Absaroka Mandola...

[Herzen]

Hi all. My name is Brian and while I've lurked here for quite a while, this is my first post.

I write to ask about a Weber Absaroka Mandola that is currently listed on ebay. I own a Michael Kelly Mandola and have been looking to upgrade. The Weber seems to fit the bill for what I want and is described as new old stock. The bidding is around 1,100 now with two days left. As this is technically a new instrument, how high should I expect the bidding to go?

Does anyone have experience with the Absaroka Mandola?

Any information would be greatly appreciated!

[JEStanek]

Does new old stock mean you get the warranty or does it just look new? That would impact how high I would be willing to spend.

Jamie

[Herzen]

According to the seller (who is apparently a dealer) the warranty is included.

[Eddie Sheehy]

Not to discourage you but I'm currently bidding on it... and I'm not saying how high I'll go...

[man dough nollij]

That's a discontinued model, but it should be a good'un. Equivalent price on a new one (Bitterroot to Yellowstone A) would be $2500-$3000. I would probably go a high as two grand.

[mrmando]

Auction is here (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=180358688271&_trkparms=tab%3DWatching). This seller has been trying to unload the instrument for quite a while now. He listed it twice with the starting bid at dealer cost ($1425) and got no bids. He also had it on the New York Craig's List at that price. Now that he's finally taken a risk and started an auction below dealer cost, he's getting some bids. It's hard to say how high it will go -- I'm sure someone would pay $1425 for it, but eBay folks thought that was too high for a starting bid.

[Potosimando]

I had an Absorka mandola for 7-8 years, and had a few chances over those years to compare the Absoroka's tone and so forth with other mandolas; I was always thrilled that my Absoroka sounded so much better than most other mandolas. The 17-1/2" scale length was always a bear though, and I sold it recently (traded actually) after picking up a Lawrence Smart with a 16" scale. The Smart was about the only mandola that I thought was superior in tone to my particular Absoroka...and the four or five other Absorokas I have heard over the years were close to mine in high-quality tone.

From my limited experience, the Absoroka is head-and-shoulders above the Bitterroot in tone, by the way--completely different level of tonal quality in my AB comparisons.

Again...beware of the scale length--I have small hands, so maybe this isn't a big deal to others (obviously it was a very big deal to me).

[Eddie Sheehy]

Sold to Lee for $2,400... Don't forget to buy humidity insurance...

[Herzen]

Well, I won it. Now lets just hope its everything the seller says it is...

[Herzen]

Ok so I recieved this today, and to my dismay I find that there is a considerable bow to the neck. I push the strings down on the end of the fretboard, there is a gap of nearly a quarter inch at the 7th fret. The bow is so obvious that I noticed it as soon as I took it out of the case for the first time.

What should I do? How much of a bow can be remedied through truss rod adjustment? As it is it's virtually unplayable.

I feel sick over this...:(

[The Mandolin Store]

Looks like that was a 2005.............sure been hanging in the store for a long time. Those take a 5/16" nut driver.................you can get one at your local hardware store. The new Weber's take a 1/8" Allen wrench. You may be able to take all of the bow out................then again you never know until you try. Just crank it until it get's hard to turn (clockwise)...................they can break so you don't want to try and kill it. While it's not often, if they are left in a bowed state for a long period of time, it's possible it may not come out entirely. Call me if you need some help

Thanks,

[allenhopkins]

Take it to Stutzman's (http://www.stutzmansguitarcenter.com/) -- just northwest of Rochester, easily accessible off either I-90 or Rt. 104. (You're in western NY, as I remember...?) Dave and Dick do all the work on my instruments, and they'll give you an honest evaluation.

[Herzen]

I took it to Bernunzio's today. They were able to get the neck pretty straight but they had to max out the truss rod to do it. They told me to wait a day or two to see if the neck compensated the other direction. If it doesn't, they're concerned that serious work will need to be done.

I called the seller and he insists that it wasn't like that when it left his shop.

I also called Weber since it is under warranty, and they said to wait a few days and if there is still a problem to send it to them.

So we'll see I guess.

[Potosimando]

Mine also had a squirrely neck with spotty uneven really-high-in-places action when I first bought it (it had sat around unplayed for a year or more when I bought it...guy I bought it from, had purchased it brand-new from Weber), but a dramatic trussrod adjustment took care of that.

One important thing I found (perhaps this has to do with the scale length), that being that relatively light-weight John Pearse strings sounded and played much, much better than did D'Add standards (D'Add lights are still heavier than JP's).

The difference in strings was so remarkable that I brought up the subject with Bruce Weber in about 2002, who told me then that the instrument was designed and originally outfitted with the John Pearse's. Perhaps the strings might have played a role in the neck moving (maybe strings on it were heavier than designed for), or perhaps JP's would be a safer way to go in the future.

At any rate, hang in there, for awhile at least, with your Abasaroka. I predict that you will be completely smitten with the tone once you get it set-up properly....again, the neck moving not being at all unique for the Absaroka. Mine never moved again, perceptibly anyway, once I had it adjusted in the beginning (i.e. 7+ years of being low and mean...and quite beautiful to the ear).

[Eddie Sheehy]

I'm surprised at the dealer saying it wasn't like that when it left his shop. Didn't he know enough to slacken the strings in transit? He should have accepted a return, especially as he sold as a new instrument. If I had won that action he 'd be on the wrong end of a Paypal action at the least...

[Herzen]

Actually he did slacken the strings, but he insists that when he shipped the action was good. To his credit he says that he will do whatever necessary to make it right. I don't think he wants it back though. He wants me to send it to Weber.

[JEStanek]

I bought a Weber Beartooth on the Café for a real steal a few years ago. It had been neglected. The action was high and the nut slots were awful. I only had $900 in it so I sent it to Weber and they planed the fingerboard, reinstalled the frets, replaced the awful nut and fit a new bridge. It was a totally different (and w a y better) mandolin when I got it back. They did theis work for far less than I expected.

Ultimately, it didn't fit me so I moved it on for what I had in it to another player. While Webers don't really fit me, I can honestly and fully endorse a) their commitment to their product b) their tremendous customer service c) their reasonable-ness.

If I were in your shoes, I wouldn't hesitate to send it back to Bruce & Co., to bring that mandola to its greatest potential.

Jamie

[Herzen]

I bought a Weber Beartooth on the Café for a real steal a few years ago. It had been neglected. The action was high and the nut slots were awful. I only had $900 in it so I sent it to Weber and they planed the fingerboard, reinstalled the frets, replaced the awful nut and fit a new bridge. It was a totally different (and w a y better) mandolin when I got it back. They did theis work for far less than I expected.

Ultimately, it didn't fit me so I moved it on for what I had in it to another player. While Webers don't really fit me, I can honestly and fully endorse a) their commitment to their product b) their tremendous customer service c) their reasonable-ness.

If I were in your shoes, I wouldn't hesitate to send it back to Bruce & Co., to bring that mandola to its greatest potential.

Jamie

That's why I'm thinking I'll keep it and get it in good playing condition. Even the folks at Bernunzio's told me I virtually stole the thing. I ended up paying dealer price, and I got the warranty.

Plus she's awful purty...

[Herzen]

Its been a week so far and the neck is holding perfectly. I think unless something goes wrong I'll hold off on sending it to Weber. There are a couple of small cosmetic things they could fix, but they don't seem worth the shipping right now.

She has a lovely tone!

[Bruce D. Weber]

Keep me posted on the your mola neck. With the truss rod maxed out, if your action starts growing, we should do a plane and re-fret.
Bruce

[Herzen]

Thanks, Bruce. I appreciate the help you and yours have given me when I've called with questions.

Its an absolutely beautiful instrument and I'm proud to own it.