Dennis Vance at the Mandolin Store contacted me a few weeks ago and asked if I would be willing to take a look at The Lafferty A model that will be given away by the cafe and do a review of it. Let me preface this by saying that even though I enter every give away that the Cafe has I know I'm never going to be allowed to win it. It's the price we pay.
As I have been in the market for a new backup mandolin and have been lusting after several A style mandolins I jumped at the chance.
It arrived yesterday but as the weather has been cold I waited until tonight to open it. It just so happens that I have a band rehearsal tonight so I plan on using it for a few numbers just to see how it does. My normal stage mandolin is a Gibson F5G that is well played in that I will never part with. We're that close.
Here are my first visual impressions of this mandolin right out of the box. This mandolin is close to flawless for those that get into that. My Gibson has rough spots that just weren't taken care of at the factory. For example, the finish on the sides of the fretboard extension are really rough. The Laffery has no "underfinished" spots that I have yet seen. The closest to a flaw I can see is one small spot on the side of the fretboard extension and a small almost unperceivable difference in the finish on the bottom of the heel where it joins the body. To be honest you have to move it around in bright light to see it.
The variation on the flower pot headstock inlay looks a lot better in person than it does in the pictures on the website. All in all the inlay work looks flawless. I'm not real fond of the truss rod cover shape but with all the Gibson legal problems regarding the bell shape, I understand why this shape was chosen. The end cut on the fretboard is scalloped and very pleasant looking. The headstock is a well made snakehead shape, the neck looks to have a nice gentle V shape. There's real wood on the headstock overlay.
The color on this particular mandolin reminds me of the Kentucky KM-250's from the late 80's without the gloss only classier. I always liked that look.
The Grover tuners are standard Grovers and the Allen tailpiece shape lends itself to the classic design of the instrument. I don't know who makes the bridge but it has that delicate "Look at me, I'm a Loar" design that comes on the high end Gibson F5's but not on the lowly F5G. A quick look inside shows workmanship and finish that is on par with the workmanship on the outside.
I am going to go and tune this thing up and get familiar with it before the band arrives. Pictures and more impressions to come. I hope it sounds as good as it looks.
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