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Luthier
Mar-25-2004, 2:20pm
The Mill Creek OM kit I have produced is going well. #I was taken by surprise a bit when the suggestion was made to me to ..."make the instrument and sell it". #So I give you good people some food for thought. #If anyone is interested in a first class, high quality, great sounding, great playing, One of a kind, OM made by myself in the the good ole' USA, get in touch with me and we can talk about it. #I have been building for the past 29 years and have made over 200 instruments. Guitars, banjos, dulcimers, hammered dulcimers, mandolins and now OM's. #I even made a set of uileann pipes. #Give a yell. #We can talk.

http://mywebpage.netscape.com/kawalekd/homepage/index.html

Don

Sailermando
Mar-25-2004, 2:49pm
Don,
Ever thought of selling a version where the body is assembled and the neck pretty well shaped? Kinda like the Grizzly kits. I bought one his uke kits and it was that way.

Jack

Luthier
Mar-25-2004, 4:19pm
I can give that some thought, Jack.
Thanks

Don

pickinBob
Mar-26-2004, 1:30am
Don
If you keep throwing that bait out there, I might just have to bite it , but if you set the hook, dont set it to hard!

Got any idea on the cost of the build?

What about a short scale bouzouki about 25-1/2 or 24-3/4 scale with GDAE tuning?

Luthier
Mar-26-2004, 4:52am
Its tuned to GDAE now with a 22.875" scale.....(the woorm is hanging on the hook).....Life time warranty......Signed by myself......I have a great idea. #The Mandolin making/playing workshop is in a week. #How about if I have the folks down there pick at it, kick the tires, give it a test run, and report back to you?? # # # # # # # # #Don http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

Sailermando
Mar-27-2004, 11:29am
Hey Don,
Just another thought - what about the kit with the rim assembled? I was going thru the SM catalog and saw they offer an assembled rim for sale.
Jack

Luthier
Mar-27-2004, 12:40pm
I could do that with no problem. #I will bend over backwards to get folks to start building and get them the confidence they need to continue building. #Its a great idea, Jack. Thanks!
Don http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

pickinBob
Mar-28-2004, 1:44am
Don

Could you ever offer a body style like this: http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif

Luthier
Mar-28-2004, 5:44am
......bending, thinking, bending, thinking, bending thinking.
Part of me wants to keep the shape the same as the kit but the other part of me custom builds and will give this serious thought. #I shall have the folks at the workshop next week try mine and report back. #We can go from there if you want. #I don't mass produce anything. #Never did, never will. #You lose something. #Like the thread my buddy crawdad did a while ago: Building is a spiritual thing for me.
I will be happy to consider that shape, however. I use real wood binding and purfling. #Tell me about what inlay you want too.

Don

pickinBob
Mar-28-2004, 10:46am
Don

Just so we are clear here, I am in the research stage of this venture and trying to figure out what I want and how much that all costs. I cant commit to any one thing yet as I am not financially ready to do that. That being said.......


I like your current body style but there is something(not sure what) that I like more about this look. As far as binding and other appointments I am thinking that I want something that is functional and simple. I am not ready for alot of ornate appointments but want something that is beautiful in it's simplicity. I hope that is not to vaque.
In a nutshell I want good sound first and a minimum of extras.

Could this shape be offere as a kit?
I would really like to try the building thing myself? What kind of workspace do you need to do this project? Sounds like from previous post I probably have most of the tools.

Luthier
Mar-28-2004, 11:04am
[QUOTE]Could this shape be offere as a kit?
I would really like to try the building thing myself? #What kind of workspace do you need to do this project? #Sounds like from previous post I probably have most of the tools.

Why not try one of the Mill Kreek OM kits I have now? #I will work you through it.
I would need to change a bunch of things to do one as you have pictured. #We can work through this. #Let me think on it.

Don

Brent
Mar-29-2004, 9:52pm
I'm just finishing up one of Don's OM kits. If I can do it, anyone can. Premaking the body is not necessary. That was the easiest part. I had the most trouble with getting the neck on straight and shaping the peghead. This was my first attempt at building anything but a lap dulcimer (not much more than a box with a fretboard glued to the top, really). The OM is a realy instrument, and a real building project. It was great for me as a first time builder. No one is going to mistake mine for Monteleone, but I build it myself, it plays quite well, and I'm fairly proud of it (dammit), off-kilter head stock and all (no fault of the kit; just me). So give it a shot. It's a pretty small investment. For me, it was worth it just for the fun. And I ended up with an OM too.
Cheers,
Brent