-06-2008, 8:59pm

Awe, I'm just joking around.

The Hammond is pretty silly, it has some really cheesy beatbox stuff on it.

dmamlep

Mar-06-2008, 9:04pm

4000.00 had to get it, just started playing in a bluegrass band, had to put half on a credit card. Gibson f5l,and I have played lots since and not many can touch it.-

smallshinything

Mar-06-2008, 9:17pm

I'm only at $730. Got a great deal on an Eastman from a great guy right here on the Cafe, I need to play this one better before I buy up again, I'm a believer in earning an instrument through practice and hard work as opposed to my job.

It was a very satisfying feeling when I hit the wall and just had to have a better instrument. There's nothing like finding the limitations of a mandolin and needing to go up.

greg_tsam

Mar-06-2008, 10:14pm

$1999.00 for my Breedlove Quartz FF. It cost $500 more than base with the custom bindings and glossy finish. I love it.

Crowder

Mar-06-2008, 10:35pm

I have spent the same $3,500 about four times:

Collings MT2>BRW>Collings MF>Passernig

As long as I stick to my rule about only having one at a time I should be okay. But I don't, since I traded a guitar for the Flatiron A Artist that I keep at the office. But every so often I am tempted to sell BOTH mandolins and get something in the $6,000 range. I just haven't played many of those that I'd trade my Passernig for, even straight up.

Danny Packer

Mar-06-2008, 11:27pm

I spent $10 on raffle tix and won a one-off Oldwave. All New Mexico woods. Thanks bill!

jasona

Mar-07-2008, 12:35am

Right around $1000, a nice even number.

JeffD

Mar-07-2008, 12:39am

I spent $10 on raffle tix and won a one-off Oldwave. All New Mexico woods. #Thanks bill!
Is that your best deal, or the most you ever paid? http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

Danny Packer

Mar-07-2008, 7:06am

awright, best deal. But still worth sharing.

Mark Walker

Mar-07-2008, 7:43am

With the oil varnish finish and painting of an angel, about $3200.

Worth EVERY penny. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

djeffcoat

Mar-07-2008, 10:02am

I paid $2800.00 for a used Monty GA in 1986 and then $2700.00 for a new Woodley F5 in 2000. Haven't had a MAS attack since.

DJ

Peter Hackman

Mar-07-2008, 10:25am

$ 7,200 for the Collings. Not worth it.
Wow, that's a bummer. Did you play it before you bought it? http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/sad.gif
First of all I doubt that any mandolin is worth that kind of money. By way of comparison I paid $2,700 for my Collings guitar, a cutaway rosewood SJ.

I bought an F-style mandolin because I happened to have the money, after selling some shares at a substantial profit. Living in Europe I had to go by recommendations alone. The mando plays well but doesn't quite have the snap and clarity that I hoped for; also tends to pinch when driven hard. It is, however, far superior to my Flatiron Artist A5 ($ 1,400 in 1996), and has good set-up at the nut. The radiused fretboard also contributes to its eminent playability.

jim_n_virginia

Mar-07-2008, 11:54am

$2,500.00 and my old F style Flatiron as a trade in for a Gibson F-5L http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif

drjuliushibbert

Mar-09-2008, 12:15pm

This thread is actually encouraging. As a newbie I sometimes read these boards and I think that everyone owns a $10,000 mandolin. Its nice to see some price points that are more in line with my budget.

Fliss

Mar-09-2008, 12:29pm

£800 (GBP) for my Phil Davidson flat top

Fliss

Nick Triesch

Mar-09-2008, 12:42pm

I've seen John Moore many times play an old Kentucky F type. He make it sound like a Nugget. And at a workshop he was giving someone asked how often he changed his strings and he said he really could not remember. It was not important to him. Sorry, just a cool story. Nick

birdman98

Mar-09-2008, 6:36pm

Just threw about 1,990 at a 2005 f-9.

Have yet to get my hands on it...it's still making its way across the Pacific and through Japanese customs.

Putting alot of blind faith in eBay feedback, Gibson and the USPS http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif

So..it's definitely the most I've spent on an instrument. It may very well be the best deal I've gotten...but the jury will be out on that for a long time.

allenhopkins

Mar-09-2008, 11:35pm

OK, modified my signature so it's not three inches long. #May be a bit harder to decipher, but let's hope Crowder* and other lap-top scrollers will find it less onerous. #And -- was able to squeeze in the Eastman 805 mandocello I got in December. #(Still can't fit in the Regal Octofone, the Jordan solid-body, the Holdrio piccolo mandolin, or the no-name banjo-mandolin that a friend gave me, but hey, 250 characters is 250 characters).

* Later: interesting name, that -- now I have a more "crowded" signature...

morgan

Mar-10-2008, 12:32pm

allen hopkins, interesting story about Butch and your HO mandolinetto. I met Butch at cape cod mandocamp 2 years ago where I had my mandolinetto, and he was very interested in it. Unfortunately at the time it had a dead set of GHS classical strings on it (are there any strings that go dead faster?) so it didn't have the big bright sound it normally does. He asked if I could put heavier strings on it.

and please leave all your instruments in your signature; it helps to have my wife understand how pitifully small my mando collection is.

back to the thread: $1850 for an 1920 F4 in 1988. Wish I'd bought 20 of 'em to pay for the kids' college.