Dobro mandolin on ebay -- legit?

[mattburnside]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/120806428533?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

The f-holes look right, the moons and stars look right, and the burst pattern looks right (especially on the back of the neck). But no decal, and I'm just leery of any auction where "I'm told this is a" comes into play.

[jim simpson]

The seller says: "seems to be..." I think that covers his presentation.

It looks very nice. I wonder if any of our Dobro experts will identify the serial # as a Dobro #?

[MikeEdgerton]

Looks very Regal-ish to me.

[Chief]

Looks exactly like my Dobro mando- only in much better shape. Mine does have the "Dobro" decal on the head. I have no doubt it's authentic. But I'm not an expert.

[houseworker]

The A prefix on the number confirms that it's made by Regal. Looks wonderful, what's it likely to fetch?

[MikeEdgerton]

The A prefix on the number confirms that it's made by Regal. Looks wonderful, what's it likely to fetch?

Now wonder it looked so Regal-ish. :)

[allenhopkins]

Looks just like my Dobro mando except mine has the Dobro decal and screen holes rather than f-holes. Those bodies (likely built by Regal?) are pretty standard.

Watch out for possible neck re-set requirements. My instrument repair guy said the neck block was made of "balsa wood"; he was exaggerating, but the wood was pretty soft...

[mattburnside]

Looks just like my Dobro mando except mine has the Dobro decal and screen holes rather than f-holes. Those bodies (likely built by Regal?) are pretty standard.

Watch out for possible neck re-set requirements. My instrument repair guy said the neck block was made of "balsa wood"; he was exaggerating, but the wood was pretty soft...

Thanks for the heads-up. "My dad is a TV repairman. He's got this ultimate set of tools."

[wellvis@well.com]

That looks just like my mandolin (http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/showthread.php?78493-Regal-Dobro-Model-250-resonator-mandolin) except with a different cover plate.

[mattburnside]

The A prefix on the number confirms that it's made by Regal. Looks wonderful, what's it likely to fetch?

Around $666, apparently. (devilhorns)

[mattburnside]

Thanks for the info, everybody.

[Chief]

That was a good price. I should have bid!

[mattburnside]

For those of you holding onto similar Regals -- what strings have you found work best?

[wellvis@well.com]

I'm using D'Addario J74 strings on mine ("Ricky Skaggs picks this set").

[mattburnside]

Wow, the strings will make no difference whatsoever. Even tuned down about a perfect fourth, the action is so high that this thing is unplayable.

I told the seller that he might want to find someone else to evaluate playability of instruments in the future, and he has graciously offered to do a refund. Too bad, it seems like it might sound great. Live and learn. Thanks for the input, everybody.

[Schlegel]

Allen called it, sadly. Apparently not uncommon in these. I continue to appreciate the quality build in mine, made about 40 years later than this one. same cover plate, BTW. Don't give up, you can find playable ones, and they are really sweet!

[Verne Andru]

AFAIK those old reso's lacked an adjustable truss-rod making it difficult to adjust the action. Then there's neck warpage that doesn't help. That's why most of those are only used for slide.

That was a nice looking specimen and a pretty good price. If you have a good luthie,r you could get a truss-rod installed and the neck reset and it would still be cheaper than getting a new National.

[allenhopkins]

...those old reso's lacked an adjustable truss-rod making it difficult to adjust the action. Then there's neck warpage that doesn't help. That's why most of those are only used for slide...If you have a good luthier, you could get a truss-rod installed and the neck reset and it would still be cheaper than getting a new National.

Truss rod adjustments can optimize neck "relief" -- i.e. the amount of curve or "bow" in the neck -- but there are other means of raising or lowering action, at the nut or the bridge saddle. Resonator instruments have a very limited range of bridge adjustment, either location or height, because the "spider" or the cone under a "biscuit" bridge is pretty much a "given" -- you got what you got, and only saddle thickness (or, to some extent, the thickness of the "biscuit") is changeable.

The real problem I've found with my Dobro and my National (not so much the Triolian mandolin, but my Style 0 guitar), is the need to adjust the overall angle of the neck to the body. The Dobro mandolin required pulling off the neck and re-configuring the neck block. The National Style 0, I had the frets pulled, fingerboard planed down, and a re-fret. (As a result, the guitar's fingerboard binding is much thinner near the nut!)

I had a carbon fiber bar added to the neck of my Regal Octofone, which had developed quite a bit of neck curvature, with no truss rod to correct it. Got a new fingerboard at the same time, ebony instead of dyed "mystery wood," so it was an overall upgrade.

One has to realize that wood quality and woodworking are where these old Dobros and Nationals fell down. The resonator was the thing, and they cranked out a lot of instruments in the 1930's, sometimes buying the wooden bodies from Kay or Regal and installing the resonators. I have a wood-bodied National Havana guitar with one of the clunkiest looking arch-top f-hole bodies (built by Kay, apparently) you'd see, but it is also the loudest acoustic I've ever picked.

If you really like the resonator mandolin sound, investing in a neck re-set and perhaps a retrofitted stiffening rod can be really worth it. Especially with the rarity of spider-bridge mandolins, which are only being made now in minuscule quantities by individual builders.

[Verne Andru]

Hey Allen - I agree a truss-rod adjustment is all about setting relief. My point was meant that the rod itself [a few metal rods running the length of the neck] inhibits extreme bowing that can happen to an unsupported neck under a lot of string pressure. A badly bowed neck will generally have horrible "action" which is why many of those are only used for slide.

$680-ish for that mando and maybe another $4-500 in luthier costs is way under the $2100 RM-1's sell for. And there's a vintage vibe to it no money can buy!