Just cut a deal...

[Mark Gibbs]

I just got the ball rolling on a new mandolin form Wyatt Wilkie. http://wilkiestringedinstruments.com/ It will be the Northern Flyer model. This will make my 3rd mandolin from the Wilkie luthiery.
No photos yet but had to give some details of what we are doing. The back, sides and neck will be "master curly maple". For those interested, tone woods are graded as follows. Grade A, AA, AAA, AAAA, Master. The top will be Master Sitka Spruce. Waverly tuning gears and an engraved James tailpiece. This will be my second mando with Waverly gears. Yes they are worth the money. Not sure about the finish at this point but I am satisfied with Wyatt's shellac french polish technique so might stay with that.
If you click on the link to the Wilkie site> Northern Flyer, the mandolin in the photos is my Quilted mandolin. Needless to say i am a happy camper. :grin:

[Ed Goist]

Congratulations, Mark!
I love those stylized soundholes on your Northern Flyer.
Please be sure to post pics of the new build.
Hard to go wrong with French Polish over shellac! Have you decided on a stain?
I look forward to seeing more.

[Bill Snyder]

..... For those interested, tone woods are graded as follows. Grade A, AA, AAA, AAAA, Master...

The grading system used for tone woods is not standardized and varies from supplier to supplier, but we get the point that this is some beautiful wood.

[Jake Wildwood]

While the Flyer is pretty cool, the Athabascan model is simply awesome in terms of looks. Makes me want to play swing all night long.

[Ed Goist]

The grading system used for tone woods is not standardized and varies from supplier to supplier, ...snip...


Also, I think it is valuable to point out that these grading systems apply to appearance only, and not potential tonal quality...I was quite surprised when I discovered this.

Still, beautiful stuff!

[Mark Gibbs]

Update. The Canadian Postal Strike has prevented Wyatt from ordering the wood. I wonder if the strike is over? Anyhow he sent me a photo of a Northern Flyer archtop guitar and mandolin he took to the Montreal Guitar show that he was invited to.7400774008
Bonus photo of the other archtop he took to the show.
Mark

[mandolirius]

Update. The Canadian Postal Strike has prevented Wyatt from ordering the wood. I wonder if the strike is over? Anyhow he sent me a photo of a Northern Flyer archtop guitar and mandolin he took to the Montreal Guitar show that he was invited to.7400774008
Bonus photo of the other archtop he took to the show.
Mark

Been over for more than a week. It wouldn't have been too hard to find that out. It's Canada, not Mars.

[Bill Snyder]

I hope there isn't a postal strike on Mars. The post office is much more reliable with their Mars deliveries than UPS or FedEx. :)

[wwwilkie]

Hey thanks Mark, the show was a big success. Mostly guitar players there but a few great mando players wandered by as well. Maybe next year I'll take two with me.
Yes as mandolirius kindly pointed out the strike is over but the effects linger on. Wood has been ordered though so hopefully we can get started fairly soon.

[RobP]

This will be my second mando with Waverly gears. Yes they are worth the money.


Hey Mark,

Can you elaborate on why you think the Waverly's are worth the money?

Thanks

Rob

[Mark Gibbs]

The precision cut gears make tuning easier
Hey Mark,

Can you elaborate on why you think the Waverly's are worth the money?

Thanks

Rob

[Mark Gibbs]

Here is a photo of the wood for the mandolin7528075279
The photo on the left has top, back, neck, sides. Photo on right, neck, sides, back.

[Ivan Kelsall]

You're a lucky guy Mark. I love Wyatt's Mandolins. Jake - thanks for reminding me of the 'other' Wilkie model,the "Athabascan",that's an awesome instrument indeed,very beautiful,
Ivan

[Timothy Brunelle]

hey was wondering if anyone could tell me about a mandolin that i aquired its a 1927 martin mandolin. thanks. hope you can help

[JEStanek]

Timothy, Welcome to the Cafe. You'll have better luck getting answers on your question by making a new thread for it. If you could post a photo that would help a lot too.

Jamie

[Mark Gibbs]

Looking forward to seeing the back wood cut and bookmatched
You're a lucky guy Mark. I love Wyatt's Mandolins. Jake - thanks for reminding me of the 'other' Wilkie model,the "Athabascan",that's an awesome instrument indeed,very beautiful,
Ivan

[Ivan Kelsall]

Just how sublime can you get in Mandolin design & building ?. Wyatt's "Athabascan" model. I think the "Northern Flyer" is gorgeous,but Oh boy! - this takes the biscuit & the cake (Pic.courtesy of Mr W.Wilkie),
Ivan 75295

[blauserk]

I am an oval fan and I likes me the look of that Athabascan too. Impressive craftsmanship.

[Don Grieser]

Yes, that oval's enough to stir up the MAS.

[Mark Gibbs]

When asked "why i thought the Waverly gears where worth the money"

Saturday I had a gig with my accordionist partner and arrived 15 minuets late. She had already started playing. I started playing without tuning up only giving a strum over the strings to see how it sounded. Sounded good so i kept playing and never had to tune up playing for over an hour. I had not taken the mando out of the case for a couple of days prior to this. It is my opinion that the Waverly's had held the tuning since the last time i had tuned. Not always the case but it did happen Saturday.
I will also give Wyatt some credit with his mandolin construction as he reinforces the neck with carbon fiber strips. One on each side if the channel that the truss rod is in.
Some day soon i plan on having my 1976 Givens F-5 (that i bought new) upgraded with Waverly's. I hope my wife does not read this post. She swings a mean skillet.
The precision cut gears make tuning easier

[blauserk]

Not to be a contrarian, but I think that the tuning machines are almost the least-important part of the equation behind well-seasoned wood and a well-cut nut. I only have one mando, so I can't really compare instruments there, but I have about a dozen guitars, and I can get remarkable tuning stability out fairly cheap tuners with a beautifully cut nut and well-seasoned wood.

[Mark Gibbs]

Not to be a contrarian, but I think that the tuning machines are almost the least-important part of the equation behind well-seasoned wood and a well-cut nut. I only have one mando, so I can't really compare instruments there, but I have about a dozen guitars, and I can get remarkable tuning stability out fairly cheap tuners with a beautifully cut nut and well-seasoned wood.

Blauserk...With regards to Waverly's on a mandolin.
David Grisman says "Simply the best you can get"
Chris Thile says "The best tuners in the world"
Sam Bush says "They have changed my life"
Ronnie McCoury says "The frequent need for tuning during a show is gone"
The list goes on. I'm not a guitar player and i am sure you are correct about the cheap tuners on a guitar but a mandolin ain't no guitar.

[Ivan Kelsall]

Blauserk - If the tuners on your Guitars are the regular 'Grover' style,i'd agree with you. Even the cheapest Guitar tuners of that style are better than the finest Mandolin tuners i've come across to date. I don't have any trouble whatsoever with the tuners on either of my Mandolins,but they're not on the same planet as the standard 'Grover' tuners on my Guitar -they're smooth,silky & as stable as a rock. In fact if i were to order one of Wyatt's awesome instruments,i'd request 'Mini-Grover' tuners on it. A friend of mine has a Fylde "Single Malt" Mandolin with "Gotoh" Grover style tuners on it & they're in a totally different class altogether than my Schallers,
Ivan75429

[blauserk]

My guitars range from modern strip Gotohs to 1950s Grovers (both sealed kidney-bean tuners and open-back strip tuners as used on Gretsches) to 1950s Klusons (both keystone type as used on Gibsons to metal-button type on Fenders). My most stable guitar was a '67 Gibson with unremarkable Kluson keystone tuners (which I've heard many guitarists disparage--think of how many people changed their Les Pauls' Klusons for Grovers) but a well seasoned guitar whose nut had been gone over by a great tech. That thing could have gone through hurricane Katrina and gone maybe 5 cents out of tune.

During the time it has taken me to type out this response, I've had to touch up a couple strings on my (2009) mando that I retuned maybe 25 minutes ago with a sensitive digital tuner. The tuners are . . . Waverlys. I appreciate their workmanship as much as anyone, and I would pay extra for them because they're made in the US and display good workmanship. But I'd be very interested to see them tested against other brands with the same gear ratios *on the same instruments*. In an age when manufacturing tolerances and standards around the world have risen to new heighths, I am inclined to explain differences in performance to the parts of the instrument that aren't cut by machines. But I'll be the first to admit that my information is anecdotal. (Just like everyone else's.)

[Mark Gibbs]

Well it is almost finished! In the photo l. To r. 10 string mandolin, mandola, mandolin. Mine is the mandolin.
Mark

[almeriastrings]

Modern tuners (all decent brands), if correctly installed (no post binding) do not slip. Gotoh's, Schaller's, Golden Age, Grover's, Waverley's. All the same as far as that goes. Normally, "going out of tune" is nothing to do with the tuners at all, unless they are defective. It is down to strings, expansion/contraction of wood via temperature/humidity, and sometimes slippage from a poorly cut nut or bridge.

Where you do notice the difference with super-high quality tuners is in the smoothness and precision of tuning when you do turn them. Waverley's are really outstanding here. On top of that, they look/feel spectacular. Grover 309's are almost as smooth... but don't have the same inspiring construction and finish. Schaller's can feel a bit gritty - though they can be modded. I like the way Northfield have them.

Nice looking mandolin!