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A new entry has been added to the Mandolin Cafe Builder Database:
Eddie Blevins Mandolin Works
Record added or last edited January, 2013. F-style acoustic mandolins.
See: builder's database record
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I had ordered my mandolin and just received it. April 3, 2013. Eddie is a nice person and fairly easy to deal with unless for some reason one isn't pleased with the result. Look, he's not charging an arm and a leg, in fact his price is most reasonable - that's why I bought one. That said, the fit & finish are . . . less than I would have hoped for. The website shows really nice workmanship, I didn't receive that. I had ordered a blonde and apparently it became more of challenge than he thought it would. Rather than explain that ( until after I got it ) so we could explore different options, Eddie just said " you didn't buy a 4,000.00 mandolin". The F hole edges were splintered and not filed, putty was blobbed where wood didn't meet wood or the purfing ( edging ?), frets were incredibly sharp and nasty, his inlays are loaded with filler . . . I could go on . . . and on. I'm truly sorry it worked out the way it did. Hopefully in the future his finishing will look less than rudimentary. At what price point does a customer pay for poor workmanship vs fair or reasonable craftsmanship? I know I wasn't buying world class mando but this was far less than I anticipated. In short, I'm not happy with what I got and with how he reacted. But he's the expert, I'm only a customer . . . or was.
I have tried my level best to work with Brad on taking care of issues with this mandolin. I asked him to send it back to me and let me fix his issues. At first he was very angry, I guess that's why he posted what he did above. Then, suddenly, he wanted to keep it. He did not want me to take care of his concerns. After a couple of weeks, it showed up on here in the classifieds. I contacted him again to try and resolve his issues. We finally worked things out to send it to me and let me sell it for him.
When it arrived, I found that he had tried to remove the filler in question with a file or a chisel. He had also attached a pickguard with a 1" screw thru the fretboard extension.
I will fix the issues that he has with my work and the issues that he caused once he received it. I only wish that he would have allowed me to honor my offer to fix it for him rather than insisting that I refund his money.
I don't think Brad has been fair with his post here or the fact that he only quoted part of our conversation. He posted this negative feedback before I had opportunity to make things right. I asked several times during our discussions for him to send it to me and he did not want to do that. The customer is always right, but I can not fix something that is 800 miles away from my shop.