Flatiron FG5 Sign by Michael Owens Information?Any body know him?

[Willie Poole]

I sure hope a lot of people soon realize that they are the same mandolin and then I will offer mine for sale and make more than I could right now...I did have one buyer that was interested but he was furloughed from his job and he didn`t have the cash, I`ll just wait until another offer comes along...I love the mandolin but I also have four others and cannot play all of them at the same time so its time to thin out the herd...I`ll be listing some real soon on the ads here on the café....

Big Joe also told me the same thing that Mr. Owens said and I printed out the letter just to use as proof when I have an offer to sell it....There was also a discussion that different woods were used in making them but I have never heard anything to the contrary about it...I know mine has a beautiful curl to the back...

Willie

[Mike Snyder]

I am a former owner of a Nashville Festival F '01 and current owner of an F5G '05. The Festival F has been an exellent value in a mandolin for the last ten years or so. All I've been around have been good sounding and pretty. They seldom sell for over the $2100 bucks I gave for mine back in '01, while a used F5G at $2800 is a bargain. You'll find the post-flood F5G will bring high prices far into the future because the sound is universally exellent. As of January of '05, Gibson had no more Festival Fs in stock(I assume) and had to send me an F5G as replacement for a Festival F which I believe failed at the neck joint, they never said but that's what it looked like to me. Extremely rare in a Gibson-made instrument to fail there. I mourned the loss of that Flatiron. She was an orange beauty and was just starting to get a big sound. I am bonded for life with my F5G, but still scan the classifieds for the Festival Fs which seldom come available, for old-times sake.

[mandotrout777]

I have a Flatiron F5G mandolin that was signed by Michael Owens on Feb. 2001 on the inside top of the Mandolin, Had to use a dental mirror to see it, Does anybody know anything about Michael Owens? thanks

Found this looking for something else and remembered this thread. Michael Owens is in the clip.

It's a little sad to watch, knowing what all has happened since then.

[Benski]

Thread bump. I was poking around inside my October 11, 2005 Roberts signed DMM and found this written in pen on the underside of the top, just north of the bass FF hole: "Michael Owens Sept 2005". Has anyone else discovered something like this inside theirs, or can shed any additional light beyond what's been posted above? It is cool to see Mr. Owens in the video. Cheers.

[MikeEdgerton]

Sim Daley always signed the underside of the mandolins he built at Gibson. I was under the impression he was the only one that did it. Now I'm going to have to look inside mine.

And, mine is from the first of the year in 2005 and there's nothing written there.

[Benski]

About this time is when my wife comes into my home office and sees me poking around inside a mandolin with a dental mirror and surely thinks to herself that I'm nuts. :-)

[Big Joe]

Michael Owens carved all the tops and selected the woods for the master models. He was very gifted and very conscientious about his work. He was a great photographer and loved fly fishing as well. I’m sad to report Michael passed away a couple weeks ago. He was a good man and a good friend.

[Hendrik Ahrend]

About this time is when my wife comes into my home office and sees me poking around inside a mandolin with a dental mirror and surely thinks to herself that I'm nuts. :-)

I had a similar experience with my wife, a dental mirror - and the very same DMM (and also with my 2000 MM, which was signed under the the top by Sim Daley).
It’s sad to read of Mr. Owens‘ passing.