Mandolin Cafe Forum - Looking for information about mandolins

JC Huffman and the Huffman Boys

catherine huffman — Fri, 17 May 2013 15:52:47 GMT

I am looking for anyone who played music with my Dad JC huffman and my brothers. They are from lapel Ind.

What does this mean?........3-ply bindings on top?..........

dfalkiewicz — Fri, 17 May 2013 14:02:39 GMT

3-ply bindings on top?..........does this affect the sound?

or Single ivoroid binding on back and fretboard?.........again does this have anything to do with the instruments sound?

Don't laugh, I truly don't know.

Thanks

help with info

jetsy14 — Thu, 16 May 2013 13:04:30 GMT

i inherited this barnes and mullins banjo mandolin and was hoping to find out some history its vintage and roughly its value , all info would be appreciated thanks steve .

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Monzino's instruments: in which museums in the world are they?

araihc — Thu, 16 May 2013 09:24:16 GMT

Hi everyone!

I'm doing a search with the aim of draw a map of the museums around the world in which the Antonio Monzino's instruments are distribuited;

Also thanks to indications that some of you have left in past threads, nowday I know that there are splendid examples of Monzino's Mandolinos in:

- Castello Sforzesco in Milan
- the Cit� de la Musique in Paris (Inv. No. D.AD.32042. Photo � - Cit� de la Musique)
- University of Leipzig - Museum of Musical Instruments (= Museum f�r Musikinstrumente der Universit�t Leipzig)

Could you help me to complete this trip through all over the world museums (or private collection)?

Please, let me know also if you know about the locations of Monzino's music instruments also if they are not mandolins. Linked to this, could you suggest me a way or blogs in which I could find this kind of information about Monzino guitars, violins and so on?

Thank you very much for your cooperation.

All the best,

Chiara

Kentucky KM 675 old vs new?

dfalkiewicz — Wed, 15 May 2013 19:34:23 GMT

Hello, I am looking at a couple of Kentucky KM 675 mandolins. The older used one has the Florida, and the back wood is not as fancy as the new version which has the Florida removed and has a great looking back.

Of course sound and neck action are first priority. Any other suggestions or comments?

Thanks,

Dave

Amazon?

thanton — Wed, 15 May 2013 15:07:03 GMT

What do you guys think to buying a mandolin from Amazon? - I am planning on ordering myself a KM-254.

Obviously I would rather support a local music store if possible, but there aren't any near me.

Please share any experience good/bad you've had of buying instruments from Amazon, particularly the condition of the mandolin when you received it.

I am resigned to the fact that it will probably not be very playable when it arrives but I'll take it to get a service/set up once I've played it in a bit.

Thanks.

A couple of Kentucky Mandolin Quesitons

joemcg — Tue, 14 May 2013 20:29:52 GMT

In my short playing career I've now had three Kentucky mandolins. I just sold my KM-150 and as you can see in my sig I have a KM-805 & KM-900. So here are a couple of questions for the experts:

Serial Numbers - Do Kentucky serial numbers start with the date of Manufacture?
Factories - I've seen references here to a couple of different factories, one producing the Master products and one the others. Is this true and where are they located?

Thanks.
joe

Questions about buying my first mandolin

ZachNCheez — Tue, 14 May 2013 13:07:09 GMT

I'm looking to buy and learn to play a mandolin and I had a couple questions on what to look for. I found 2 A style F hole (I think that's what it is) mandolins on Amazon for $50 that I could potentially be interested in. I don't want to spend a lot of money, but I want something that will work for me. To be honest I am not even sure what A style F hole exactly means. I want an Italian sounding mandolin. I'm not a huge fan of the bluegrass mandolins (if it matters). Is $50 even a good price for a mandolin or at least for a beginner? What is the difference between a mandolin with a hole in the middle and one without? Thanks! :mandosmiley:

Weber custom f oval hole for jazz vs Gibson teens oval

Barry Canada — Tue, 14 May 2013 02:07:36 GMT

I have a Gibson teens Oval hole A2 and find it too muddled and tubby sounding. Also have a Phoenix neoclassical which I love. I was wondering about if anyone could provide me with some feedback about the Weber sound and its possibilities in Jazz?
Thanks!

Barnes & Mullins: Salvino Mandolin

thanton — Sun, 12 May 2013 20:38:56 GMT

Can people give me their thoughts on this mandolin please?
http://www.musicroom.com/se/id_no/01063268/details.html
I can barely find any information on it anywhere online!
Also if anyone could suggest an alternative for <�300 ish, it would be very much appreciated!

Thanks!

Update on old 2011 post- 1920 Gibson A-4

Peggy Cabe — Sat, 11 May 2013 16:01:13 GMT

My friend did take the mandolin to Elderly Instruments and they said it was in excellent shape for its age. The owners accepted $1100 for it and Elderly listed it for $1700. Haven't checked to see if it has sold yet. :mandosmiley:

J Bovier F5T

RicPalmer — Fri, 10 May 2013 18:50:33 GMT

Anyone know anything good or bad about a J Bovier F5T Tradition mandolin? A new one is about $875,is there something out ther better with a radiused fretboard?

Mount Washington Mandolin Company

oldcoot85 — Thu, 09 May 2013 21:22:00 GMT

Historical Society seeking information on this Company,allegedly located in Lebanon,N.H.(03766)Any info appreciated.Dates,pics,owners,et al. Thanks! msanders@myfairpoint.net

Can anyone help identify this mandolin? Thanks!

mculliton123 — Wed, 08 May 2013 16:40:20 GMT

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Any info on Merwin Star mandolin?

JerryWotz — Tue, 07 May 2013 14:27:38 GMT

Hello,

I'm a new member here who just bought a late 1930's Merwin Star mandolin. Probably a Harmony made instrument, but does anyone recognize the name and/or have any knowledge to share? It's an A style. I'll try to post pictures when I have time.

Thank you - Jerry

Familiar looking mandolin in the classifieds...

almeriastrings — Tue, 07 May 2013 13:29:27 GMT

http://www.mandolincafe.com/ads/65838

"Well-known Swedish luthier"? Gibson F-5 Replica?

:disbelief:

LYNN mandolin

bdeivert — Mon, 06 May 2013 21:28:09 GMT

Hi,

A friend of mine in Sweden bought a LYNN mandolin from a shop here that picked it up in Houston, Texas awhile back. I haven't been able to find out who the maker was, and wondered if anybody knows of him/her and has information? It is a sunburst F-style, named Lynn (and stamped inside it says Hand Crafted by Lynn Thompson.) pretty nice looking wood, from the phone pics he sent, but I don't know about the sound. He says it is okay, but not fantastic.

thanks! any help appreciated!

Cheers
Bert

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KM-805 or KM-900 What should I keep?

joemcg — Mon, 06 May 2013 20:16:50 GMT

Decisions, decisions! I purchased a Kentucky KM-900 a couple of weeks ago and love it. Well I was in one of the large chain music stores a couple of days ago and saw a Kentucky KM-805 at a deeply discounted (almost ridiculous) low price. I couldn't get it off my mind, so I went back today and it was still there. I looked at it meticulously and found that the bridge had a slight crack in it.

I called my music teacher, who is also a luthier to discuss the repair. He gave me the scoop on it and once I knew it would not be a major deal, I sprung for the KM-805.

So now I have two rather high end Kentucky's. I can probably only keep one. I love the sound of the KM-900, but I also think the KM-805 sounds pretty good and obviously looks great, even before the bridge is repaired.

So what would you do? Which would you keep if you needed to make a choice??

Thanks for your thoughts.
Joe

i need advice on a mid level mandolin

benjamin35 — Mon, 06 May 2013 17:27:23 GMT

I am new to the forum and was looking for advice on a mid priced mandolin. I already own an inexpensive Fender I got as a starter. I really enjoy playing and feel that in the next 6 months or so I may be ready to upgrade to something in the 400 to 600 dollar range. Any advice? I would like to be able to plug in occasionally as well so electrics and/or advice on pick-ups would be great. One mando I saw recently is the Washburn M3SWE acoustic electric. So... any advice or tips would be great. I am currently just playing rhythm and singing along by myself or wth a friend but would like to be able to play with other musicians when I get better. I am playing mostly older tunes in the "rock" category (Neil Young, etc) right now but want to learn all kinds of tunes on this lovely instrument.
Thank You Everyone!

Ben

Howe Boston Bag - Type A Mandolin

AMT1379 — Mon, 06 May 2013 00:19:18 GMT

I have a mandolin that I purchased somewhat recently. Type A (tear drop shape with flat back, neck/frets extend partially into the opening). It appears to be in it's "original" cloth bag. Snaps on the cloth bag say Howe Boston. No paper on/in it though. I've been googling around for months, but only information I have seen is about the Howe-Orme guitar-shaped mandolins. This one is not guitar shaped.

I did bring into a luthier I trust who did a great job getting it playable. Didn't know anything about it other than it looked vintage. There may be no way to know, but I thought I'd check here. It's perfect for my purposes, plays nice, holds a tune for weeks, but I would like to know more about it.

Any obvious place I'm missing?

- Aaron