Gibson headstock scrolls

[birdman98]

Is it just me or do these things seem to snap off pretty easily?

Just took delivery of an f-9 that had its little curl broken off in transit. Working with postal insurance on that one... http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif

Then, in the last few days I've seen a few Gibby's in the classifieds with the same affliction (Goldrush and Fern).

Coincidence?? Or is this a "Gibson Thing?"

...love the f-9, BTW.

[MikeEdgerton]

It has nothing to with who makes it, it's an F5 thing. If the case isn't quite right or thy are not packed well and they are dropped or bumped it can happen. Read more about the problem and the resolution here (http://www.frets.com/FRETSPages/Luthier/Technique/Mandolin/BrokenScroll/brokenscroll.html).

[birdman98]

...makes sense to me.

Good read, BTW. Thanks for the link.

[bradeinhorn]

it seems to happen to dudes....:)

[birdman98]

Dudes....as in the male species or Dudenbostel mandolins?

Didn't that Thile dude bust up his Dude?

Duuuuuuuuude!

[bradeinhorn]

both of em i think

[mandroid]

Splits nicely along the grain, I note some builders put a small piece

across grain before the veneer face goes on. in past builder's pix.

[HoGo]

Loars also had a 1" diameter cross-grain plug in there but it doesn't prevent breaking the scroll off. It makes repair more difficult, though.

[Fretbear]

It also adds a feature of expansion and contraction with the unmatched wood types that could create it's own problems. In modern times an inert substance like CF would probably be a better idea.

[MikeEdgerton]

Has anyone actually used CF for this? I honestly don't know if it would be a better idea. A better idea would be to eliminate the scroll http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[Chris Biorkman]

A better idea would be to eliminate the scroll http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif
I agree. I like the way F styles look, but I think the headstock scroll isn't that great of a design element considering how fragile it is.

[DryBones]

Throw a snakehead on there and be done with it! Somewhere there is a picture of a guy with a real nice F style Weber with a Snakehead.

[MikeEdgerton]

Hey Jason, long time no see. It's good to see you.

[allenhopkins]

My F-2 three-point has a larger body than most modern F's, and I had a hard time locating a case for it. For awhile I had a Levy (Canadian) shaped case that fit the body, but the small curl on the headstock was snug up tight against the side of the case. Twice I banged the case into something and broke the curl off, finally got it re-attached the second time, and acquired a rectangular case for the F-2 (one of those old Bucks County fiberglas cases -- anyone else have one?). Had to reshape the foam inside a bit, but I'm confident that the ol' Gibson's protected as well as may be.

[DryBones]

Hey Jason, long time no see. It's good to see you.
Thanks Mike. Sort of burned out on the mando so took a break and took up geocaching. Guess what? I got the urge/fever to play again and I'M BAAACKK! #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif

[f5loar]

I don't think it's Gibson related, it is Bluegrass related.
You see for some 23 years with guys like Dave Apollon,William Place,Jr.Walter Bauer,Julius Bellson playing the fire out of F5s they never broke the frist one.
And then along comes Bill Monroe and Bluegrass and they've been breaking ever since. But to really look into it those Classical guys were not cutting "Rawhide" on it either and they carried their F5s in the better grade oblong deluxe case. Monroe carried his in a shape case the first 18 years and it got broken off several times. After the repair he switched to a better case and no more breaks. So bottom line....... the case is the real reason they break.
Poor designed cases. I won't call the NO. 1 worse case but it's been said here before they many have been broken with this style case. I will name the old Gibson shape cases since that is what Monroe had back when it broke. On up to about 1969 the Gibson F5 shape cases are pretty bad cases.

[F5G WIZ]

Good luck with the Post Office, someone on the cafe recently received his brand new custom mando with a broken headstock scroll and the PO told him they would not warranty repairs only the entire instrument. They would pay him for the mando in full, then they would take possesion of the instrument and destroy it! Well to say the least he kept his mando and got nothing from the PO. Maybe you will have more luck.

[F5G WIZ]

And yeah it happens to the best of us.....

[birdman98]

....alright, then!

Maybe it's time to pull the wood glue out of the desk drawer and see what I can do. Not too many luthiers living here in rural Japan.

Didn't get an f-9 to hang on the wall and look pretty

http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

[F5G WIZ]

Someone on the builders forum could tell you what kind of glue would be best.

[DryBones]

found the thread I was thinking of about an F style Weber with a snakehead. Man, I like the looks of that thing!

Weber F with snakehead (http://www.mandolincafe.net/cgi-bin/ikonboard.cgi?act=ST;f=15;t=34825;hl=weber)

[otterly2k]

Great, F5G WIZ, start the builders on the my-glue-is-better-than-your-glue argument again... http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif #

birdman - if you search the builders database on "japan", 20 names come up. #Perhaps one is closer than you think. #Also... even if there aren't any luthiers nearby, there might be a skilled woodworker. #That scroll fix has nothing to do with the acoustics or functionality of the instrument... someone who knows about wood, and ideally who could patch up the finish if need be, would probably do just fine.

[birdman98]

...you mean that would be better than my 5 minute-woodglue from the top drawer-jimmy-rig?http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif??

There's a ton of woodworkers right here in this village...they're actually famous for their work. Could be a good way to meet some of those folks.

[Chip Booth]

Throw a snakehead on there and be done with it!
Here's a gorgeous instrument with a snakehead on a scroll body. #Notice the missing points as well, which I love. #Wish I knew more about Holst mandolins.

Chip

[cooper4205]

This Nugget (http://www.mandolinarchive.com/perl/show_mando.pl?2883) sure does look good with it's snakehead.

[first string]

I've got to say that Holst is the first mando with a Monteleone style scroll that I actually like the look of. Very cool...