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I was going through a few boxes of LPs that I hadn’t looked at for a few decades, and found a real jewel - Back To Back, by Jethro Burns and Tiny Moore. It was unopened for some reason. What an...

I’m a big fan of the Schertler Dyn-M. It’s a kind of mic which attaches to the top with putty. I have used it in some pretty loud gigs. They are pricey, but sound good.

My favorite is my Collings MF-5V. I bought it new in 2007 I got a partial refret a few years ago.
My big regret mandolin was my early eighties Givens A-3. I sold it to help pay for the Collings. It...

I’ve seen him with the Punch Brothers, GOAT Rodeo, and a Live From Here show. Whether he was surrounded by great musicians or by himself, he blows me away. At the solo show he was able to get a...

Nobody, except maybe Chris Thile, plays perfectly. You want to play this open mic. Do it! Stretch your envelope.

My wife and I went to see “An evening with Chris Thile” last night in Houston’s Cullen theater at the Wortham center. A swanky venue. The place was pretty packed. I knew it would be good, but holy...

Some folks have different experience with flat wound strings. The crux the matter is the wound A string. Normal saddles are cut so that the A string breaks farther from the nut than the E string....

Loved it.

I got my Collings new from Elderly back in 2007. Addy top, before you could have them toasted. I loved it when I got it, but I admit there was a time where I missed the 1983 Givens A that I sold to...

Finding a case to fit a 1935 Gibson TG-50 turned out to be a chore. Well, a chore that was finished in a few hours of frantic googling, anyway. A new Gibson case by TKL, made for an ES-175 fits very...

The Kalamazoo is pretty much the same guitar, isn’t it?

https://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z215/mandocaster/63ECC3BC-1F14-460A-A2FF-138BA8B07596_zpspj2h7ybs.jpeg

I’m trying to post an image of my new pristine, minty (sarcasm, except for the weird hole in the top and the overall wear and mojo) 1935 Gibson TG-50. I found it at Fiddler’s Green in Austin today. I...

There was a study concerning a correlation between beer consumption and intelligence. The only confirmation was the undeniable fact that it had made Bud wiser.

My 2005 MF5V sn 478 has a signature. Are there any older mandolins that don’t?

Banjolo might be a contraction of banjo and YOLO. If you play that instrument there is a significant danger that someone nearby will simply kill you to make it stop.

Now that I’m home from Austin I’ve had a chance to to really spend some quality time playing it. I didn’t have any expectations that it would be as loud as my Collings, but it does have a respectable...

I bought a lovely 1918 Gibson A from Fiddlers Green in Austin today. It is quite beat up but fantastically playable and sweet.
...

Peering into the mists of long ago and my shrinking cerebellum...
Flatiiron 1n sold
Kentucky KM1000 nice mid eighties. Gave to my son
teens pumpkin top A1 gave to a friend RIP
Highish grade...

Happy birthday to the man who created the music that showed me a new world, and inspired me to pick up the instrument way back in 1978.

Thile: Do not try and click the blue link. That’s impossible. Instead… only try to realize the truth.
Neo: What truth?
Thile: There is no blue link.
Neo: There is no blue link?
Thile: Then you’ll...

These threads are kind of fun, I guess. There seem to be a lot of them with a similar theme lately. What's next? "How much do you make?" "Do you own a Rolex?"

I have a nice quality bowlback made in East Germany in 1950 by Willi Hums. When it arrived in the mail several years ago, the tuners were falling apart and required replacement. Finding suitable...

I don't mean to be adversarial, and yet here I am. I don't there is a clear dichotomy. I know there are folks here that play a Rogue mandolin with a piece of string as a strap who probably are fine...

Here we are though, on the mandolin cafe, and it's safe to say that most of us are gear nerds. Beyond that, there is something magical about a fine instrument that might be a bit more transcendent...