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My Ellis had been hanging up for months, due to a baby being born, picked it up two days ago and remembered why I liked it. I walked around the house for hours, only connected to one of those little...

I've played all four, and have owned two Old Wave A's, one new, one used, and had a Collings MT and MF. I recently traded my excellent Givens A3 for a Collings MT wide nut and some cash. Never been...

rico - Warren posted on one of the MyRareGuitars threads that he uses 38, 26, 17, 13. That's what I put on, and it works well, just had to raise the saddles a hair, intonates perfectly. I'll have...

Got one of these in the mail yesterday. I believe it was strung like a regular tenor, CGDA maybe? I promptly switched it to Warren Ellis' recommended string guages for GDAE and didn't put it down...

I'm using phosphor bronze right now. If memory serves, I ended up using some ball-end guitar strings, somewhere in the neighborhood of 12, 17, 27, 42. Go to www.rycooder.nl/pages/tenor_gauges.htm...

I've had mine for about a week now, and I have to say it's the best money I've spent on a stringed instrument in a very long time. I upped the string guages to a mid-point between what came on it...

Anyone who has one of these Republic Tenors, does it take ball end or loop end strings? I've got one on the way, and I want to get some bigger guage strings to tune GDAE. Thanks, Frank

I just got a much plainer Old Kraftsman tenor on eBay, and it plays like a dream in GDAE. I was expecting the worst, and got a pleasant surprise. Beautiful tone, structurally sound, no cracks, just...

Anything with Joe Strummer on it.

Posted my long list on page 2 or 3, but since then, all I've got left in the mando family is an Andrew Jerman 4 string electric solid body that I love, and a super Givens A3 that I traded my Randy...

Bon Iver - "Flume," "For Emma" and "Skinny Love" over and over, usually followed by the now unavailable Jonathan Richman album "It's Time For," which I found after hours of searching as a free...

Yep, me too, the four string version, and strangely, the first thing I wanted to play on it was the Thin Lizzy version of "Whiskey In the Jar." Andrew's stuff is great. Frank

Just a short reminder: If the sender loosens the strings, have them secure the bridge with padding on either side, under the strings. It's also a good idea to have them store the tailpiece cover...

Two Old Wave f-hole A's (really dumb), my Collings MT and MF, and the wideneck Gibson F5G that I had radiused. All went to Cafe members, so less tragic than just losing them. There's a good 20 or...

I had a Kettler several years back and traded it at Buffalo Bros, I believe. It was incredible, but I had my heart set on a Collings. Don't have that anymore either! I've heard Peter Feldmann's...

Thanks Kestrel, you read my mind. Not so much about the Tonerite, I'll wait until I see one, but the other stuff you were talking about was just what I was thinking. Frank

I'll add one tip I've found helpful, after shipping and receiving more mandolins than I'd like to admit. If it's an old-school Gibson style two piece tailpiece, have them take off the cover, and if...

I was always taught never to name my horses, because you shouldn't name what you might have to eat. For me, I love them all, but I don't want to name something I might sell or trade. Frank

Ditto on the clear nail polish. Let it dry almost entirely, and use a few coats. In addition to doing this, I almost always use the above-mentioned extra safety line tied off to the tailpiece. ...

If you want to avoid using chemical silver polishes on your instrument, I've often used a small amount of regular old toothpaste (paste, not clear or gel) to shine up a buckle or some spurs when it's...

Weird that someone should mention this, because I could swear I heard someone in a passing car call me an S hole, and I'm not even remotely thin or shaped like a snake. I've had instruments with the...

I've had a Garrison OM and really liked it. I have a Jerman emando, and I wouldn't take two OMs for it. Good deal for you. You'll be happy. Frank

I've had good luck with the "clay in the film cannister" types of case humidifiers. The clay seems to let the moisture out more slowly and more evenly than the sponge. You don't have to re-wet it...

Cayenne - If you can catch a water moccasin to cut his tail off, you already have enough mojo. Those are mean little boogers. We used to have a lake full of them in LaGrange, TX when I was a boy. ...

You only get the mojo benefits if you killed the snake with your own bare hands, or at least with a shovel. Best case scenario: kill the rattlesnake with your mandolin. Store bought rattles have...