Does anyone have any experience with these? Are they good for a starting mandolin, and do repairs such as minor separation affect the quality of sound?
Does anyone have any experience with these? Are they good for a starting mandolin, and do repairs such as minor separation affect the quality of sound?
Yes, maybe and yes.
i have lots of experience. What kind of music do you want to play?
As a starter maybe. Partly depends on what you are buying, how much you pay and your experience with vintage instruments in general. Given the quality of lower priced mandolins these days, if you have never played before, I would personally stick to a decently set up simple A style, readily available from quality dealers. Unless, of course, you have your heart set on a bowlback, then I say go for it. But I would not buy anything that had a separated bowl unless you were willing to have it fixed or capable of fixing it yourself. The separation may not affect the sound but the instrument might change over time with that separation left unrepaired.
Jim
My Stream on Soundcloud
19th Century Tunes
Playing lately:
1924 Gibson A4 - 2018 Campanella A-5 - 2007 Brentrup A4C - 1915 Frank Merwin Ashley violin - Huss & Dalton DS - 1923 Gibson A2 black snakehead - '83 Flatiron A5-2 - 1939 Gibson L-00 - 1936 Epiphone Deluxe - 1928 Gibson L-5 - ca. 1890s Fairbanks Senator Banjo - ca. 1923 Vega Style M tenor banjo - ca. 1920 Weymann Style 25 Mandolin-Banjo - National RM-1
Vintage bowlbacks can be fussy, but very very rewarding to play.
Bookmarks