Just wanted to make sure nobody missed <a href="http://cgi.ebay.com/Gibson-Mandolin-A5-or-A50-from-late-30s-Beautiful_W0QQitemZ110153422422QQihZ001QQcategoryZ
10179QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem" target="_blank">this Gibson</a> on ebay. Do the truss rod cover screws look OK to you?
Opinions would vary but this one would scare me a little. Seller doesn't seem to know much about mandolins so his / her evaluation of condition could be suspect. Didn't seem to think those cracks were too bad. Apparently doesn't know how to put strings on it since he pictured it with broken E and A's. Might be OK if the only problems are the visible ones.
Style is the sum total of your limitations
I've seen the exact pictures before, I don't know if it was Ebay or not, but I've seen em.
Loren
Tuners are changed, missing the tailpiece cover, nasty f hole crack, otherwise looks straight.
Charles
This was eBay a few weeks ago and never got a bid if I recall.
"bargain instruments are no bargains if you can't play them"
--Jim Garber
I thought all Gibson Tailpieces had 12 Loop hook things so the upper 4 strings latched on from a 9:00 angle.
No that is probably a Gibson "clamshell" tailpiece from the 1950's.
The tuning machines are 1960's vintage Klusons. Yes?
The pickguard seems wrong too for the 1930's? #Not sure about that.
But the mando is cool.
Bernie
____
Due to current budgetary restrictions the light at the end of the tunnel has been turned off -- sorry about the inconvenience.
The tailpiece is original, it's a Waverly, sometimes called a clamshell, sometimes called a cloud tailpiece. It's missing the cover. Gibson (as well as Martin, Kay, and Harmony) used them.
"bargain instruments are no bargains if you can't play them"
--Jim Garber
Who cares about truss rod cover screws. This instrument never rated very highly for collectibility. I'm not going to skewer this ebay sale. It's possible this mandolin could play and sound very good and might be worth the opening bid price.
'03 Collings MF5
Yikes, I started this thread as a joke, I guess the humor was a little subtle. I'd noticed that 8 of the 10 most recent threads in this section were about ebay auctions for low end Gibsons (Alrite, A50, Ajr etc), many with serious issues (huge cracks, refins) where posters were asking if things like the pickguard bracket looked original. Now I don't have any problem with people asking questions, I just thought it was strange that the Vintage section had suddenly turned into the "Nitpick this busted Gibson I saw on ebay" section, so I thought I'd make light of the situation. Obviously I failed.
I think its fun to nit pick old busted Gibsons. Name the replaced neck or tuners. Conversations on 12 point or "clamshell" tailpieces, ect. Fun stuff. There is no lack of Interesting instruments on ebay.
Generally speaking, adding one of theseOriginally Posted by (markishandsome @ July 31 2007, 15:27)
will alert people to the fact that you're posting what you consider to be a humorous post. Either that or it won't.
"bargain instruments are no bargains if you can't play them"
--Jim Garber
I know sometimes it seems like nitpicking, but the bible says "with many counselors there is wisdom." I don't know everything about these by a long shot, and I love to learn. That missing cloud tailpiece, by the way, try to find one for $100! You generally have to buy a lesser mando that has one, to get one.
I grab those tailpieces off old Kay and Harmony mandolins whenever I can. I'm amazed that nobody has ever made a copy of that tailpiece.
"bargain instruments are no bargains if you can't play them"
--Jim Garber
I think the price of the old bowlbacks and harmonys have gone up from people like you and me bidding on them for the cloud. I approached Stewmac about having the cloud made, and improving the shell TP (the one they sell now) but no interest. I like the cloud TP, especially the engraved ones!
I like nitpicking too, I was a big fan of this thread before people forgot about it. I don't even really mind if there's a bazillion threads going trying to figure out if those are really the original deck chairs on the Titanic, but figured posting a link to a thoroughly uncollectible instrument with an inane question about the TRC screws would be enough.
Rather obviously, comedy is harder than it looks
Style is the sum total of your limitations
Some of usaren't really good
at figuring out
humor when it isn't slapping us upside the head.
Unfortunately, to many here that instrument is ultimately collectible and probably better than what we play. You lose something when you make the assumption that everyone has the same elite sense of what is and isn't valuable.
"bargain instruments are no bargains if you can't play them"
--Jim Garber
Mark or whatever your name is, what kind of mandolin do you own? I hope it's not an ugly or uncollectible one because you might get it nit picked a little. I think the 2006 thread you refer to is about expensive fakes.
'03 Collings MF5
Wow, here's the second recent example of a thread started for the hidden purpose of "proving" something that the poster dislikes about this board. (See gmando's "Chris Thile=best ever" thread.)
Mark, if you don't understand why people like to discuss old Gibsons on eBay, you could just start a thread with the question "Why do people like to discuss old Gibsons on eBay?" instead of trolling like this.
Notorious: My Celtic CD--listen & buy!
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Emando.com: More than you wanted to know.
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Whoa fellas, all I meant by "uncollectible" was that it wouldn't be showing up on a big name dealers webpage with a $200k tag on it. I've never played an A50, they're probably fine instruments, I just picked that one for the joke because it fit the profile of some of the recent threads (cracked top, missing parts).
lovethemf5s, yes my name is Mark (and yes I'm handsome) there's no need to get personal. You said yourself:
I made my mandolin myself. It was in fact called ugly when I posted pictures of it here, but that doesn't have anything to do with anything, especially since I never said the A50 was ugly (I don't think it is).
To recap:
I fully support nitpicking, asking for advice from knowledgeable board members about any ebay mandolin, Gibson or otherwise, busted or otherwise, expensive or otherwise. I was just making an observation that nearly every thread started in this section in the last week was about ebay. I wasn't even really bothered by this fact; I thought it was funny. I'm sorry if I offended anyone, I hope we can all ease off the trigger for a while.
Mark, your last post was complete double talk.
Adios
'03 Collings MF5
Wow, we're getting a little tense, aren't we? Must be the stress of waiting for that Weber drawing...
Mark-I got it, and I thought it was funny.
"it's not in bad taste, if it's funny" - john waters
What?
I can not imagine how anyone found anything offensive about any of Mark's posts in this thread.
Bill Snyder
Wow, you mean I missed the whole meaning of this thread? I love it when a resident weenie on a forum set up for weenies makes sarcasm about how there are weenies here!
I've never been to a star-trek convention, but I bet THAT would be a hoot!
p.s. I hope no one takes offense at being described a weenie, I think it's sort of a good thing, I think...
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