Guildan (?) Fiddle

[Adam Tracksler]

I knw its not mando related, but I'm hoping someone has some insight

I have an opportunity to buy a Guildan Fiddle for @200. It doesnt have a bridge, so I cant try it out. It looks nice and has great flame on the back. It does have a small crack on the top that I think can be repaired easily. I cant find any info about them and dont know if anyone has ever heard of them. Is it a good deal?

Thanks in advance, ad

[Jim M.]

Don't buy it. For starters, never buy a fiddle without playing it, unless you can afford it as a potential wall hanger.

The company that imported these was Jackson-Guldan. If you Google that name, you'll find more info. These were inexpensive student violins, and you can find intact ones for $100 or less. Plus, the small crack is going to probably get bigger if you put the bridge on and put tension on the strings.

And do you know about sound posts? It's a small dowel that stands up beneath the treble foot of the bridge. If the bridge is off, the sound post is probably down, probably lost too, and you'd need a new one before you put tension on the strings.

[Adam Tracksler]

thanks for the 411.

[Lane Pryce]

Jackson Guildan violins made in I think it was Ohio early part of the century. $200.00 is a bit much for one, especially one with issues. A rare few were real players but most were strickly utilitarian. Lp

[JGWoods]

I have 2 Jackson Guldan fiddles- made in Ohio during the 30s most likely. One is labeld "The Guldan" and seems to be their higher line fiddle, the other just has a Strad label like a lot of old fiddles that have never been to Italy.
Both of mine are nice and flamey, factory construction, nothing special, but I got them cheap and other players seem to like them as well as I do.
I watch ebay for them, typical sales price for one missing a bridge etc, but nice looking and flamey might be $160-$240. If it is all together and has a tp with 4 fine tuners, decent case etc. you might see it go for $400.
Elderly seems to have them pretty often for $500 fixed up and ready to play.
I like them- American Old Time Music on an old American fiddle. My two sound quite different with one being fairly mellow and the other sharper sounding, both fall in the acceptable fiddle tone range.
I'd say go for it. It will probably serve you well, and you can always sell it for $200 if you don't like it.

Do I have to say these are just the opinions of a stranger, caveat emptor and all that?

[Stephen Perry]

The better ones from before WWII do surprisingly well. The necks tend to come loose, which is good, because the fit and angle are usually marginal. I've not paid more than $100 for one. I've sold a few for $350 of the upper models. Usually nowhere near that!

[Paul Hostetter]

Jackson-Guldan arose to meet a void in the market created by the rise of Hitler. Traditionally American violins had come largely from Germany, but that became less and less possible in the late 30's and of course during and after the War. Enter J-G of Cleveland. Their instruments were the crudest heat-pressed items imaginable. I've heard of carved ones, but have yet to see one. Every one of the hundreds of these little offenses I've seen over the years has been a pressed-top clunker. The basic budget Chinese POS is better.

[Stephen Perry]

The upper level ones were carved by machine from the looks of them rather than pressed. However, mostly a waste of wood! I believe they started in 1923. Some of them make far better fiddles than seems reasonable. Mostly I see ones from the 1950s at this point. They don't really do well stacked up against almost anything else. For example, I have a demo "Bean Blossom" cornerless next to the bows I have shown here at SPGMA. This is a low end item selling at about $200, your budget point. I use it because nobody is going to knock the corner off a cornerless fiddle, or hook the bow hair on one, wearing through the varnish. I went through it, of course, and planed the fingerboard, redid the pegs, nice bridge etc. But it performs very nicely and gets compliments. I have never had a Guldan that performed anywhere close to this. This level of performance is not atypical for the better lines of imported violins. If you're willing to spend money on a good setup and tweeking, then I suggest you start with something new, strong, woody, and really get it done nicely. Generally the fingerboards are too thick and are wavy, pegs not much fun, soundpost crude. But the basic structure is OK for a fiddle.

You can also find interesting old crude US made violins by amateur makers quite reasonably. If you want something US made for not a lot of money, that's the way I'd go! There's a guy here with some that sound pretty good, new. Starting at $800. I'll email you my cell number, I can evaluate them if you want and point you to one. Then you'll have a real rustic US fiddle instead of a stamped out junker!

[Lane Pryce]

Steve I was reading your discussion on the cornerless fiddles on the ffork.They look interesting. Are you moving many of them after tweaking them? Lp

[Stephen Perry]

I haven't moved very many really, but I haven't pushed them. I have one here at SPGMA that I used as a demo. A few really good players tested bows with it. I'm pleased. Not as intense or powerful as a real violin, but the fact that a $200 imitation violin in that cornerless pattern works so well suggests the potential of the design. Need a demo cornerless?http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif

[Adam Tracksler]

Thanks for all the info. I have a perfectly good Maginni copy that I have been learning on. I am (passivly) looking for an upgrade, I dont need one, but that doesnt mean anything.... :-). I know I should probably upgrade my bow first (the $30 bow that I have probably isnt doing me a whole lot of favors). Maybe you can steer me to a better bow, and I'll upgrade the fiddle later.

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[Stephen Perry]

The Glasser braided seems well accepted by players here at SPGMA. One will be on stage today after extensive trials yesterday. It isn't cheap, but it is nicely controllable. Of course, this "fiddler" was playing Bach solo partitas and the like as well, so you might not need the same level of performance!