Help with treating a mandolin properly

[Meganmay]

I'm a new mandolin player, and the mandolin I was using became warped. From the beginning there were cracks on the neck. After a month, I was unable to play the A strings and it was all fuzz on the third fret on the D strings and G strings. I changed the strings and tried to adjust the bridge. My mandolin ended up completely warped. I am returning it and waiting for a new one, but I don't know if I did something to cause this to happen or if it was because I was using an inexpensive mandolin. I love playing very much and want to maintain it correctly, but feel completely lost and know no one who plays. I would appreciate anyone's advice or help. Thank you

[fscotte]

The first step in treating a mandolin properly, is to obtain a proper mandolin.

[MikeEdgerton]

It sounds to me like yours had problems before you got it. If it was new then I'd think about getting a different brand from a different seller. The rule of thumb is simple. If you would be uncomfortable in the environment your mandolin is being kept in then the mandolin isn't going to fare well. They don't like extreme heat or cold and certainly you never want to get one wet. Stringed musical instruments that are made out of wood are susceptible to over and under humidification as well. You haven't mentioned the brand, if it was old or new, where you live (climate wise). With a little more information you will get more detailed answers.

[Roger Moss]

Yeah, sounds like you just received a faulty instrument. Hopefully your replacement will be better. Just out of curiosity, what brand / model was it?

[Br1ck]

The first step in treating a mandolin properly, is to obtain a proper mandolin.

More than most instruments, this is critical. I understand if you bought what you could afford, but really the worst experience come from the cheapest instruments. If you are going to be serious in this endeavor, buy one of the many quality mandolins available, the Kentucky KM 150 being high on the list. A mandolin such as this bought from one of the cafe sponsors will give you a lot of joy. What else could provide entertainement for a dollar an hour?

Invest in yourself. You are worth it.

[Pittsburgh Bill]

Recently heard a player say when asked why he did not bring his instrument to a party on a 95 degree day, " too hot in the car, I won't expose my instrument to anything I wouldn't expose a puppy or a baby."

[Roger Moss]

More than most instruments, this is critical. I understand if you bought what you could afford, but really the worst experience come from the cheapest instruments. If you are going to be serious in this endeavor, buy one of the many quality mandolins available, the Kentucky KM 150 being high on the list. A mandolin such as this bought from one of the cafe sponsors will give you a lot of joy. What else could provide entertainement for a dollar an hour?

Invest in yourself. You are worth it.

If you are getting interested in mandolin, having a nice one is a goal you should strive for. However it is not always feasible to start right off with a high quality instrument. You should certainly start off with the best you can afford at the time, but starting with a Rogue is just as valid a starting with a Weber. But it is crucial, and the more so the less expensive the instrument, that it be set up a well as possible. Effort in this step will pay off in learning progress as well as pleasure as much as anything. Start off with whatever you can afford, but definitely take the time to set it up properly

[Denny Gies]

If you are able to get decent mandolin, keep it in the case when not in use. Depending on the humidity where you live, you may want to consider getting a dehumidifier to keep in your case. Good luck.

[Roger Moss]

If you are able to get decent mandolin, keep it in the case when not in use. Depending on the humidity where you live, you may want to consider getting a dehumidifier to keep in your case. Good luck.

Or a humidifier. I don't know what climate you live in, but arid conditions will kill a wood instrument as much as dampness. Overly dry wood will shrink and crack and even if repaired will never be the same. Check your humidity and treat your mandolin accordingly. Not so crucial for laminate, but of key importance for solid wood.

[Ivan Kelsall]

Meganmay - You didn't give us any info.to go on regarding what make / style / model of mandolin that you're talking about. There are a huge variety of mandolins to be had at many price points & it helps to know ''which one'' you had.

If a mandolion is a decent enough brand,then the rules on 'how to treat it' would be much the same across a wide price spectrum - but - there are ''some brands'' that maybe you shouldn't go near at all !.
Ivan

[Bertram Henze]

If you dropped it into the ocean, don't dry it over a fire.

But seriously, to produce the damages you describe in such a short time, that is what somebody seems to have done to it. Or so I think, because I never have heard of such a thing let alone try it.

[Hypoxia]

This was the OP's first and (so far) only post. OP gave no hint about what mandolin, where they're located, or their playing conditions, so it's rather difficult to diagnose a cause. FWIW my many stringed instruments range from cheap to pricey, and ancient to new. Many have lived near the moist Pacific Coast north of San Francisco, now live at dry 4000 ft in the Sierras, and have shown zero warping or similar distempers. Perhaps OP is in a more tumultuous environment?

[Folkmusician.com]

A good mandolin could see some changes in playability within weeks of being exposed to improper humidity. If it had a nitro finish and you exposed it to quick temperature changes, you could get cracks in the finish. Past this, damage tends to take much longer.

A crack from being too dry? 6 months, but more likely a year or more. Buzzing can happen fast. A week or two of drying out can set off buzzing if the action is low.


That said, what you are describing, sounds like an issue with the particular instrument, not something you caused.

[Ivan Kelsall]

Asking a question like this without supplying any info. at all,is like asking - '' How long is a piece of string ? ''. It's like the other perennial question re. recommending a good luthier,without folk telling us where they live !.

Cafe members are amongst the most informed & helpful bunch of folk i've come across in any similar forum - but we ain't mind readers. I don't know how it could be done,but maybe ''prospective seekers of advice'',should be made aware of our need of info. in order for us to help. However - having said that,how often do the folks we try to help never respond ?.

Oh well !,
Ivan

[Paul Busman]

I'm curious what the original poster meant by saying "the whole mandolin completely warped". I've never heard of that happening. It it hasn't already been returned, I'd love to see pictures.

[Bertram Henze]

It's like consulting a doctor and refusing to tell where it hurts.
If the mandolin is totally warped I'll say don't play your mandolin while being beamed aboard NCC-1701...

[kurth83]

I used to live in a very humid environment, 70% humidiy indoors was common.

Bought my first wood guitar, a very nice Taylor 314CE, it wasn't my first guitar, but the first one that wasn't plywood sides.

It came with some pamphlets warning about too much and too little humidity, which I read, and mostly forgot about.

In a few months, the top had started to bulge and the action wasn't right.

The pamphlets were still there, I re-read them, and learned that 40-60% humidty is guitar (and wood instrument) friendly.

Bought some dessicant packs for the case, and a home dehumidifier.

Didn't use the packs once the top was flat again.

Now I have humidity meters in every room, and have lived like that ever since with no problems.

The things we do for our instruments, puppy, baby? Yeah.

I know a great guitarist who ruined a fantastic guitar from low humidity (I live in a dry place now), a fantastic martin with multiple cracks, mostly repairable, now he uses a case humidifier.

Best to learn from other people's mistakes... Cheaper anyway.

To the OP FYI:
warpage is either a defective instrument or likely too much humidity. too dry and usually wood cracks. From your description you had both, so humidity extremes are a likely culprit.

[EdHanrahan]

In the OP's defense, newbies are sometimes (often?) unaware of environmental effects. One case in point:

A friend, much smarter and more aware than average, carefully stored his not-cheap banjo in its case behind a couch, seemingly safe from trouble. Except that... The couch was against a south-facing window-wall in an unheated converted porch attached to a stone farmhouse. The normal sun coming thru the window heated the concrete-slab floor to where the room was usable 24/7 all winter, and never too cold for us humans at any time, being attached to the house by open doors. (A trellis shaded the window in summer).

BUT: The micro-climate behind that couch, against the glass wall and insulated from the room by the couch, may have varied by 60 or 80 degrees over the coldest PA winter days, with 0 degrees outside at night and direct sun hitting the (typical black) banjo case at day. The banjo's neck lasted for maybe a year before warping to the point of replacement.

[Roger Moss]

It's like consulting a doctor and refusing to tell where it hurts.
If the mandolin is totally warped I'll say don't play your mandolin while being beamed aboard NCC-1701...

"Damnit Jim, I'm a doctor, not a luthier!"

[Ivan Kelsall]

From Ed Hanrahan - "....newbies are sometimes (often?) unaware of environmental effects." Very true Ed, & well pointed out.

After having played banjo for 40 + years,& having encontered very little in the way of what might be termed ''climate orientated problems'',after i joined the Cafe,i began reading about temp. / humidity & realised that it was best to keep my mandolin 'cool & dry'.

The OP still hasn't responded,so any help that we 'could' give would be based on mere speculation as to what HAS happened !!,
Ivan

[OneChordTrick]

It's like consulting a doctor and refusing to tell where it hurts.
If the mandolin is totally warped I'll say don't play your mandolin while being beamed aboard NCC-1701...

Now you're being silly! Everyone knows that they can't use the transported when the ship is at warp speed!

[Charlie Bernstein]

Now you're being silly! Everyone knows that they can't use the transported when the ship is at warp speed!

Unless the mando has been Vulcanized . . . .

[Charlie Bernstein]

Come on, Meganmay, tell us more.

What kind of mando is it? What kind of heat or cold and dampness or dryness has it experienced?