Some shots of my newly-acquired Newson F5, built by Paul Newson of Michigan. Soundboard is Red Spruce, Michigan maple sides, one-piece back. Varnish finish. Gold Waverlies and Bill James tailpiece...
Some shots of my newly-acquired Newson F5, built by Paul Newson of Michigan. Soundboard is Red Spruce, Michigan maple sides, one-piece back. Varnish finish. Gold Waverlies and Bill James tailpiece...
Inlay looks to be inspired by an old Gibson F4 torch...
Nice one-piece back with plenty of flame around the edges...true finish color is much less orange/red.
Last one. Close up of the scroll. Trained as a violin maker, Paul's fit & finish work is outstanding...
love that back!
Very excellent! Being from Michigan, (and in the Grand Rapids area, where fine wooden furniture was made for generations) I can appreciate that fine Michigan maple!
"The more I learn, the more I realize how ignorant I truly am..."
I really like Them Newsons....Good luck with it
Mike Lettieri
AKA Mandolinmyster
Merry Christmas to JJ. Dang nice mandolin. His scroll and peghead work are top shelf. As proud as a new daddy I am sure. Lp
J.Lane Pryce
Thats a fine lookin mando....very fine....
Its a beauty!! Enjoy!
That scroll is perfect! Enjoy your new mando!
"...while a great mandolin is a wonderful treat, I would venture to say that there is always more each of us can do with the tools we have available at hand. The biggest limiting factors belong to us not the instruments." Paul Glasse
Stumbling Towards Competence
Looks great. Enjoy!
Excellent!
I especially like the ff holes, and the prominent rise in the back.
Jim Sims
" Amateurs practice until they get it right - professionals practice until they can't get it wrong."
"Me?... I don't practice."
iiimandolin#19
1917 Gibson A-1 Pumpkintop
www.sedentaryramblers.com
Thanks all, for the kind comments. It is a really fantastic mandolin and I look forward to breaking it in properly over the holidays...
That's a beauty for sure! I know we've talked before about our mutual admiration for Paul's work. Isn't this your second one? How do they compare?
Fiddles
Arches F4 / Newson F5
Crump B1 / Old Wave GOM
Yes, this is my second. I'm amazed at how warm and complex the tone sounds on this new varnish model already, compared to my '02 Newson lacquer. The '02 is much louder now, but I think this new one has a lot of promise to match or surpass it once it opens up. Both have the rounded neck, slight radius and 1-3/16" nut width. The new one has a MOP nut and the action is really low, making it very easy to play/fret.
Didn't really plan to pick up another Newson, but I think these are really wonderful instruments and very competitively priced in the market of handmade mandos.
I was at Elderly a couple of weeks ago and there was an A model Newson that sounded very nice but the finish was a little rough. As I recall it was selling for about $2000. Seemed like a good deal to me.
Is this the Newson that was in the Classifieds -- if so -- you lucky dog -- I drooled over it so.
yep, same one.
Actually, I played it this past fall at a festival in MI, and thought it was great. Just couldn't swing a deal at the time.
Sweet! Love that one piece back! The scroll is perfect!
Hmm, might have to give The Man a call like you suggested, Jonathan.
That's absolutely scrumptuous.
Tell me, what's the neck width up at the 12th?
Wye Knot
At the 12th, it is 1.5" from fret end to fret end.
Beautiful instrument, and like was mentioned earlier, those "F" holes are really neat. The subtle variation from "normal" really sets them off!
Ron
My wife says I don't pay enough attention to what she says....
(Or something like that...)
Another big plus in my eyes is what I consider to be the "perfect" point. So many are merely a sharp protrusion sticking out sideways from the body, where this one leans a bit towards the neck and has the very subtle and graceful curve along the right side that is so often lacking.
Just one of the little details that sets it apart from so many of the others. I'm sure not everyone else favors this shape, but it's by far, my choice.
Ron
My wife says I don't pay enough attention to what she says....
(Or something like that...)
Interesting observation, Antlurz. Guess I hadn't noticed before but now that you point'em out...Paul Newson started as a classically trained violin maker, so he's all about hand tools, finger planes, and Old World approaches (hide glue, hand-rubbed varnish, etc.). He also said he doesn't follow the same jig or pattern on every F5 so you'll see slight variances from model to model. I like that aspect of his building -- very unique in today's world of CNC production.
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