Great American Guitar Show in Philly

[chirorehab]

Does anybody know if there will be mando dealers/luthiers there?

Thanks,

Eric

[fatt-dad]

Looks like Charles Johnson (vintagemandolin.com) will be there. Check his schedule at his webpage (http://www.vintagemandolin.com/upcoming_events.html)

fatt-dad

[jim simpson]

Charles is great to deal with. Clay Moore/Franklin Music is usually there and I've enjoyed dealing with him. Darrell McCumbers is also another dealer who I've enjoyed buying from.

[Steph]

I went to the show last year (I live a few miles from Fort Washington) - there were a few vintage mandos but I wouldn't drive any great distance to the show if I was only looking for a vintage mando. The prices didn't strike as a great deal either but the whole thing was worth the $10 entry

[Unseen122]

I went last time saw quite a few mandos but not really that many vintage ones. I can't wait this will be great last time I went it was HUGE. So big it deserves to be in all caps.

[otterly2k]

I went last fall... while there were some mandos there, including Charles Johnson and also Fred Oster (a dealer of vintage instruments here in Philly), it is perhaps 95% guitars and related gear... acoustic and electric. If you are wanting to do a focused mandolin search, it's probably not the best venue. But if you're interested in guitars too, and/or just want to go for the spectacle, it's definitely worth the $10... and you get a little discount if you are bringing in an instrument (people swap, sell, get appraisals, etc.) It truly is HUGE, and I had a lot of fun when I went. I would go again but am out of town this weekend, so will have to wait until November for the next one...

KE

[Unseen122]

I say go if it is not too late I went yesterday and they had quite a few vintage Mandos a lot of Gibson A4s from the 20s. I traded my two bad mandos and $100 for a used Kentucky M-380 it is great.

[Charles Johnson]

If you missed the show, you missed a lot of good mandolins. The highlight was the 1928 Fern that was sold by another dealer. Also for sale were three truss rod F4s, my 1919 F4, a blonde D'Angelico 2 point, my 14 F2 blonde top, a Duff F5, a Weber signed F5V and F5L, 2001 and 2002 F5Ls, a Phoenix Neoclassical, an very early National woodbody mandolin, a German silver Triolian mandolin, my KM-1500, several snakeheads, probably 20 round hole Gibsons, 10 or so A50s, and numerous other Webers, Parsons, Martins, etc. I had 20 or so in my booth alone. I bought the Duff, the F5V, the Neoclassical, a 1919 A4, and a few others at the show. Also there with other dealers (but not for sale) were two Loars.

Next show is the weekend before Thanksgiving. Same place, Fort Washington Expo Center near Philadelphia. Check my web page for details and phone numbers.

Best regards,
Charles Johnson
Mandolin World Headquarters
www.vintagemandolin.com

[Unseen122]

I really liked the D'Angelico but I didn't have $22,000+ on me. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/laugh.gif

[RichM]

"The Shue" mandolin that I played in Charles' booth was one of the nicest in the show-- really big tone. If I wasn't already knee deep in mandolins, I would have considered it. It's still on his website, so I assume it didn't sell. Anybody looking for a mando in this price range (not cheap) ought to take a look.

[jim simpson]

RichM,
I could kick myself for not trying out the Shue. I was so focused on the Duff that Charles had and it was out of my budget. Were you shopping?
Jim

[RichM]

I'm always shopping! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

I always enjoy the Philly guitar show. This one seemed considerably less crowded than previous shows, which was nice for buyers but probably less nice for sellers. Dealers seemed very willing to haggle, some dropping prices the second I looked at an instrument.

Some observations:
- Played a current Gibson F-5 and a Sam Bush model. I just don't get it. Maybe these were not good examples, but these mandos did not justify their prices. Maybe I'm just a small-shop guy. (caveat: beleive it or not, I had never played a Gibson mandolin before)
- Best buy of the show: an Ode Style C banjo that had a lower price on it every time I walked by. A seriously good banjo, seriously underpriced. I hope somebody got it.
-Best price-to-performance ratio: A Mike Ramsey "Student" banjo. This is Mike's bottom-of-the-line banjo, and it's better than half the banjos out there.
-'Pig in a Poke" award: Nothing New Music had an old Gibson oval hole with a big cleated top crack. With my eyes closed, this thing had tone to burn. With my eyes open, I couldn't get past that big, ugly crack (with slivers of wood coming off it, yet). The price seemed highly negotiable, so it might be a good deal for someone who digs the tone and can see past the damage.
-Overall, a pretty good showing of mandolins and banjos for a guitar show