Fender FM52 E for beginner?

[Nessal]

I found a Fender FM52 e online for $100. The add says it's in good condition but it the bridge needs to be adjusted as the strong sit too low. It looks like the bridge is adjustable. Is the adjustment something I can do as a newbie? Should I go for it?
Thanks guys!

[allenhopkins]

I found a Fender FM52 e online for $100.

Several of them up for sale for around $200, so that's a decent price.

The ad says it's in good condition but it the bridge needs to be adjusted as the strings sit too low. It looks like the bridge is adjustable. Is the adjustment something I can do as a newbie?

Yeah, you can do your own set-up. There's a mandolin set-up Ebook available free to Cafe members from Rob Meldrum. It'll tell ya what ya need to know.

Should I go for it?...

That we can't tell you. You could do better quality-wise for a starter mandolin, but probably not for $100. The Fender's adequate to learn on, and at that price you're really not wasting money on an unneeded pickup.

[Rodney Riley]

Yes you can adjust the bridge yourself. But why doesn’t the seller do it? Would take almost as long to type that it needed adjusting as it would to adjust it. A Fender was my first name brand instrument. Was a “good” beginner instrument.

[Nessal]

Really good point. I met up with him yesterday and as soon as I saw it I realized there was a crack in the bridge from the dry weather here. He hasn't stored it in a case. He offered me 60. Do you know how much it would cost to replace the bridge?

[allenhopkins]

You can get replacement bridges as cheap as eight bucks, but remember you have to fit it to the top.

If it's just the bridge saddle that's cracked, you could replace the saddle and keep the base, which (presumably) is already fitted to the top.

[Rodney Riley]

Could get a Cumberland Acoustic Bridge as I did when one broke on mine. Will make the Mando worth twice as much

[mandolin tony]

good morning, if you have a little more money I would look for a used Eastman or Kentucky that is all solid wood. fender makes real nice guitars & not so great mandolins. but its your money & in the end you will do what you want.

[CES]

For 60 bucks, go for it and get a new ebony bridge from Stew-Mac. Get Rob's ebook, check out frets.com, and learn how to set it up well. Those skills will serve you well as long as you play and also transfer to other stringed instruments you play. And, if you screw it up, the grand total of 85 dollars will be well worth the experience!!

[Tom Wright]

The Fender acoustic-electric was my first mandolin. Pretty feeble acoustically but the Tele-style pickup sounds decent.

Mine was lousy in the frets--wavy instead of flat, so I leveled them and made a new nut. One I saw later in a shop had perfectly good frets so mine was perhaps a factory second. I also improved the pickup by taking it apart and pushing the E pole higher---replacement pickups are available from both Ryder and Almuse, I believe. I added a grounding wire by using an .010 string wrapped around the endpin and tucked under the output jack's washer.

I used the amplified sound in professional settings, a Vivaldi concerto movement with orchestra, and for Schoenberg's "Moses und Aaron". Best to use nickel-wound strings for good balance. Hard to beat the value even with new price, as the pickup is completely adequate for many performing needs with suitable amplification---the more acoustic the amp the more acoustic the tone.

[ukenukem]

Mandolins like that are great to learn on IF you can get them setup (as mentioned). I did sort of the same thing with an Ibanez but I had years of guitar tweeking which helped me understand Rob's ebook. But still, the mandolin is way different than guitar so every time I changed strings I made adjustments.

After getting a better mandolin I was able to sell the Ibanez for what I paid for it but the knowledge gained will stay with me. Enjoy!