Found a 1921 gibson a-4 for sale,need a price check please

[thorin68]

I found someone selling a 1921 A-4 for $2,500,according to the sellers add it's in "exellant" condition,yes he misspelled excellent and also he told me if he were to trade it would be for a muscle car.....sounds like an interesting character.Anyways he wants $2,500 ,take a look at the pic and tell me what you think a fair price would be for this mando.He said he might be able to haggle on the price.thanks in advance for your sage like opinions.http://img52.imageshack.us/img52/1025/3nf3m93l55y25o55w0a48df.jpg

[sgarrity]

If it's in good condition with the original case, then that's a fair price. Not a screaming deal but a fair price. I'd look it over for cracks, make sure the top isn't sinking, play it and see how you like it and then make him an offer.

[mandotrev]

The finish seems to have an odd patina to it. It could be just the light and angle it was photographed, but I am not 100 percent convinced that is the original finish.

[mrmando]

Ah yes, here it is (http://boston.craigslist.org/sob/msg/1682973409.html). The seller does mention that it has the original case. I agree with Shaun -- the price is about what you'd expect to pay at your average shop for something like this. If it's all original and doesn't need setup or repair work, and you like the way it feels, plays, and sounds, then $2.5K is a fair price ... although that doesn't mean you can't try to talk the guy down to $2250. For $2K or less it starts to look more like an outstanding deal, but he may not want to go down that far. Looks like it has a metal truss rod cover but not an aluminum saddle, so it's probably mid-'22 rather than '21.

Do you know whether the seller is a player, and has the instrument ready for you to try out? At the asking price, he'd better. Last time I went to look at a vintage A4 from CL, I think the seller wanted $2800 ... and it was an earlier instrument (no truss rod), missing a couple of strings, and the remaining strings were old and cruddy (i.e., it was not really ready to play, so how could I evaluate it fairly?). Maybe take along a set of your favorite strings in case this needs restringing.

On the other hand, if he's not a player and this is Grandpa's mandolin that's been sitting a long time, you don't want to tune it up until a qualified repair tech has looked at it. There are a number of caveats attached to the question of whether this is a fair price, so you might want to find out more about the instrument.

[thorin68]

Yeah i haven't gotten that far with him as to whether he plays or not,I asked how the frets were and he said he believes they look ok.He did say it was his father's who passed away a few years ago.tempted to go take a look,but i don't know if i could come up with his asking price...though he did say is somewhat negotiable.Well anybody in the Boston area here's a heads up if your in the market.