Now that is the worst two-point I ever saw.
Guess where the style is coming from...
the world is better off without bad ideas, good ideas are better off without the world
That is almost exactly what it reminds me of! I was thinking shark. I don't know which point would be more awkward, the one on the bottom, which would sit very strangely on or between your knees, or the one on the top, which is so big and so far back it would have to be jabbing you in the chest (if you hold the instrument Mike Marshall style).
Look through the first three threads in this search and you'll see the same mandolin style. It has been likened to a Sunfish in shape.
Actually, something happened in the first thread. Earl had one and it's showing up in the search but I can't find it in the thread. The second two messages have pictures.
Here is Earl's.
Thanks, I found it in the first link eventually. So, Washington is the name on the one you linked to. Can't imagine there were may imitators, so the one I saw online could be a Washington in very rough shape. I suspected that someone would have seen this sort of thing before, but that was fast!
Washington was a brand name owned by a distributor. That doesn't mean they made them. They were most likely built by Regal of Chicago. Regal, like Harmony, Kay, and earlier Lyon and Healy built branded and unbranded instruments "for the trade". That is they sold to retailers, music schools, anybody really who resold them by adding their own labels or no label at all.
I should also note that the Chicago builders sold to each other as well as manufacturers in other parts of the country.
I love these oddball mandolins! Hey I am also a fan of the Regal reverse scroll mandolin. I don't own either of these types tho. I just worship them from afar.
It looks like the photographer in the first posting was so overwhelmed by emotion he could not hold his camera still.
Jim
My Stream on Soundcloud
19th Century Tunes
Playing lately:
1924 Gibson A4 - 2018 Campanella A-5 - 2007 Brentrup A4C - 1915 Frank Merwin Ashley violin - Huss & Dalton DS - 1923 Gibson A2 black snakehead - '83 Flatiron A5-2 - 1939 Gibson L-00 - 1936 Epiphone Deluxe - 1928 Gibson L-5 - ca. 1890s Fairbanks Senator Banjo - ca. 1923 Vega Style M tenor banjo - ca. 1920 Weymann Style 25 Mandolin-Banjo - National RM-1
Never Argue with an Idiot, they will just drag you down to their level and beat you with experience.
There is a scene on an old Simpsons episode, in which Homer is having some boudoir photography done for Marge. When Homer gets down to his underwear, the photographer winces in disgust, and then smears vaseline on the camera lens. This is what came to mind when I saw the photo of the two point mandolin. The same seller has a violin in the same ad (in one of those cases that holds two instruments) and you can make out the dust on the body the picture is so clear. I must say, my revulsion has already turned to curiosity and even an incipient appreciation for this thing.
This is just me, ok? and I'm sometimes overly cautious and suspicious. I might not worry about the shakiness of the first picture. It could have been taken from a camera on a phone, and this effect is pretty easy to get. But if the second photo is similarly obscured, I'd start to worry that somebody's hiding something. It would weigh against me ordering the instrument sight unseen, even with "return" rights.
Again, this is just me. There was a mandolin I looked at that the pictures were similar to these--obscured by bad angle and by vibration. I had an intuition that it might be intentional, to obscure some damage. I asked for more pictures. The price came down by nearly 1/2, and the new pictures showed significant "wear." Like a rhinocerous had been "wearing" it. So: caveat emptor, baby.
belbein
The bad news is that what doesn't kill us makes us stronger. The good news is that what kills us makes it no longer our problem
Thanks belbein. No way I would buy this mandolin without holding it in my hands first (it is advertised in a local classifieds). I don't think the owner knows anything about it. First of all, he says it 'needs a little work.' Even from the blurry photo you can tell that that is an understatement. Also, it looks in another photo like the neck is not original. I was just more curious to find out if this was a production job or if someone just made one in his basement. Probably not going to pursue it.
Jim
My Stream on Soundcloud
19th Century Tunes
Playing lately:
1924 Gibson A4 - 2018 Campanella A-5 - 2007 Brentrup A4C - 1915 Frank Merwin Ashley violin - Huss & Dalton DS - 1923 Gibson A2 black snakehead - '83 Flatiron A5-2 - 1939 Gibson L-00 - 1936 Epiphone Deluxe - 1928 Gibson L-5 - ca. 1890s Fairbanks Senator Banjo - ca. 1923 Vega Style M tenor banjo - ca. 1920 Weymann Style 25 Mandolin-Banjo - National RM-1
You know, that crossed my mind as a possible double entendre while writing it....
It is funny, until recently I would not have thought I would ever want a two point mandolin. But then I discovered Lyon and Healys and Vegas, and now one of those would be my top choice (were money no object). I can see the appeal of this strange two pointer above. It has a very medieval look to it in a way. Still not going to buy it (unless the owner gets really desperate), but there is a whole world of mandolin shapes out there. Imagine if there were ONLY F-5s around?
So, if you are not going to buy it, why not post the link to the listing?
Jim
My Stream on Soundcloud
19th Century Tunes
Playing lately:
1924 Gibson A4 - 2018 Campanella A-5 - 2007 Brentrup A4C - 1915 Frank Merwin Ashley violin - Huss & Dalton DS - 1923 Gibson A2 black snakehead - '83 Flatiron A5-2 - 1939 Gibson L-00 - 1936 Epiphone Deluxe - 1928 Gibson L-5 - ca. 1890s Fairbanks Senator Banjo - ca. 1923 Vega Style M tenor banjo - ca. 1920 Weymann Style 25 Mandolin-Banjo - National RM-1
A few more from the Archive of Oddball Mandolins. The strange thing is that there seems to be a few different models. This could be someone's worst nightmare...
Jim
My Stream on Soundcloud
19th Century Tunes
Playing lately:
1924 Gibson A4 - 2018 Campanella A-5 - 2007 Brentrup A4C - 1915 Frank Merwin Ashley violin - Huss & Dalton DS - 1923 Gibson A2 black snakehead - '83 Flatiron A5-2 - 1939 Gibson L-00 - 1936 Epiphone Deluxe - 1928 Gibson L-5 - ca. 1890s Fairbanks Senator Banjo - ca. 1923 Vega Style M tenor banjo - ca. 1920 Weymann Style 25 Mandolin-Banjo - National RM-1
I was thinking of that but did not know if that was an ok use of this forum. I emailed the guy already, and asked for more (and better) pictures, and also if he would sell the mandolin separately from the violin. Nothing back yet. I have not decided against it altogether, but if there is someone else interested, here is the link: http://novascotia.kijiji.ca/c-buy-an...AdIdZ460790324
This site, kijiji, is sort of a Canadian craigslist, except they really encourage face-to-face meetings and cash payments (there is no payment system built into the site), so buying this might be a little more difficult. Even I am about an hour away from this guy. But it might not be impossible for someone in the US to buy it.
Last edited by vetus scotia; Mar-01-2013 at 12:06pm.
A Canadian Craig's List eh?
Well, not exactly like craigs list: http://novascotia.kijiji.ca/f-personals-W0QQCatIdZ63
kijiji is craigslist competition owned by eBay.
Jim
My Stream on Soundcloud
19th Century Tunes
Playing lately:
1924 Gibson A4 - 2018 Campanella A-5 - 2007 Brentrup A4C - 1915 Frank Merwin Ashley violin - Huss & Dalton DS - 1923 Gibson A2 black snakehead - '83 Flatiron A5-2 - 1939 Gibson L-00 - 1936 Epiphone Deluxe - 1928 Gibson L-5 - ca. 1890s Fairbanks Senator Banjo - ca. 1923 Vega Style M tenor banjo - ca. 1920 Weymann Style 25 Mandolin-Banjo - National RM-1
The funny thing is Kijiji has 90% market share in Canada. Nobody really knows why.
It's obviously modelled on Casper the friendly ghost.
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