The perks of owning a 100 dollar mandolin

[Hardesty]

I have a cheap mandolin that I keep with me at all times. It has been nice because I get 30-40 minutes of play on my lunch break (and a bit more at red lights and in traffic.) Not to mention the fact that leaving it in my car all the time doesn't really worry me too much.

The drawbacks are, the thing has the skinniest little neck and a flat fretboard and I like a neck with some meat and a bit of a radius on the fretboard. I have leveled the frets and set it up so that it plays real nice but it is not what I play best on.

I really want to get something nice but I feel kind of trapped by the freedom this little junker has given me. Oh well, I guess I'll just keep playing. :mandosmiley:

[Mandolin Holm]

Well, I can only recommend you an Ibanez M510bs, it's just $150 and it plays great for the price. The one I bought was perfectly set-up (even before it arrived to the store). Good tone, feels good and I'm not worried about it breaking since it's cheap.

But then again, I've never had the joy to hold an expensive mandolin. Most expensive one I've tried was a $400 mandolin, and it was definitely worse than the M510 (but I guess the scroll made up for $300 of those $400).

So, not really an experienced mandoplayer, so don't hold me responsible ;)

[JeffD]

I really want to get something nice but I feel kind of trapped by the freedom this little junker has given me. Oh well, I guys I'll just keep playing. :mandosmiley:

You know, it is not against any law, nor is it unhealthy or fattening, to own more than one mandolin. Many do so and go on to live perfectly satisfying lives, I hear.

[Mandolin Holm]

You know, it is not against any law, nor is it unhealthy or fattening, to own more than one mandolin. Many do so and go on to live perfectly satisfying lives, I hear.

Well, according to another topic on here, mandolins might make people appear fatter than they are...

[allenhopkins]

Feel the same way about my $25 Strad-O-Lin, though it has about $125 of repairs into it, plus a $50 case. Take it to the beach, sling it over my shoulder and go walking through a street fair, take it to a bar, leave it in the car when shopping, put it in a gig bag and carry it on a bus, train or plane without anxiety. Sounds pretty good, exudes a vintage "vibe" that I appreciate, and total strangers come up to me and say, "Hey, a Strad-O-Lin! I used to have one of those; cool mandolin!"

Took a X-country train trip with friends and family back in May; brought along a "Formica" Little Martin guitar, a Gold Tone Cripple Creek Junior piccolo "travel banjo," and the Strad-O-Lin. Had music all the way, both ways. Good stuff.

[Hardesty]

You know, it is not against any law, nor is it unhealthy or fattening, to own more than one mandolin. Many do so and go on to live perfectly satisfying lives, I hear.

I got my eye out for a new one here in the near futue... but it will be hard to play my little junker when I know I have one that i really like sitting at home.

[Elliot Luber]

As Stephen Stills once wrote: "Love the one you're with."

[Ed Goist]

I got my eye out for a new one here in the near futue... but it will be hard to play my little junker when I know I have one that i really like sitting at home.

Since so many things in life are a matter of perspective, I wonder...
Do folks who own Gilchrists or Dudenbostels also have a Gibson, or a Weber, or a Collings that they think of as their 'beater' mandolin? :disbelief:

[delsbrother]

Please do us all a favor and stop picking (your mandolin) while you're driving. No one needs that much practice.

[roscoestring]

Please do us all a favor and stop picking (your mandolin) while you're driving. No one needs that much practice.

I have to admit that I've done that too. Driving with my knees and picking the mandolin. Then one day I passed a guy that was doing the same thing with a guitar. I couldn't get him to pull over though. The state patrol passed me once while I was playing too. He threw up his hand and waved. I stopped after that though.

[mtucker]

I wonder...
Do folks who own Gilchrists or Dudenbostels also have a Gibson, or a Weber, or a Collings that they think of as their 'beater' mandolin? :disbelief:
to spin it a little differently ... why would you want to play anything else, if you own one of these? :)

[allenhopkins]

I have to admit that I've done that too. Driving with my knees and picking the mandolin. Then one day I passed a guy that was doing the same thing with a guitar. I couldn't get him to pull over though. The state patrol passed me once while I was playing too. He threw up his hand and waved. I stopped after that though.

Someone reported seeing a driver on an LA freeway playing the recorder (the wind instrument, not the electronic device). Even worse, he had the sheet music propped up against the steering wheel. I hope he was only doing this during a gridlock period!

[JeffD]

Since so many things in life are a matter of perspective, I wonder...
Do folks who own Gilchrists or Dudenbostels also have a Gibson, or a Weber, or a Collings that they think of as their 'beater' mandolin? :disbelief:

Truth is, in my limited experience, they have a whole lot of respect for their Gibbies and etc., and probably own a "beater" that we would recognize as a beater.