I fought The Loar..... and it's winning

**Mandogar The Vile** · Jun-30-2012, 6:42am

Originally Posted by dcoventry

Or this option:

http://www.mandolincafe.com/ads/57718

Thanks for looking but that works out more expensive than buying a brand new one from Kieran, and that's before intercontinental shipping, customs duty and V.A.T.

**Mandogar The Vile** · Jun-30-2012, 6:46am

Originally Posted by houseworker

Forsyth's cleared their original stock of The Loar by slashing the prices, and told me that they weren't planning on stocking them again. As I said in my earlier response, they can get them as a special order but when I spoke to them earlier this year they came over as very reluctant indeed.

I did contact Forsyth Bros. and they can only get the LM-500-VS from the importers which they said, and I quote "is a pretty average sounding instrument", so unless they can get the 600 from the importers, it doesn't sound like they'll bother stocking any Loars.

**frankmsu** · Jun-30-2012, 11:43am

I recently acquired an LM-300 and it is an excellent mandolin for the price. I have had mandolins that cost much more that did not sound nearly as good to me. Good tone is subjective, so perhaps they decided to produce a mandolin with x-bracing at about the same price as the LM-400 to provide an alternative to the LM-400 tone. I think the LM-300 provides a little "sweeter" tone, but somewhat less open and low-end than the LM-400. In my opinion, it is not a toy, as suggested earlier. But then again, maybe all mandolins are toys because they sure are fun!

**CaskAle** · Jun-30-2012, 1:34pm

I bought a Loar 600 from these guys. Free shipping to the UK. Great price.

http://www.thomann.de/gb/search_dir....=0&y=0&gk=&bn=

**CaskAle** · Jun-30-2012, 1:56pm

Absolute steal on the 520 at the moment!

**CaskAle** · Jun-30-2012, 2:00pm

Absolute steal on the 520 at the moment! Looks like they only have the 600 in black right now, but I got a vintage sunburst. Because they are in the EU there is no import duty to be paid. Their tracking is great too. Those efficient Germans etc...

**trevor** · Jun-30-2012, 3:46pm

Yes but the do no set-up, they are 'box shifters'. You may have been lucky but not everyone is..

**CaskAle** · Jun-30-2012, 6:06pm

Yes that is true. Looking back, I didn't read the OP very thoroughly; he said that he didn't want to buy from the site that I linked.

I was lucky, it worked out well for me. I don't have a shop anywhere near me that sells good mandolins, so my options were limited. Glad I bought the one I did rather than one of the cheap laminate ones they sold in my local shop!

**forestf5** · Jul-01-2012, 10:43am

Originally Posted by Primarilywoodcharlie

I have owned both the Loar LM-520vs and the LM-300. I absolutely loved the 520vs. The newer ones are much better than the older ones, be sure it is a 520VS instead of a 520v. I played it against a LM-700 and it was almost as good. I recommend it for the money.
The lm-300 was not loud. It is tinney and weak. It has x-braces. I think it is a toy.

Good luck

I have had my LM-520VS since November, 2011, and I love it! I just put a new set of J-74's on it, and it is really opening up well. The neck is as straight as an arrow and has a low action, great tone, volume and that woody Bluegrass chop that I love. I bought it at a great price too!

**Mandogar The Vile** · Jul-01-2012, 11:58am

Originally Posted by CaskAle

Yes that is true. Looking back, I didn't read the OP very thoroughly; he said that he didn't want to buy from the site that I linked.

I was lucky, it worked out well for me. I don't have a shop anywhere near me that sells good mandolins, so my options were limited. Glad I bought the one I did rather than one of the cheap laminate ones they sold in my local shop!

It's not that I don't want to buy from them, just that if I do I can't try it out first and I'll have to spend ages setting it up properly (or worse still be without it for ages and spend a load of cash having someone else set it up for me). It's the curse of the British Mandolin player, you can buy a cheapo bit of laminate rubbish anywhere you want, or you can travel to Brighton and spend a few grand on a really nice mandolin, but we don't really seem to have an inbetween option anywhere. It would be nice to be able to try out and buy some half decent solid wood, carved mando's, for those of us who are alright enough to warrant stepping up from laminate but not quite good enough (or rich enough) to warrant spending a few thousand on a top end instrument. Same with accessories, I can't find anywhere in the UK to buy an armrest (which I quite fancy trying out) and I've just had to order some V-picks and pro-plecs from the U.S. because I can't find anywhere here that sells them. Surely the numbers of U.K. based mandolin players can't be that small to warrant (almost) no-one selling good stuff. Especially as every single guitar shop I've been in has had a selection of cheapo mandolins. Grrrrrr, it vexes me mightily.

**trevor** · Jul-01-2012, 12:29pm

Hi Vile un-vex youself,

My mandolins start at £500 not in the thousands.

I don't do the bits and pieces because I am a one man business and don't have office staff to handle mail order. I used to keep a few things, 5 solid/cast tailpieces took 7 years to sell. 10 Cumberland Acoustics bridges still haven't sold after about 8 years.

Its so easy to order this stuff off the mail order specialists and in most cases (think Stew-Mac) its quick and easy. In fact in 38 years in business I haven't come across a more efficient company than Stew-Mac.

**blueron** · Jul-01-2012, 12:40pm

Originally Posted by CaskAle

Absolute steal on the 520 at the moment!

For people in the market for a budget instrument in the U.K., that is excellent value. And while it is true that Thomann is only a warehouse where no setting up is ever done, even paying someone else to set it up would result in a quality starter at only a little over 300 pounds. If I was starting out now (with the knowledge I have since acquired on performing my own set ups), I'd jump at that.

rm

**CaskAle** · Jul-02-2012, 12:25pm

Originally Posted by Mandogar The Vile

It's not that I don't want to buy from them, just that if I do I can't try it out first and I'll have to spend ages setting it up properly (or worse still be without it for ages and spend a load of cash having someone else set it up for me). It's the curse of the British Mandolin player, you can buy a cheapo bit of laminate rubbish anywhere you want, or you can travel to Brighton and spend a few grand on a really nice mandolin, but we don't really seem to have an inbetween option anywhere. It would be nice to be able to try out and buy some half decent solid wood, carved mando's, for those of us who are alright enough to warrant stepping up from laminate but not quite good enough (or rich enough) to warrant spending a few thousand on a top end instrument. Same with accessories, I can't find anywhere in the UK to buy an armrest (which I quite fancy trying out) and I've just had to order some V-picks and pro-plecs from the U.S. because I can't find anywhere here that sells them. Surely the numbers of U.K. based mandolin players can't be that small to warrant (almost) no-one selling good stuff. Especially as every single guitar shop I've been in has had a selection of cheapo mandolins. Grrrrrr, it vexes me mightily.

Mandogar, I concur with you on our lot in the UK! I guess the market for mandolins is tiny here. I don't know what you mean about the excessive cost and time of getting a mandolin set up. Should only take a few days at the most, or a few hours left at a music shop if you're known to the owner ;-). Won't cost much either. Ask a local shop, you might be surprised. When my Loar arrived I turned the wheels to lower the action to where I wanted it. Unsure if I it could be done better I took it to my local music shop to have it 'set up properly'. They played it for a few minutes and said it was a great mandolin, but there wasn't anything they could do to set it up any better. They then handed it back to me and I left pretty pleased!

**CaskAle** · Jul-02-2012, 12:27pm

Originally Posted by Mandogar The Vile

It's not that I don't want to buy from them, just that if I do I can't try it out first and I'll have to spend ages setting it up properly (or worse still be without it for ages and spend a load of cash having someone else set it up for me). It's the curse of the British Mandolin player, you can buy a cheapo bit of laminate rubbish anywhere you want, or you can travel to Brighton and spend a few grand on a really nice mandolin, but we don't really seem to have an inbetween option anywhere. It would be nice to be able to try out and buy some half decent solid wood, carved mando's, for those of us who are alright enough to warrant stepping up from laminate but not quite good enough (or rich enough) to warrant spending a few thousand on a top end instrument. Same with accessories, I can't find anywhere in the UK to buy an armrest (which I quite fancy trying out) and I've just had to order some V-picks and pro-plecs from the U.S. because I can't find anywhere here that sells them. Surely the numbers of U.K. based mandolin players can't be that small to warrant (almost) no-one selling good stuff. Especially as every single guitar shop I've been in has had a selection of cheapo mandolins. Grrrrrr, it vexes me mightily.

Mandogar, I concur with you on our lot in the UK! I guess the market for mandolins is tiny here. I don't know what you mean about the excessive cost and time of getting a mandolin set up. Should only take a few days at the most, or a few hours left at a music shop if you're known to the owner ;-). Won't cost much either. Ask a local shop, you might be surprised. When my Loar arrived I turned the wheels to lower the action to where I wanted it. Unsure if I it could be done better I took it to my local music shop to have it 'set up properly'. They played it for a few minutes and said it was a great mandolin, but there wasn't anything they could do to set it up any better. They then handed it back to me and I left pretty pleased!

**Jimdalf** · Jul-02-2012, 1:15pm

Hi Mandogar, There is a Hobgoblin in Leeds which isn't far from you, I went there from Derby to get my fiddle and it didn't seem that far anyway.

**jimmy powells** · Jul-04-2012, 4:26pm

Jimmy Powells, Northumberland here. Buy a scroll model because if you've never had one, you may buy a good A model but you'll always want the scroll so you'll lose money on the A model if you sell it because the scroll will get to you sooner or later. I've had the bug for 40 years and even now I 'd still go for a scroll because it is like a piece of art which you never get tired looking at and a picture of one is not quite the same.
I'd go for the LM-600 or LM-700 from Thomann with their 30 day money back guarantee. As soon as you receive it it, take it to a recommended luthier and have him appraise it but bear in mind if he does anything to it, then you won't be able to return it but at least he should know. I played an LM-500 last week and it was very poor. It was mint condition but 5 years old.

The Savannah F100 is around for £200 with case (email me if you want to chat about them) and if you have them set up properly and possibly consider changing the tuners, they are actually quite good for the money and much better than Epiphone scroll models in my opinion and I've handled literally hundreds of mandolins.

Best of luck
Jimmy
email : james.powells@sky.com

**Folkmusician.com** · Jul-05-2012, 11:30am

LM-500 last week and it was very poor. It was mint condition but 5 years old.

This would have been the older version that was made at a 3rd party factory. Newer versions are made in the same shop the rest of the models are made in and are entirely different. The manufactures sure do make it complicated.

**Dave Cowles** · Jul-05-2012, 12:50pm

Originally Posted by Folkmusician.com

This would have been the older version that was made at a 3rd party factory. Newer versions are made in the same shop the rest of the models are made in and are entirely different. The manufactures sure do make it complicated.

Robert is spot on. I have a newer LM500 that is exponentially better than the first ones that came out. Those were run-of-the-mill, ho-hum cheapos for sure. I really like mine, and would recommend it to anyone, as long as they either play it first or buy from a reputable dealer like Robert.

**Fstpicker** · Jul-07-2012, 11:06pm

Similar to Dave Cowles LM-500VS, I have a recently made LM-520VS (2011) that I purchased in like new condition, locally from Craigslist from a classical guitar player. The Loar's workmanhip & the set-up was great with new low action and plenty of bridge height left as needed, and straight neck with just an ever bit slight neck relief for virtually no buzzing. Put a set on of EXP-74's last night and I couldn't be happier with the bolder and louder tone I am getting now. And they stay in tune beautifully now. Action is 3/64" at the low G, and the 2/64" at the high E.

Jeff