new (used) mandolin

[mislykketmusikant]

sadly, her in norway, getting ahold of a proper mandolin, isnt very easy. I did recently, however, manage to get a weber aspen 1 in mint condition, and so my journey from a low-end mandolin (cort f-style), to a simple, but good old (levin model 41, I think. 1951) mandolin, and now, the proper new(ish) mandolin from weber, is done (for now).
I have, as I imagine is the case for may people here, recently moved my focus from guitar playing, shifting it over to mandolin playing. being that I have played guitar for over 25 years, and before that, I learned to read music in piano classes, I dare say that my fingers arent superslow, but of course, the right hand technique is pretty different from guitar flatpick playing, and even more so when compared to fingerstyle playing. so there is quite a bit of new technique I need to familiarize myself with, in order to achieve any kind of proficiency on the mandolin.
but the journey has begun. and I am looking forward to it.

[MontanaMatt]

Welcome!
Happy pickin

[Mark Gunter]

Congratulations on acquiring that Weber! And welcome to the forum!

[darylcrisp]

welcome to the journey, and take it one day at a time and keep it fun, it will come.
picked up an Aspen around 2 years ago and found it to be an excellent, classy instrument. Here's a thread on some things I did, basically put an adjustable bridge and just a good setup, it played like a dream with a really sweet tone.

here's the thread:
https://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/t...pen-2-uh-oh-my

[tjmangum]

Welcome! I hope to some day visit your beautiful country.

[mislykketmusikant]

gong to treat myself to a proper setup.
here in bergen, there are two main guys:
-a very good el-guitar guy that I have used several times, especially for my stratocaster. he is also very good with acoustic steel string guitars. he also restored the levin mandolin I own. the problem with him, is that it normally takes a couple of weeks from when you deliver the instrument, until you get it back. his workload is a bit too high.
-a very good spanish classical guitar guy, who makes classical guitars from start to finish. he is superb at repairing all acoustic string instruments, and as I understand it, he is very good with mandolins. the only problem with him, is that he is even more busy. I once waited for 2 months to get my classical guitar back from him, after a brace repair.

they both offer great service, and I feel very safe about my instruments when I deliver them to those guys. but its annoying that I just found this mandolin, and now I am supposed to be without it for maybe a month.
what a horrible dilemma.

[yankees1]

sadly, her in norway, getting ahold of a proper mandolin, isnt very easy. I did recently, however, manage to get a weber aspen 1 in mint condition, and so my journey from a low-end mandolin (cort f-style), to a simple, but good old (levin model 41, I think. 1951) mandolin, and now, the proper new(ish) mandolin from weber, is done (for now).
I have, as I imagine is the case for may people here, recently moved my focus from guitar playing, shifting it over to mandolin playing. being that I have played guitar for over 25 years, and before that, I learned to read music in piano classes, I dare say that my fingers arent superslow, but of course, the right hand technique is pretty different from guitar flatpick playing, and even more so when compared to fingerstyle playing. so there is quite a bit of new technique I need to familiarize myself with, in order to achieve any kind of proficiency on the mandolin.
but the journey has begun. and I am looking forward to it.

Concentrate on the journey not the end destination !

[mislykketmusikant]

always do. in fact, my nick means "failedmusician" in norwegian (mislykket - failed, musikant - musician). I have long since realized I will never become a virtuoso, and have since that day simply enjoyed playing.

[Br1ck]

You have some crazy sailors in your country. I watch a guy who times his North Sea sailing for really bad weather, and those Viking ship replicas sailing out in the cold are fun too. Playing mandolin in a warm room is on the whole, a much saner pastime. Enjoy your new mandolin.

[Randi Gormley]

Rob Meldrum has an ebook on proper mandolin setup that he'll email to you if you ask. It will tell you what kind of setup you have on the mandolin(s) you own and what needs to be done (usually with a few relatively cheap tools). It may give you what you're looking for without the wait. Just an idea.

and welcome to the journey!

[mislykketmusikant]

got my mandolin back from the setup. man, was it ever a good decicion to have it done. it plays like a dream now. and pretty loud, I have to say.