Does anyone have experience playing a Rag mandolin (Upstate NY)?
Does anyone have experience playing a Rag mandolin (Upstate NY)?
I prefer mine made out of wood.
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I have played rags on the mandolin, however.
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Here is his website.
http://ragmandolins.com/
That looks familiar.
"It's comparable to playing a cheese slicer."
--M. Stillion
"Bargain instruments are no bargains if you can't play them"
--J. Garber
They look and sound nice, nice to see a new kid on the block even if I ain`t in the market ...right now....
Interesting that he makes a "lump" scroll model and it is the same price as his "fully developed" scroll f-styles.
I am glad that there are a couple of videos. Gives you a better view of the mandolins than the photos. They might be a bargain.
Bill Snyder
I looked at the three he has for sale right now. Number one, the A style, has F holes that look too high and too close to the rim and a crooked tailpiece. Number two has a lump "scroll". Number three looks better than the other two, it does have an actual scroll at least, but for some reason no adjustable truss rod. I would not buy any of them. This guy seems to be somebody who had yet to find a building style he is comfortable with, and is still experimenting with his designs. The designs he is choosing to post are certainly outside the box, so to speak. This can be good, like Monteleone designs, but the Rag designs just don't ring my bell, aesthetically.
Don
2016 Weber Custom Bitterroot F
2011 Weber Bitterroot A
1974 Martin Style A
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
Well I decided to take a chance on Mr. Gordon's Rag mandolins. Here is what I have to say so far...I just received it yesterday so these are first impressions. Playability is excellent! A for that one. Good bottom tone top end is also decent but neither top nor bottom compares with my Gibson F5g or my F9 but the Rag has my mid-level Kentucky beat by a long shot tone wise. Bang for you buck A for that one also. I will check back in on tone once I have given her time to open up. Finish...hummm this is where Rags could be improved but having said that there is a rustic kind of charm the Rag has. More later. I can't wait to get home to my new Rag.
Lisa
Ray Dearstone #009 D1A (1999)
Skip Kelley #063 Offset Two Point (2017)
Arches #9 A Style (2005)
Bourgeois M5A (2022)
Hohner and Seydel Harmonicas (various keys)
"Heck, Jimmy Martin don't even believe in Santy Claus!"
It appears Bradford and Company is selling one of his F-Models from 2016. It looks pretty nice. Saw it at Reverb. Don't know if he's selling it here. NFI.
Ray Dearstone #009 D1A (1999)
Skip Kelley #063 Offset Two Point (2017)
Arches #9 A Style (2005)
Bourgeois M5A (2022)
Hohner and Seydel Harmonicas (various keys)
"Heck, Jimmy Martin don't even believe in Santy Claus!"
It is always nice to provide a link: RAG F-5 2016 Blonde.
The photos there can give you a good idea of the workmanship at least from 2016. Some close-ups really help. He is up to #46 on his site. I would not mind the folk/craftiness if you get decent tone and playbility for a reasonable price.
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 got number 48 he built her for me. True dat about the cost of the Gibson's compared to the Rags. Yes the base price for Roy's F style Rag mandolin is $1500.00. I sent a K & K pickup system to Roy for him to install during the build. I will plug it in when I get home. More later as she ages and we get to know each other better.
Keep a song in your heart,
Lisa
Last edited by Grannycrowe; Sep-24-2019 at 3:34pm. Reason: I failed to capitalize a proper noun
Ray Dearstone #009 D1A (1999)
Skip Kelley #063 Offset Two Point (2017)
Arches #9 A Style (2005)
Bourgeois M5A (2022)
Hohner and Seydel Harmonicas (various keys)
"Heck, Jimmy Martin don't even believe in Santy Claus!"
Ray Dearstone #009 D1A (1999)
Skip Kelley #063 Offset Two Point (2017)
Arches #9 A Style (2005)
Bourgeois M5A (2022)
Hohner and Seydel Harmonicas (various keys)
"Heck, Jimmy Martin don't even believe in Santy Claus!"
I got myself #29 (built in 2017) for a Christmas present last January. It is a Carpathian & maple french polished F. I went to his shop, got the tour and played the 8-10 he had there. Nice guy & good experience. #29 takes a few minutes to open up but when it does I can’t put it down. I haven’t played a million mandolins but I like it more than my buddy’s Gibson F5 or the (2) Collings I’ve played. I would say that it is less balanced overall than those examples but the tone (especially on the G and D courses) knocks me out. An excellent guitarist I know described it as a “concert grade instrument” (whatever that means). The finish is imperfect but as Roy told me he’s more interested in building tone machines at a low price point than aesthetically perfect objects. I’m glad he does because otherwise I probably wouldn’t have a comparable mando for a few more years.
I love it.
I've never played one, but the flame maple back on that one makes me want to put in an order.
"Forget learning the ukulele, give me a mandolin any day of the week!" - Steve Goodman
Whenever one of these discussions comes up about a builder who sells at a cheaper price due to whatever reason, I go out to my studio and play my kit build and think what I would say about it if I had spent $2k on it?
Pretty much all my negatives would center on the cosmetic, and for that price I'd be thrilled, especially after a year. Anyone able to build a mandolin that doesn't have that boinky import G string sound should be lauded. So what if it doesn't meet Collings for quality? I appreciate fine craftsmanship as well as anyone, and after knowing how much time goes into an F style, I don't begrudge the asking prices, but this type of instrument fills a need for those wanting a good tone at a reasonable price.
I see F style mandolins on my local Craigslist once in a while from a builder asking $2500. If it wasn't two hours away, I'd go check them out. I figure it's a retired guy like me building for the enjoyment. If you want a sure thing you can sell later, buy a Northridge.
Silverangel A
Arches F style kit
1913 Gibson A-1
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
Funny how one person’s “rough fit and finish” is another person’s “rustic charm”.
Kind of reminds me of when I used to work at a piano store. One particular well known piano brand had plastic parts in the action. If you wanted to steer a customer away from that brand, you said it had “cheap plastic parts”. If you wanted to steer the customer towards it, you bragged about the “latest in space age polymer technology”. You can make anything sound good or bad with your wording. You sure can cover up a lot of sloppy construction and finish by just chalking it up to “rustic charm”.
Don
2016 Weber Custom Bitterroot F
2011 Weber Bitterroot A
1974 Martin Style A
No, I meant buy the LA suburb. Likely get a few mandolins in the bargain.
Brain _ _ _ _
Silverangel A
Arches F style kit
1913 Gibson A-1
Ray Dearstone #009 D1A (1999)
Skip Kelley #063 Offset Two Point (2017)
Arches #9 A Style (2005)
Bourgeois M5A (2022)
Hohner and Seydel Harmonicas (various keys)
"Heck, Jimmy Martin don't even believe in Santy Claus!"
I owned an F model for a while, then upgraded due to the dreaded MAS. Certainly worth a look in the 1 - 1.5k price range IMO.
It would be terrific if someone would buy and gather a bunch of these hand made but inexpensive mandolins and do a traveling pick sampler type tour.
You pay a ton for a dealer network and the chance to try before you buy. I'm betting that many of these $1500-2000 mandolins would be very much more satisfying than some of the imports. Even the Ratliff Country Boy is something I'd love to try. I suspect I'd like a lot of these.
Silverangel A
Arches F style kit
1913 Gibson A-1
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