Radius...... or not? And Bridge?

[DannyV]

Howdy,

I'm waiting for some small fret wire to arrive and thought I would through out there what you think of radiusing a fret board on the "A" mando I'm making? I don't have a lot of playing time on mandolin but have played guitar for about 35 years and wouldn't think about not putting a radius on a steel string guitar. I see some of you use 9". Some don't do any. I like a 16" on a guitar and I think that is pretty common. If one did radius I guess you would give the same treatment to the bridge?

And....... The bridge is fitting pretty close and I'm about ready to start finishing. Would you do the final fit before or after finish? Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Cheers,
Danny

[sunburst]

Whew, that's a lot of questions all at once!
Lets see... I find that most mandolin players prefer an arched 'board, if they have a preference, but certainly not all. There are those who greatly prefer a flat 'board.

16" is standard on many guitars, but a mandolin neck is much narrower, and a 16" radius barely shows up. 10" or smaller works better, IMO, and I use 7 1/4" (like a Fender guitar).

Some people like for a mandolin bridge to be flat across, and will use a flat bridge even with an arched 'board. they say it is for right hand playing, but steel string guitar players almost all play with an arched saddle with no complaints, so I don't understand why some mandolin players like a flat bridge better. They'll have to fill you in on that info. I arch the bridge too.

The bridge needs to fit the top after it is finished. That doesn't mean you shouldn't fit it to the top before finishing, but don't be surprised if you have to re-fit is a little after the finish is done.

[Mark Franzke]

I think John answered everything, but I will just add that the bridge should fit before it is finished, so that you can make any tonal adjustments while it is still in the white. After finishing, you will need to re-fit it, but it won't take as much effort as it did initially. I also arch the bridge to match the fretboard because a flat bridge will make the action higher on the two outside strings up the neck.
Just another 2 cents.

[Big Joe]

I prefer a flat fingerboard as do most mandolin players in Nashville. It really does not matter, but I don't think it offers any advantage and may even have a couple disadvantages. If you do radius the board, please radius the saddle to match the fingerboard radius. As for fitting the bridge, follow what the others have said. Fit before finish for a rough fit and then do a final fit after finish is applied and mandolin is complete and ready for setup.

[DannyV]

, but I will just add that the bridge should fit before it is finished, so that you can make any tonal adjustments while it is still in the white.
Just another 2 cents.

Thanks you for your help! Tonal adjustments. That must be in the part of the book I spilled my coffee on.:grin: A tiny insight would be really appreciated. Sounds like you string up before you finish? I've only built guitars and it's not to practical to do.

It's a bit of a coin toss on a radius since I bet every mandolin I have ever played probably had a flat finger board. I think I'll leave it flat. Good enough for the guys in Nashville, good enough for me. Maybe the next one.

Thanks again.
Danny

[Rolfe]

One thing to remember is that if you arch the bridge saddle, it will change the compensation profile. So make a careful drawing or template before you arch the saddle, then refile the compensation cuts to match the original.