Found a Michael Kelly, should I take the risk?

**anvilmaster** · Mar-06-2011, 12:15pm

Okay, found this michael kelly http://louisville.craigslist.org/msg/2213039454.html, and I've come to a very preliminary agreement with the seller for $300, but, before I bite the bullet, I wanted to get some advice. It's kinda between this and a Loar LM 220, which looks like a really nice piece of work (which I can buy online for a bout $350 with professional setup) I'm a brand new player, sort of transitioning over from an irish tenor banjo- and I'm relatively clueless. Thanks for all your help!

**allenhopkins** · Mar-06-2011, 12:47pm

Looks like a Legacy O (?). Elderly sold a used one for $600, so $300's a good price. Can you play it first? The specs are all solid wood, hand-carved, radius fingerboard, and I guess this one has the "antique amberburst" finish. (Whatever an "amberburst" might be.) Reviews on-line are decent to positive, and for the price, I'd say it seems a decent buy, dependent on the condition of this individual instrument.

You do get the F-model scroll-and-points silhouette, if that's a consideration, as compared to the LM-220's A-model shape. Since the Legacy is an oval-hole, and the Loar an f-hole, you'll probably get a more "bluegrass" sound from the Loar.

Evaluations of instruments sight-unseen and without the chance to try them, are always guesses. If you can get your hands on the MK Legacy, and try it out, that would go a long way toward helping with the decision.

**anvilmaster** · Mar-06-2011, 12:52pm

Yeah, I was thinking it was a legacy o also, the biggest issue is that it's a few hours away, and I'm a little afraid of making the trip without being pretty sure I'm going to buy it.