Old Kalamazoo A

[Astro]

I have a chance to buy an Old (1935 or 45) Kalamazoo brand A style. The pick guard is gone. The neck is beefy as a baseball bat. The top is feather light. It has a pleasant woody tone. The action is good (medium low). The frets are thin, low, but work. Good up and down the neck.

BUT the top is sunk. I mean start bailing. A side view of the top is shaped like a V with the spot under the bridge being the low point of course...

They are asking 450.

It looks cool. It sounds good and folky. They dont make old wood anymore. But how long will it last?

Would you bite?

[Eric Platt]

I've owned a couple over the years. I would pass unless you can get it fixed cheap. With light strings it might last, or it might not.

Old mandos with problems are hard to predict.

[allenhopkins]

...Would you bite?

No.

Might bargain. If you can get an expert hands-on evaluation and restoration estimate, you'd be on safer ground. Might just be a loosened brace, fixable. Could be worse, though.

Gibson second-line brands were just that.

[MikeEdgerton]

The top would be a deal killer. That's not a super price but I've had two Kalamazoo mandolins from the 30's and they both had the most comfortable necks I've ever had on a mandolin. I wouldn't describe either as being beefy.

[Astro]

Thanks guys. I feel better for walking out now. Just hard to walk away from a cool looking and good sounding old mando priced at that. But I did. And I'm glad now.