I'm sure Gruhn's will stock more Wienman's after Will and Wes build more but he has to build mine first !! I sent my deposit check to Will five days ago from Illinois to SC and not there yet ! Slow postal service !
I'm sure Gruhn's will stock more Wienman's after Will and Wes build more but he has to build mine first !! I sent my deposit check to Will five days ago from Illinois to SC and not there yet ! Slow postal service !
Will is in the process of building more WIEnman mandolins for Gruhn's as George has requested more due to demand ! My check finally ( one week) arrived from Illinois to the Wienman shop ! Glad I got my name on the expanding waiting list before the price goes up ! My F5 should be completed in May and I will post photos !
This is an e-mail I received from George Gruhn regarding this F5 mandolin ! om: George Gruhn
Sent: Tuesday, November 21, 2017 5:30 PM
Subject: Re: Fwd: Wienman F5 Mandolin
I have had this mandolin for less than a week, but I have had a very good chance to run it through its paces. The day it was delivered to me I took it backstage to the Opry where it was very well received by the staff band. I play mandolin myself as one of my primary instruments. This mandolin stacks up very well against our two Gilchrists, the Monteleone, and the Paul Newson, all of which cost considerably more. I showed it to Rhonda Vincent, who lives only a few blocks away from me in a Nashville suburb. We compared it to all of her mandolins. It beat all but one of hers and that one is a Gibson Master Model with a list price of $20,000. The Weinmann is extremely well-balanced with good bass mid range, and treble. In my opinion, it is a far better sounding mandolin than a Gibson F-5L. It is without a doubt worthy to take on stage or studio and play professionally.
Last edited by Mandolin Cafe; Dec-06-2017 at 7:11am. Reason: pleaes do not post email addresses on this forum per the forum posting guidelines
After reading George Gruhn's e-mail,it simply bears out what i thought straight off - Mr Weinman is a serious contender for a 'top spot' as a builder !!. Better get your orders in now folks !,
Ivan
Weber F-5 'Fern'.
Lebeda F-5 "Special".
Stelling Bellflower BANJO
Tokai - 'Tele-alike'.
Ellis DeLuxe "A" style.
George knows his stuff! He's been at it forever well since the early days of festivals selling out of his trunk of his ride! I'd rather buy from Gruhn than most other dealers-he'll work with ya with trades if possible and his prices on high end stuff is far better than some other dealers I could mention! Even cheaper instruments he'll make a deal! He's always been very courteous and full of knowledge when I've talked with him on the phone! When recently I was trying to get a 39 F-5 from him "before it was bought for that darn museum at that college" he was patient and told me of other mandolins that my Uncle Gene Johnson tried out for me as Uncle Gene lives a bit closer by far, and was nice enough to go on the hunt for me-Gene told me the 39 was for sure "my style" but the Monte GA was a KILLER/not your tone bar Gibson sound! but the "Newson" was a real darling, very impressed with that one. but me I shy away from unknown names! I know that's Krazy but that's how I am when spending serious $, If I have to sell I'd like to get what I have back in something "But us mando nuts know sometimes we take a loss, I know I have. and will pry continue to do so!" I know that Weinman sure looked like a great fit and finish and if George said it was a great mandolin it IS. I trust his word!
Unknown builders ? Yes, I suppose you do take a chance ! A shortened version of a longer story ----- a friend stopped by Gruhn's many years ago and played on a guitar built by a completely unknown builder ! My friend said it was beautiful and well made and the sound was great ! But, the maker was unknown and at $1500. my friend thought it was a little brave for an unknown builder to be asking ! So, my friend passed on the guitar ! As the years went by this unknown builder became pretty successful and now it takes over twenty thousand dollars to buy one of his guitars and around that for one of his mandolins ! By the way, the builder's name Lynn Dudenbostel !
All builders begin as 'unknowns' !. Some come through the ranks & become top tier builders,others don't - but,that doen't mean that even their mandolins aren't truly excellent,simply 'not as well known' for the most part.
Even if i was fortunate enough to be able to visit a store in order to buy a Dude. / Gil.,i would never pass up the chance of playing as many 'good' mandolins as i could - just on the off chance that one would be ''the one'' regardless of make. Could any one of us pass up the chance to play say, a Dearstone / Hutto / Altman / Elkhorn / Weins etc. - all very high quality mandolins.
It's maybe a good job that i don't live in the US,i'd be a plague when it came to playing mandolins - i'd be there all week !,
Ivan
Weber F-5 'Fern'.
Lebeda F-5 "Special".
Stelling Bellflower BANJO
Tokai - 'Tele-alike'.
Ellis DeLuxe "A" style.
It won't be long until another Wienman F5 reaches the Gruhn shop ! I bet it won't last very long there either !
I see on the "vintage by design-fine instruments" website by Wienman Mandolins that Jarrod Walker who plays with the Claire Lynch Bluegrass Band has bought the first Wienman mandolin sold at the retail level at Gruhn's !! Go to the site and see what Jarrod says about the Wienman mandolin ! Wow! I have heard and seen this group and Jarrod playing the mandolin and they are fantastic !!
Good for all concerned! Merry Christmas to all!
Timothy F. Lewis
"If brains was lard, that boy couldn't grease a very big skillet" J.D. Clampett
Wienman instruments including mandolins can now only be ordered/purchased through Gruhn Guitars in Nashville ! Gruhn is the sole distributor for Wienman instruments . Prices on the way up !! Glad I have my order already in !!
I'm happy for you. Sounds like a great builder. At some point, enthusiasm begins to sound like a sales pitch, IMHO...
From yankees1 - "Prices on the way up !!". That could be a sure fire way of detering prospective customers. What was perceived to be ''a good mandolin at a very affordable price'',will now become a good mandolin at a not so affordable one for a lot of folks. Hiking the price up so soon wouldn't be a good idea IMHO. If the asking price was $5,500 for the first one sold,why should the next one suddenly be more expensive ?.
It's always seemed odd to me that folks would rather sell 1 at $8,000, than 10 at $5,500 (for example),
Ivan
Weber F-5 'Fern'.
Lebeda F-5 "Special".
Stelling Bellflower BANJO
Tokai - 'Tele-alike'.
Ellis DeLuxe "A" style.
You know, I think you're right !! I really didn't intend it that way but you are correct ! I have no financial interest with the Wienman's or Gruhn's and I do have a Wienman on order but I just thought that at $5500. this "could be" a great investment besides being a great sounding instrument ! And since Gruhn's has taken over I assume that the price won't stay at that price much longer ! But, I will back off with my enthusiasm and glad you brought it to my attention ! Sorry !
Raising the already quite high price (IMHO) would be wrong move and would look much like speculation with inflated pricing (I do spend a lot of time in violin makers community and there is some dirty business going on in the field - search for "Burgess integrity" and read if you wish). Competition at that price point is tight and full of seasoned names...
I'm looking forward to seeing more mandolins from Wienman workshop and hope thay will be as highly regarded by musicians as the "prototype".
Adrian
Everybody understands higher prices as the costs of materials etc. increases. Raising the price of an item,to make more money is also understandable 'if' the retailer is facing increased overhead costs as well,but without one or the other, it's just profiteering. However,if i remember correctly,Northfield hiked their prices up not too long after receiving a lot of good reviews & they still sold well.
I think that raising the price of any item simply on the back of favourable reviews would leave a nasty taste in folk's mouths - but,realistically,the original asking price of $5,500 US is pretty low by today's standard - so...... !,
Ivan
Weber F-5 'Fern'.
Lebeda F-5 "Special".
Stelling Bellflower BANJO
Tokai - 'Tele-alike'.
Ellis DeLuxe "A" style.
Purr more, hiss less. Barn Cat Mandolins Photo Album
Another reason for a price hike in my eye would be supply and demand ! I don't know Mr. Wienman's order schedule but when the demand is overwhelming and they can't keep up then I think some sort of price increase in inevitable ! Also, Gruhn is the sole distributor for Wienman instruments so I'm sure George is pushing Wienman mandolins especially at that price level which is low in my opinion for a high quality F5 model compared to other high quality instruments. Northfield F's start at $5800 ! Just my opinion !
This discussion has run its course. I've been uncomfortable with this for some time now. At least one other person has stated his concern publicly and I've been contacted by other members and external parties that are not members that this is being discussed like it's some kind of financial investment. Everyone deserves the joy of ordering a new instrument and we congratulate you, but that doesn't give anyone the right to speculate wildly about the pricing decisions of the builder or his lack of, and the store representing his work. Some of the comments being driven by all of this, no builder should have to be party to. We can do better.
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