Test on scrap is the major moto and despite the hassle its a good idea always. Wipe down your instrument with mineral spirits first and inspect it. If there is any residual glue on the wood surface,...
Type: Posts; User: Wrnchbndr
Test on scrap is the major moto and despite the hassle its a good idea always. Wipe down your instrument with mineral spirits first and inspect it. If there is any residual glue on the wood surface,...
Your nut looks great. But looks/cosmetic refinement is the last step when adjusting a nut after everything else has been done. As a professional tech, I find that refining the adjustment of the nut...
It takes a hunger for skills and then it takes a desire to improve them. As much as your schedule allows, visit local music stores frequently looking for instruments that are not economically...
Its such an individual thing. Some folks simply wont play with anything other than their favorite pick while others have no such qualms and could use a nickel or even a fork without a problem. I like...
There are pros and cons to both. Yes, a solid body electric instrument is a departure from the sweetness of an acoustic mandolin and individual notes are absolutely of an electric guitar flavor. But...
Been there. You can always stop and order more of the same fretwire. You should be able to have it in a week but I will admit that I have avoided this type of solution myself. Heating up the frets...
What do you folks recommend for drilling tiny little position marker holes?
I'm having a problem of tear-out when I drill holes for position markers in the upper fret positions of a slotted...
Great way to convert a so-so electric into a one of a kind special instrument. These things are precious and even more so because your dad was involved. Instruments can last forever.
Makes me feel better about some of the dumb mistakes I've made.
Off the shelf superglue from your average hardware store is often a bit thicker than is optimum for doing this. Stewmac sells a water-thin CA that will wick down into the slot and if you're patient...
There is no standard scale length. It can be anything you want with infinite variation of total length between what ever you believe are your minimum and maximum ideas of functionality are. 21 to...
I'm working on a prototype for an instrument I intend to build as a series so I asked around the shop I work for, "who plays mandolin?". I need some feedback from a player. I got damn lucky and was...
Kinda related ...
Shortening the distance between the nut and the 1st fret is the general idea of the Buzz Feiten system which is targeted toward guitars. You can Google it if you're curious. I'm an...
I get what you're saying and I ran this idea through my head just a few days ago. I have an X/Y table on my drill press and I was making templates for fret slotting. The idea was to make long scale...
I find that I enjoy refrets. Without actually discussing price (I won't), its a matter of making the job worthwhile for you. Charge what makes the job good business sense. If the time it takes for...
When in doubt, I pull the last fret and measure it. A couple of times, the client has kept the instrument with the missing fret until I acquired the exact fretwire. I've never used such a device but...
Yes, the nomenclature can shift depending on the number of strings and the method of tuning. You can easily build an instrument that is either an electric mandolla, an octave mandolin, or a bouzuki...
Mando going out of tune? Unless its all of the strings, most of the time, the problem is either the nut or the bridge.
Always tune using a tuner. Never tune by ear as one string that sounds sharp...
Easily made invisible w/ black superglue and a razor blade.
In my experience Schaller makes a very high quality tuner. I googled your instrument and the Eastman website indicates some other tuners which I've never heard of. You really should look to the place...
Khatarlan, Much thanks for the link. I'm really into double strung mando-family instruments. I was surprised to see another maker building a Ric inspired design. Here's mine, and generally, this is...
Oh my... :)
Nylon core, let alone piezo pickups is not the direction I'm headed. I've gone there dipping my toe into the vast lake of possibilities with a couple unique instruments. I have a 24.5...
Yes, solid body. I've done a number of octave mandolin conversion solid body and a couple of purpose built octave mandolins over the years. The conversions were simply inexpensive instruments that...
If you think of an electric mando-cello what are your thoughts?
Four or eight strings?
What scale length?
I believe the scale length of an actual cello is about 27.3 inches for a full size cello...
I guess mostly because they don't want to.
However, both on the face of the fretboard, and on the side of the neck, the slightest misalignment of the two dots totally stands out as a terrible glitch...