Upgrade to Breedlove OF

[Sergio Saldivar]

I was saving some money for a new Breedlove Alpine, but some unexpected expenses made me put that in the back burner for a while... So, I am think in some upgrades for my beloved sunburst Breedlove OF. I would like your opinion on some of these projected upgrades, which should cost me less than $750 (or even far less):

1. Tuners: Is it worth to install Waverly tuners on this mando, or will Schallers be as good?
2. Bridge: Would a Husky walrus bridge and nut increase the tone and volume?
3. Tailpiece: I am pretty happy with the black cast tailpiece, but, would and Allen AR-2 (not much of my like, but the MR-2 will require some drilling) tailpiece improve the tone and volume too?
3. Finishing: I have read about some people buffing the satin finish to a gloss finish. Is the result any good? What kind of products can be used if I decide to do this?

Many thanks. The input of all of you is very appreciated.

Sergio

[JEStanek]

Your best return on investment would be replacing and fitting a good bridge (whether that is walrus or not I don't know). A properly fit bridge will bring more of the good out of your instrument.

Waverlies on Breedlove OF! The tuners are practically worth the resale value of the instrument. If what you have on there hold tune leave them alone. If not get something else (but you don't need to spend $500).

Tailpiece... some folks say they improve sustain a bit... a bit. It won't improve volume. I would only change a tailpiece if the original was broken.

Finishing. I can't imagine that this will make any differnce in your mandolin's sound. It will likely cost a fair bit too (couple hundred bucks... guessing.).

If your Breedlove is beloved, leave well enough alone or maybe spend $200 on some private lessons to help you get the most out of what you have, or go to a couple concerts and get inspired. Or save your money and be that much closer to your goal of an Alpine.

Just my opinions on this... worth what you paid for 'em.
Jamie

[H.P.]

Have a good luthier check the set-up. Maybe upgrade the bridge, if luthier concurs.

Use good strings and change regularly. Get a good electronic tuner.

Invest in a good pick.

Play as is after the above and save up for an instrument at the next level.

Paul

[Sergio Saldivar]

Thank you both Jamie and Paul. It makes a lot of sense. I will leave the OF alone and restart saving for that Alpine...

Best,

Sergio

[DerTiefster]

Any money you pour into the OF will be only returned in using it yourself. This means you have no way of knowing until you're done with a particular upgrade whether it really is an upgrade or just an increased expense (there -is- a difference), and you won't get the money back on re-sale. The ~$700 scale of which you speak with bridge and tuners and the fitting thereof would come close to buying you a nice Gibson A-9 or an ff-hole A-style from several good independent luthiers.

What do you want from the "upgrade," anyway? You could get an older Gibson mandolin like the bargain on the classifieds this a.m. (which may have already disappeared, but I wasn't in the market) or a Flatiron pancake for fun and furthering your education. An Octave Mandolin? A mandola? A Rigel A-natural? You have options galore. Or take out a bank loan, sell your OF, and buy the Alpine now, before the economy recovers. I thought there were two (2) in the cafe classifieds.