Post a picture of your completed mandolin built from a kit

[mandognome]

Well, I think like a lot of people recently, I am skulking around reading all I can about building and I am flirting with the idea of getting started with a kit at some point. I have searched the forum and read most of the new and old threads about kits, and some individual build threads, and I don't think this is a redundant request.

I'd love to see your photos of completed mandolins that started as kits, to give an idea of what the finished product can be like from different kits. Maybe give some details about your customizations, and make remarks and comparisons about the feel and sound of your instrument (or even audio/video). I'm also curious if you prolific builders consider a kit build your #1 or whether that's a scratch build or something that carries some design distinction for you. I guess a cook only has to change one ingredient for it to be "their" recipe, eh?

Thanks for playing!

[Bill Snyder]

"and I don't think this is a redundant request."

It is. There was a thread covering just this topic probably 7 or 8 years ago when the IV kit was really popular.
Having said that there is no reason not to repeat it since there have undoubtedly been several kits completed since then.

[mandognome]

"and I don't think this is a redundant request."

It is. There was a thread covering just this topic probably 7 or 8 years ago when the IV kit was really popular.
Having said that there is no reason not to repeat it since there have undoubtedly been several kits completed since then.

Thanks Bill. If you happen to be able to find a link to that thread I sure would love to see it.

Anyone care to post something new?

[Bill Snyder]

Tim, that thread may have been in the Post A Picture section of the forum. That is what that section is for.

Here is one from about 10 years ago. http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/sh...light=finished

Like I said it might be nice to have an updated thread on this.
Since the Cafe's search engine will not search on the word kit (not enough letters) I searched for thread TITLES that contained the word complete, completed or finished.

[Whittle]

Here's my International Violin kit strung up in the white. I still haven't decided what stains I'm going to use to finish it with. After staining, I plan on sealing with shellac with Tru-oil varnish on top.

[Pete Jenner]

Here's the IV thread.

[Hudmister]

Here's my International Violin kit strung up in the white. I still haven't decided what stains I'm going to use to finish it with. After staining, I plan on sealing with shellac with Tru-oil varnish on top.

I've heard less than positive reports about true oil and it's effect on tone. It seems it soaks into the wood and dampens the tone. I would not chance it in an effort to get a certain finish and kill the tone after all your time and effort.

[darylcrisp]

working towards gearing a room up in my house for a small workshop to do a kit, would love to see some of the stewmac/Siminoff kits finished(and what you thought about the process).

thanks
d

[Paul Busman]

If Whittle seals the mando with shellac first, I don't think Tru Oil will sink in. Even if it does sink in, once the oil fully cures, it will be very hard and I doubt ( but don't know) it would have much effect on the tone.

[Rob Zamites]

I'm waiting for John Hamlett to chime in on using straight Tru-oil as a finish, as I was considering it alone, without any shellac base.

[Whittle]

I guess that shows how much I still need to learn. There are so many finishing options that I'm a little overwhelmed. The main reason I wanted to seal with shellac was to seal the rosewood headstock veneer. I read that tru-oil doesn't do well with rosewood. I just figured I might as well seal the whole thing while I was at it.

[J.Sloan]

Sealing the whole mandolin with shellac and then true oiling over is perfectly ok. I've done 2 mandolins this way and they both turned out well. If you go with the can shellac, you'll need to do several coats only because it will go on a little thinner by the can. Spray light coats so it won't drip. Shellac dries super fast and you can get several coats on safely in just a few hours. Once you feel that you've sealed it well enough, allow it to harden good over night and lightly scuff sand with 320 to level it out. Here's the trick.....if you're gonna true oil over the shellac, continue to sand from 320 up. I've went as far up as 12,000 micro mesh for the final sand out. True oil should be applied very thinly by mixing 60/40 with turpentine. As soon as you apply the True oil mix....wipe it off with a clean rag. A very small amount of True oil will stay on the surface, will not be "gummy", will dry better and faster if you wipe it on and then immediately wipe it back off each time you add a coat. If you prepped your sealer carefully as noted, the True oil will have a nice level surface to lay on and will build up much better. Give each coat of True oil several hours to dry. I kept my mandolin under a UV light (a reptile UV light will work good) and was able to apply a coat in the morning and another in the evening. I applied about 12-15 thin coats and left it alone for 2 weeks to fully cure. The True oil will leave a semi gloss shine but if your after a more satin look, get the Birchwood Casey "Stock Sheen & Conditioner" and apply a few coats of this to matte out the finish....but do not do this until the final coat of True Oil has cured for 2 weeks.

I've received so much help on the Cafe from building to finishing...it's nice to pass it forward. Good luck!

[Whittle]

Wow! Thanks! That's very helpful and encouraging. I have a few more questions if you don't mind me sending you a pm.

[J.Sloan]

ok... I'll help if I can.

[Mark Marino]

Here are the 3 Siminoff kits I've built to date- a 4th is in progress. I stay with Siminoff because Roger is a great resource; I called several times to discuss issues and tone, and learned a bunch. I found it possible to build a good sounding mandolin- fit and finish take great patience and planning, or lots of rework. I've drawn heavily from Q&A on the cafe and am very greatful for the help I've received. Read all you can before starting specific steps- don't wait until you are in trouble. As much as I use the Siminoff book, there are a number of alternative methods you'll find discussed on the Cafe. The F5 is totally standard- I had Roger Simoinoff tap tune it, and it sounds fantastic. I installed a Virzi in the H4 and posted a sound clip/slideshow here over a year ago that you might be able to still find. The F4 was my first build- I thought I knew too much and customized - F4 body with an F5 elevated fingerboard and a Virzi, thinking I'd get the best of both worlds--- ended up sounding loud but not woody or warm. It crushed me when a musician friend described it as 'banjo-esque'

All 3 are finished with a thin seal coat of shellac, with Tru-Oil over that. I still have a way to go on that as I cannot get a uniform finish that I see others post using Tru-Oil, but it goes on so thin that I'm convinced that for a novus like me, it's the best way to go for sound.

[sunburst]

I'm waiting for John Hamlett to chime in on using straight Tru-oil as a finish, as I was considering it alone, without any shellac base.

I haven't tried TO on bare wood on a mandolin, only over a thin shellac sealer, so there isn't really anything I can say about it other than;
...any finish material that goes on as a liquid (nearly all) will soak into the surface of the wood slightly. Finishes add mass to the wood, and they may or may not add stiffness to the wood. Unless we really over-do it and apply a thick layer of finish, there is not a huge difference in mass or stiffness after finishing. Applying a thin finish minimizes any change in mass and/or stiffness, so whatever finish we choose, we should apply an appropriately thin film of it, and if we do, we minimize it's effect on the mass and stiffness of the wood, so we minimize any differences between finishes in terms of mass and/or stiffness.
TO, properly applied, will not penetrate deeply into the wood any more than any other properly applied finish. Think of it this way; if we wipe on an initial coat of TO, how much material do we apply, and when we are done wiping, how much of that material is still present on the wood? Hint, it's not much, so how much can soak into the wood? When that coat dries, it at least partially seals the wood against further penetration of TO, so how much will soak into the wood during subsequent coats?
I've finished several instruments with TO from one 3 oz. bottle, and then had more than half of the material harden in the bottle and become unusable. Considering that some of what I applied evaporated, and quite a bit remained in the rags I used to rub the coats, how much of the ounce or so of TO soaked into the wood of those several instruments?
Another point. When we build a mandolin from a kit, how nearly optimally have we built it? Are the top and back plates so finely "tuned" that they are right on the optimal edge of performance? Are they so sensitive that a few more or less micrograms of finish material will make a noticeable difference in sound?

Just build the thing, do your best, learn what you can along the way, apply a finish appropriate for your skill level, equipment and circumstances, keep it thin and do the best job you can, then string it up and play it and enjoy it. Of all the aspects that affect mandolin performance, finish material is way down the list in importance. An expertly made mandolin will sound great with whatever finish the luthier chooses to apply to it, and unless the finish is very poorly applied in a very thick layer, it will not have a profound effect on sound, Considering that there are quite a few well respected factory instrument in service with exceptionally thick finishes, I'd say it's pretty hard to ruin an instrument with finish.

[Bernie Daniel]

Here are the 3 Siminoff kits I've built to date- a 4th is in progress. I stay with Siminoff because Roger is a great resource; I called several times to discuss issues and tone, and learned a bunch. I found it possible to build a good sounding mandolin- fit and finish take great patience and planning, or lots of rework. I've drawn heavily from Q&A on the cafe and am very greatful for the help I've received. Read all you can before starting specific steps- don't wait until you are in trouble. As much as I use the Siminoff book, there are a number of alternative methods you'll find discussed on the Cafe. The F5 is totally standard- I had Roger Simoinoff tap tune it, and it sounds fantastic. I installed a Virzi in the H4 and posted a sound clip/slideshow here over a year ago that you might be able to still find. The F4 was my first build- I thought I knew too much and customized - F4 body with an F5 elevated fingerboard and a Virzi, thinking I'd get the best of both worlds--- ended up sounding loud but not woody or warm. It crushed me when a musician friend described it as 'banjo-esque'

All 3 are finished with a thin seal coat of shellac, with Tru-Oil over that. I still have a way to go on that as I cannot get a uniform finish that I see others post using Tru-Oil, but it goes on so thin that I'm convinced that for a novus like me, it's the best way to go for sound.

Those instruments look awesome. I have been trying to find a window of time to go out to CA and build an H-5 with Roger in his workshop. Looking at those instruments makes it plain that I should actually do it!

[Terry Sebastian]

These pics are in here somewhere, Im sure. I posted them way back in 03 or 04, I think. Anyhoo...this one started life as a kit from Stew Mac. Hand rubbed the dye in and finished with a nitrocellulose laquer. It played really well. I wish I still had it.

[mandognome]

Great photos and info everyone. This is really giving me a good idea of what's possible from some of the kits. Bill, thanks for posting that link to the previous thread; I really enjoyed looking through there. Stephanie Rieser's mandolins are especially cool. Hudmister, can't wait to see it finished and get a report on the tone. Bernie, those look top notch! Terry, I love what you've done with the headstock here. Is that a notch or an inlay at the tip?

[Terry Sebastian]

It is notched out. Other than that (and the inlay work) that is the shape they are already cut to when you get the kit.