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mandarlin
Nov-27-2015, 8:37am
Hi All,

The other day I decided to have a look at a mandolin that was once owned by my great grandfathers brother. It appears to be a Calace or a clone of one, chances are it was purchased in Greece before the war.

Would be curious to know of any information anyone could tell me about this instrument, its age/origin/brand/features/materials/etc. Unlike all the other Calaces I've seen online, this one has its bridge holes (I assume these have some influence on tone?) a bit higher up.

I've had a go at playing it (I'm a guitar player) but there's a lot of fret buzz even before the 12th fret. I guess it's probably better to preserve an instrument of this vintage, rather than play it.

A very similar instrument was posted here: http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/showthread.php?1898-Post-a-Picture-of-Your-Bowlback-(or-any-others)&p=184302&viewfull=1#post184302

http://i.imgur.com/xuIlZanm.jpg (http://imgur.com/xuIlZan)
http://i.imgur.com/qVgzMc1m.jpg (http://imgur.com/qVgzMc1)
http://i.imgur.com/hkqVUcRm.jpg (http://imgur.com/hkqVUcR)
http://i.imgur.com/YbSeighm.jpg (http://imgur.com/YbSeigh)
http://i.imgur.com/C3PRpK6m.jpg (http://imgur.com/C3PRpK6)
http://i.imgur.com/25SUrUCm.jpg (http://imgur.com/25SUrUC)
http://i.imgur.com/yjo93Lgm.jpg (http://imgur.com/yjo93Lg)

Hany Hayek
Nov-27-2015, 8:44am
The bridge should not be where it is in the pics. It should be between the two black points on the top. Place the bridge between the two points,tune it and check it out. The bridge where it is now can damage the top.

mandarlin
Nov-27-2015, 9:32am
Thanks for that, I just tuned down and moved it to that position. The string tension is really low now and unplayable. Had the same strings as these put on several years ago http://musicdedi.si/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/800x600/5e06319eda06f020e43594a9c230972d/v/-/v-039.jpg

What strings should I be using?

Hany Hayek
Nov-27-2015, 11:08am
These are light strings and are good. You can use GHS A240. I use Martin M400.
I can't tell if it's a Calace, there are lots of experts here that will. But I can help you with the set up.
Please note that on these old mandolins string height over the 12th fret can go as high as 2.25 mm for the G string.
If you get that height and still have buzzes, you need to check and see whether the neck is straight or if the neck is not moving at the neck joint. Post some pics showing the mandolin from the side (fret board and neck joint)
Then you need to check that the frets are leveled, you could have a fret or two out of place.
Lastly you need to check the nut, since you don't have zero fret, maybe strings slots need some cleaning.
Finally you can check this site for further info: http://www.mandolinluthier.com/Mandolin%20Hospital.htm
Hope you get it to a playable condition, it looks like a very nice mandolin.

Hany Hayek
Nov-27-2015, 11:23am
Looking more at the pics that bridge does not look like the correct bridge. It looks short from the sides but that is not a problem.
If someone had that bridge lowered too much you'll just need to change the saddle with a higher one.
Just for the sake of trying (after you check all the above) to make it playable, you can take off the saddle and use any piece of wood you have to make a temp saddle and adjust the height.
Another temp option (and I hope I don't get too much criticism for this) you can fill the slots on the saddle with wood from a wooden toothpick so to have the strings go up a little and then check for buzzes.

mandarlin
Nov-28-2015, 1:12am
Turns out when I said the string tension was too low, I was actually an octave down. I've tried tuning up the G string correctly, but even before I get there, it just feels way too tense to be safe. Whoever tuned it last time must have moved the bridge down to reduce string tension at the expense of intonation. The 10 gauge strings currently on are certainly thicker than the Bell Brand ones.

Would it be best to abort at this stage and source some 9 gauge strings? With the neck untensioned, the frets line up very well when I run a metal ruler down them on both sides of the fretboard.

vic-victor
Nov-28-2015, 5:36am
This instrument is based on Calace orchestra model from 1920's. If it is a real Calace it should have a label inside or at least remains of it. Original Calaces of that period also had a wafer seal in the corner of a label. If there's no label it is suspicious. Calace would always put a label with his signature in. Could you make a photo of the inside to see the paper lining texture, please?

If you put the bridge in it's proper place and tune the mandolin, measure the distance between the strings and 12th fret. If it is over 2.5 mm, you've got a problem, as the action is too high. It could be because of the movement in the heel or a neck bow. If it is only a tiny little bit over it sometimes can be dealt with by filing the bridge. But if it is over - the neck reset may be required.

To answer your questions - the body is made of rosewood. The top is spruce. Two holes near the bridge is Calace's invention to kill the wolf notes. It didn't work so was abandoned later on.