I came back with something from the festival!

[jim_n_virginia]

... no not what you think! #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

I bought a 2002 Gibson Fern from Herschel Sizemore who was at the Roanoke Fiddle Fest and he was telling me about this mandolin. He said it was one of the best sounding Fern's he had heard in a long time (this guy owns 4 Loars!)and I asked him if I could check it out.

I have a 1990 Steve Carlson signed Gibson Fern that I have been playing for a good long while now and I've always heard the newer ones were built more to Loar specs and so I asked him if I could stop by and check in out at his house on my way home from the festival.

I have been hearing a long time how Charlie took the F-5's back to Loar specs but I never really had a chance to A/B the two instruments from the different eras.

First thing I noticed was the newer Fern was very much lighter than my old mandolin. The tuners are different and the flame on the back is not as pronounced.

My old mandolin had a bolt on neck and the newer Fern has a dove tail notch assmbly. To my ears the sound (volume wise)is about the same BUT the chops are very different. The newer Fern has a little bit louder more resonant chop that I very much like.

Anyone ever own an old Fern and then change to a newer one? I'd very much like to hear your opinion.

The setup is a little bit better than how I have my old mandolin I think. The newer Fern has a very close action and still pretty loud. My older mandolin has a medium to high action and I cannot lower it down any more or the low E strings will buz but it is at a height I am comfortable with.

I will probably have to sell the 1990 Fern to recoupe the cash as I kinda wasn't planning this buy, it just sort of happened! #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

I've been sitting around all day playing both mandolins checking them out and comparing them.

All in all I'm keeping the newer Fern and so I have to sell the older one I guess. No use in having two right???

Also the beans I'm going to be eating for the next several months are going to get very bland if I don't sell my old mandolin! LOL! I just sure hate to see it go... me and that mandolin has been through many a gig, jam and open mic night. I hate to see it go.

I bought the mandolin off of Markleberry of the Cafe and it has served me very well. # http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif

I'd post a picture but heck we all know what a plain Jane Gibson Fern looks like!

[Mikey G]

I once had a 2001 F-5L, (before they started listing them exclusively as Ferns on the labels,) and it was a fine mandolin. I would say if Herschel Sizemore said it was one of the best sounding Ferns he had heard in a long time, it probably is. I met Herschel once at IBMA and had the chance to talk to him for a while, and have always been very impressed by his picking. I was at Gibson OAI in Nashville and they had a Master Model of his for sale, and it was absolutely gorgeous! If memory serves me correctly, they were asking for $14.5K for it. It was really dark in finish, and had the antiqued binding on it. Being a TN resident, I wasn't much on the thought of having to pay almost $1,500 in sales tax, bringing the cost up to sixteen thousand. It also had a scooped fretboard extension, which I personally didn't want on a mandolin, but it was one of the most beautiful looking, sounding, and playing mandolins I ever held in my hands. If I ever ordered a new mandolin, I would love to have one that looked just like this one.

I hated to see my Fern go, but it was the only way I could fuel my MAS.

[Pete Martin]

I came back with a hangover http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

[JEStanek]

Congratulations. I say, post a pic anyway. We don't know what 6 years od Sizemore-ification to it will look like.

Jamie

[mandomick]

Yea, post a pic anyway! Most of us are plain jane peoples and we post pics in that thread.

Jamie....cool avatar, virzi brain.

[sgarrity]

Now Jim....I told you about buying those Gibson mandolins! Congrats on the new mando. I wanna come play it soon!

[Chris Biorkman]

No use in having two right???
Blasphemy!

Congrats on the new acquisition. Now lets see some pics. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[Steven Stone]

I played a Carlson-signed Montana Fern for several years.

I've had a 2002 Fern (varnished in 2005) since it was five days old.

The Darrington-era Fern has a more resonant and even chop (the Montana one was weaker in the G position and only began to honk in A and higher). Also the 2002 has better definition on single notes and during double-stops.

The Montana GIbson was very good, but I like the Darrington-era Fern better.

[Mark Seale]

After reading the subject I was going to suggest penicillin... http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

Post a pic. I'm wondering if it is the mando he played at the Symposium most of the week. I spoke to his wife during the big concert and she said they weren't comfortable traveling that far with the Loar and had brought an F5 that Charlie had built for him. Charlie's F5 was very nice and had a really even tone across the board. If that's the one, you certainly scored a fine instrument.

[jim_n_virginia]

#I'm wondering if it is the mando he played at the Symposium most of the week. #I spoke to his wife during the big concert and she said they weren't comfortable traveling that far with the Loar and had brought an F5 that Charlie had built for him. #
Man I wish I got THAT mandolin. I know the one you are talking about and it's a custom made Master Model that Charlie made and gave to Herschel.

He told me at the Roanoke Bluegrass Weekend that he values that mandolin as much as and maybe more than his Loars. He usually takes that one to travel with. I got to play it for about 3 minutes and it is an awesome mandolin.

I got a F-5L that belonged to a friend of his that he thought had an exceptional tone. He said it was because the finish on it was real thin. He held the mandolin up and you could see the striations or wood grain coming through. He said if the finish is like glass and smooth then the finish is thick.

[fiddlingdan]

Jim
What did you think of Fiddlefest this year
DAn

[Mike Snyder]

Jim,
#Just my opinion, but, I believe that one of the factors that make the Derrington (& post-Derrington) era mandolins
consistantly sound good is the finish. It seems to shrink quickly, the striations of the grain appear at about 3-4 years, along with maturation of tonal qualities. Of course I'm not terribly objective on the subject, just my observation of all the modern Gibsons whose owners were foolish enough to let me close to their sweethearts.
Congratz on your new best friend.