Road kill mando

[man dough nollij]

Here's a novelty-- a mandolin made from a dead armadillo.

http://i16.ebayimg.com/04/i/001/03/cf/0b95_12.JPG

<a href="http://cgi.ebay.com/ARMADILLO-SHELL-MANDOLIN_W0QQitemZ260272638913QQihZ016QQcategoryZ1 0179QQssPageNameZWDVWQQr
dZ1QQcmdZViewItem" target="_blank">LINK</a>

[mrmando]

It's better than one made from a live armadillo!

Not too much of a novelty -- I see lots of charangos on the halfshell.

[billkilpatrick]

gaak! - what a brute!

i have two charangos of the all-wood variety; sweet, soulful, beautifully made little instruments they are too - like a mandolin tuned in 4ths.

if you feel tempted - CAS is as compelling as MAS - have a look here:

http://www.boliviamall.com/catalog/musical_instruments.php

[Joel Spaulding]

My brother brought a "charango on the half shell" back from Ecuador/Peru - not nearly as nice as Bill's instruments but it is quite a conversation piece. Bill was kind enough to provide me with some Charango tunings which have been communicated to my sibling -Now when my bro dons the Charango during his Machu Pichu slideshow he can at least be 'authentic'.(at least in tuning)

[Jim Garber]

A friend of mine told me that the best armadillo-backed charangos have shells where the hair continues to grow.

I think that the ones that make it to north America are the all wooden ones for health purposes.

[squirrelabama]

I wonder if the owner of that one posted a response in the thread entitled "what does your mandolin smell like" http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

[foldedpath]

Years ago, I brought back a charango on the half-shell from a Mexico trip. Cool little instrument, but the top eventually cracked badly, and it would have been cheaper to just get another one than repair it. I think they're a little more prone to top splits than the all-wood versions, since the shell can't move along with the wood soundboard when it inevitably shrinks a little over time. From the side photo in the ad, it looks like this mandodilla has a wooden bowl and the shell is just a decorative cover?

My charango had a little hair at the edges of the plates, but I don't remember it growing out, or stinking up the joint. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

[allenhopkins]

My charango has hair. And ears. Only instrument I have with hair. Or ears.

[Jim Garber]

Joe Todaro imports charangos and other SA instruments. I bought one from him years ago and he threw in strings, a case and a couple of method books. Check out his Web site (http://worldfrets.com/charango.html).

[Chris Travers]

looks more like a ukulele to me.

[billkilpatrick]

if you're really, really interested, here's a virtual tour of the charango museum set up by maestro ernesto cavour ... visions of the wild and wonderful await you:

http://www.charangobolivia.org/museodeinstrumentos/index.htm

[BlueMountain]

I got a call last week from a teenager to whom I sold a mandolin last year. It seems that someone ran over her mandolin. She wanted to know if I wanted the tuners and tailpiece. Nothing else was salvageable. Road kill.

[Steve Ostrander]

Anybody know the best armadillo mandolin for under $100?

[billkilpatrick]

Anybody know the best armadillo mandolin for under $100?
i would advise against buying a "cheapy" armadillo charango - simply because the shell itself - with out support - is extremely fragile and liable to collapse. if you must (absolutely MUST!) have an armadillo charango, i would advise buying from a reputable luthier.

but even there, you may run into "endangered species"- type regulations when importing them from s. america.

if it's novelty you're looking for ... go ahead - but if your interest is musical and want a beautifully made, beautiful sounding instrument, i would say you should spend the $300 (plus) required for a "concert" quality instrument.

for more information, have a look here:

http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/Charango/

... some luthiers are better than others and there are experienced contributors here who will - at least - give you a better idea of all that's involved.

- bill