$199.00 solid F style mandolin

[Jeff Mando]

The thread that simply refuses to die..............................

[Br1ck]

I admire those brave souls willing to strip off the industrial paint on these things. Just sanding a speed neck was an afternoon project. I just made an arm rest from mahogany for mine.

I really have come to like the tailpiece on these too. Still debating a Cumberland bridge. This has gotten way out of hand.

[Frankdolin]

So to add to this crazy thread... I am a closet MKF owner also. I bought mine several years back and had all the issues seen here. But with a little love and work she turned out better than I thought, since I was only look'n for something to strap on my bike. I can wail the heck out of this mandolin and she asks for more. Here's some "artsy" shots I took yesterday.
Can't figure out how to rotate images...

[Br1ck]

I can see the add copy now:

For sale, a fully intact decent if uninspiring mandolin project platform for you tinkerers out in mando world. All you need to realize your dream of adiquacy, right here in the form of a shiny, well not so shiny, MK. Just add a couple of hundred dollars worth of specialty files, and twenty hour's worth of gloriously fun and rewarding labor, and you too can be a part of this exclusive cult. Worried about the outcome? Don't be. You will have so much of your psyche invested, you'll swear you have a mando rivaling an Ellis, or at the very least, a Kentucky master series. Don't delay, act now.

[jhowell]

As the proud owner of a MK solid A with about $300 of shop time into it, even if I were a shop, I'm three beats and a half tone behind ya!

[mandolinstew]

I just sold mine,now waiting for my Kentucky 606

[dhergert]

Out of respect for the dead (thread, that is), I've been trying to stay away from here. But I have to say my MK has inspired me by how comfortably it plays...

I just recently had my 2002 F-9 refretted with banjo-width Evo-gold frets, the neck's V-profile gently "reduced", the neck speed-necked and French-polished, and basically had the instrument given a pro-setup. (This was all expertly done for me two weeks ago by builder Austin Clark while he was working in the Luthier's Barn at the Grass Valley Father's Day Bluegrass Festival.)

I have really liked how the MK's wider frets and round neck profile feel, so that got me thinking about the F-9. The F-9's original thin frets were in pretty bad shape and very difficult to play clearly, so I needed them changed and wanted wider frets in either Evo-gold or SS. The speed neck and French polish was because I had worn most of the color off the back of the F-9's neck anyway, plus, I wanted the F-9's stock V-profile reduced so my left thumb would feel better.

I had actually been considered replacing the F-9 with something else that would already have these improvements, but this opportunity came up with Austin, where I was at the right place at the right time. I'm extremely happy I went this direction, because I do really like the F-9.

So, here's another thing to thank the MK, and Mike Edgerton for!

Once again, the beauty of these "$199.00 solid F style mandolin"s isn't in how little money they have cost us; it is in how much money they have saved us.

[Br1ck]

Once again, the beauty of these "$199.00 solid F style mandolin"s isn't in how little money they have cost us; it is in how much money they have saved us.

Well, yes, if you don't count the fret files, nut files, fret crowning files, and nut blanks I bought. Then there was the immediate GAS for an F style of the same quality as my SA. So I figure in the end, the MK will have cost me a ton of cash.

Big fun though.

[Verne Andru]

I've been doing setup in spits and spurts and the better it gets dialed in, the better I like it. Still doesn't rival my PS, but it is a very nice playing and sounding mando.

I'm not finding setup to be any worse than other instruments I've received from MF or other big box places. It is as it came from the factory and is setup to be playable with good tone. But, as most of you will probably attest, the action is a bit high for serious playing, which is where the setup comes in.

The only "special" tools I've purchased to work on my instruments over the years have been a "wide/medium" fret crowning file (about $40 IIRC) and a set of needle files ($12). Everything else is normal stuff any home handy-person would have about.

I did a string change and find the tailpiece to be quite functional and works well if you start stringing from the "inside" and move to the outer strings.

I did find a bit of an odd situation with the D'Addario EJ62s I put on. First time getting them up to tune was fine, but I had to slacken them off to scrape the frets a bit more and when I went to tune back to pitch both E strings started "slipping." Upon investigation both of them were slipping at the loop end - in other words, the loops were unlooping. I was able to get some solder on the windings before they came completely unwound, so all is good, just a heads-up to be careful as the set I got doesn't seem to be wound as well as they used to be.

[dhergert]

I also had that experience on the MK tailpieces with the "E" strings -- actually in my case, this would be the "first course" of strings, since I'm using non-standard tuning (with custom .015 gauge non-wound 1st and 2nd strings tuned to G).

I found that I had to hook the 1st and 2nd strings around their normal posts and loop them over the 5th and 6th posts in order to keep them from slipping -- sort of like with the old Gibson style stamped tailpieces and the "extra" hooks that aren't really "extra".

While I'd like to see the D'A string loops wound more tightly and I've seen non-MK related complaints online about this issue, I have to at least partially blame this slipping on the very thin posts in the MK tailpiece. They probably encourage this kind of behavior.

That said, in general I do like the MK tailpiece and I tend to attribute some of these instruments' volume and tone quality to the heavy build of these tailpieces. That's speculation on my part, but somewhat believable after swapping more banjo tailpieces than I care to count over the last 45 years.

[Mike Stewart]

I just sold mine,now waiting for my Kentucky 606

I’m waiting for the 606 to show up before I sell (if I sell; I’ve grown fond of the l’il guy). Speaking of which, I posted in the appropriate thread, asking if anyone got one from Elderly yet. They had at least one, right?

[farmerjones]

I've haven't done anything much but pull the strings into pitch and play it. I may have tried to knock the finish down a bit. I do understand the deal with the frets. I may knock the burs down, but I may not. Showing too much ambition on my part could knock me down in musician status.

[Verne Andru]

On the D'Addario strings - not sure I could fault the MK tailpiece for that. It just appears to be poor string winding from what I can see.

I would add that the MK tailpiece seems to pretty much eliminate the overtones and errand string sounds I've had on others, so it has had some thought put into its design that seems to be working.

[mandolinstew]

I've haven't done anything much but pull the strings into pitch and play it. I may have tried to knock the finish down a bit. I do understand the deal with the frets. I may knock the burs down, but I may not. Showing too much ambition on my part could knock me down in musician status.

how do you knock down the finish?

[farmerjones]

how do you knock down the finish?

With the use of abrasives, like steel wool, scotch-brites or sand or garnet paper. I think I used a scotch-brite, then a coat of tung oil. But the finish is deceptively thick. At the end of the day, it really didn't look like I did hardly anything. Although it was smoother/softer, to the touch, yet it still didn't reflect light.

[Br1ck]

The finish is insanely hard to remove. You might be able to remove it with some industrial stripper, but who knows.

The intriguing issue to me with this whole obsession, for that is what it has become for me, is that I wonder how many mandolins out there sitting unplayed in closets could be made into servisable or even pleasurable instruments. Underneath what was an uninspiring and very hard to play instrument is everything one needs. Over time and a lot of playing, it's even sounding better as it opens up. I no doubt will get a CA bridge, and perhaps a tone guard.

It has certainly provided me with a lot of entertainment. I am sanding the neck bit by bit to get more of a vee. I think I'm about there.
How would I feel to have payed full price for one? Not great.

[Verne Andru]

Speaking of price, purchasers should be happy to know their $199 investment has increased significantly according to Guitar Center's used listing at $354.99:

http://www.guitarcenter.com/Used/Mic...n-113370344.gc

[Br1ck]

Oh goody, I might be at the break even point. Tools bought, etc.

[Mike Stewart]

Speaking of price, purchasers should be happy to know their $199 investment has increased significantly according to Guitar Center's used listing at $354.99:

I just knew it was a solid investment. At that rate of return, think how much it will be worth in ten years! They're not making any more of them, folks!

[dhergert]

In September it will be a year. I'm guessing we probably will see them for re-sale at $400 by then. 2x is ($400) is still a good value/price balance for these MK mandolins, keeping up with the new low end KM-606 price-wise but with a fancier and perhaps less rough visual impression.

I'll be very surprised if the re-sold MKLFSTB models ever become collectable, or even if they climb to higher prices than brand new low-end solid F style mandolins from other makers, but anything is possible. I still believe their real value is in how much money they save a person; it's definately been that way for me.

I think the original list price of the MKLFSTB was somewhere around $850, but that might have included a case. Does anyone have that old data?

[Br1ck]

I was initially disappointed, sort of a well, what did you expect for that kind of money? It sounded just like another import, and probably not as good as most Eastmans and Kentuckys, and it played like barbed wire. But I bought it to butcher, or "fix" so it was still a decent value. Heck, I've gotten an education. That I ended up with a very serviceable beater that gets half my play time I find pretty astounding. It has mellowed a bit with time and playing hours, and between working on it and playing it has been a huge bang for buck entertainment purchase.

I have to wonder how many are sitting in closets unplayed, as I wouldn't play a stock one for long.

[Mike Stewart]

I have to wonder how many are sitting in closets unplayed, as I wouldn't play a stock one for long.

After taking it out of the box, I strummed two chords and thought to myself, "forget the file, I'm going to need an angle grinder if I'm going to grind that nut to height in a reasonable amount of time." I can't imagine someone who has never played trying to learn on it with any success out-of-the-box.

I figured I'd sell it after the 606 shows up, but it's turned into such a "good enough" mandolin I think I'll keep it around as a backup beater to the 606, or a loaner I don't have to worry about, or whatever. The value vs. price-paid ratio is high enough, and what-I'd-get-out-of-it-if-I-sold-it vs. value low enough, might as well keep it around. They don't take much space, and don't eat much except a $5 set of strings once in a while, and my wife oddly kind of likes the l'il feller.

[Verne Andru]

So in the spirit of "cheapness" inspired by this deal I splurged $2.50 (plus tax) for a new strap.

I remember reading some genius (who I can't remember) on this forum offer the advise of using a dog leash for a strap. That set me on a quest and yesterday I finally happened upon a nylon dog leash with a padded handle at my local dollar store. It looks something like this:



With my trusty exacto-blade I cut away some of the padding in the handle so it wraps nicely around the scroll. Cut off the hook-thing at the other end, cut a slit for the endpin and voila, as nice a mando strap as you could want at a price in keeping with the mandolin it adorns.

[imoir]

Seriously considering a bone nut and CA bridge for this......

Anyone done it yet?

[Verne Andru]

Not sure I'd bother changing the nut or the bridge. Bone nut only adds a tiny bit of chime on open strings and the stock bridge is fine once it's fitted properly to the top. You may be seeing a 1 to 2% improvement for the investment, if that.

OTOH I can see a McClung armrest. That takes the arm off the top allowing for much better volume and projection plus I find an armrest more comfortable, but otherwise it's quite a fine instrument as is to me.