My first mando

[flatpickingguru]

I am trying to find out what mandolin I should start out with. I live about two hours away from Folk of the Wood, and I am thinking about taking a drive up there to play a few mandos. I spoke with Nathan at Folk of the Wood, and He had suggested a rigel a+deluxe with a custom natural finish or if I wanted to spend a little less money a weber hyalite He said they had both in stock so I decided I am going to go up there this weekend and test them out. I am completly new at mandolin but I do know that I want something US made because I know good instruments. Any suggestions or recomendations would be greatly appreciated.

[John Rosett]

they're both well-made instruments from small companies that are passionate about building fine mandolins. personally, i like the hyalite. i say play everything in the store, and buy the one you like best and can afford.
have fun!
john

[neal]

Both are good, check out Breedlove, too. If you have to go US made, these are fine choices, but also look at Mid-Missouri, made in USA and not as expensive. If it's your first, and you need USA made, you can always recoup your bucks with MidMo when it's time to trade up.

If you do play a MidMo, and you think it fits the bill, check out the classifieds here first.