Which of these two Mandolins would be better?

[Mac Coitir Óg]

Hi, I'm looking to buy my first mandolin. I'm a fairly experienced guitar player and this would be my second instrument. I don't want to pend too much as I'm a student, and so long as it's playable and holds its tune I'll be happy. I'm currently looking at the Ozark 2001 and the Ozark 2250 models.

https://www.eaglemusicshop.com/prod/...p-mandolin.htm

The 2001 is a "Portuguese" style.

https://www.eaglemusicshop.com/prod/...tm#description

The 2250 is called an "Army" style.

Both are made in Romania and very cheap. The 2001 is all solid wood, where as the 2250 is solid top only. The 2250 is £40 more expensive. Both come with a set up.

I will mostly be playing Irish traditional and folk.

Have any members any experience with either model? Or any alternatives at a similar price point?

[mandroid]

One of my friends had an original army/navy war time Gibson in olive drab green.. It was nice..
being in Oregon, I have not seen or tried either of those you linked to..

Your buying from a retailer that does pre delivery setup to each mandolin they sell is a valuable thing..

(9 timezones to the west of GMT.)

[Steve 2E]

I have no experience with either of these mandolins or seller, but I would go with the army/navy copy(2250). I like the aesthetics and it’s a design that’s been around for a century or so. I wouldn’t be turned off by laminated back and sides at this price point. Honestly, if my conversion is correct(about $225 US dollars), I’d buy this just to try(If it was available in the US)and possibly add to my collection.

[mandolinstew]

I have a very good viola made in Romania.

[Cando]

Hi.
I have a Romanian mandolin though a different model (a Portuguese II model which has a narrower Body).
It think it is a decent Instrument for the Price (and you can regulary find them even cheaper in good used condition).
Mine has a Pretty wide fretboard and, as far as I can tell from the photos, this one as well.
The Army/Navy one seems to to have a "normal" narrower fretboard.
So thats something to take into consideration.

[mreidsma]

I second the Army/Navy style. The mahogany will give a warm tone that will sounds great with Irish tunes, plus the fretboard and neck should be a bit thinner and more comfortable. (I prefer my Kalamazoo with mahogany back and sides for Celtic.)

-M

[MoreThanQuinn]

Also chiming in with another vote for the Army/Navy shape. I have a mandolin of the same shape (a Poe Scout) and it's quite a bit of fun to play. I also think that I'd feel more comfortable buying that body shape without playing because it is, like someone earlier mentioned, a tried and true build. There are plenty of builders making instruments of that shape, and they all seem to get positive feedback (Poe, Morris, Sawchyn, Flatiron, etc).

Let us know what you decide!

[Bill Cameron]

In some ways I actually like that Portuguese job, for the larger body, (= more sound) but I don’t think the build quality is there at that price and the soundhole looks pretty small. Looking further at that website I think I would encourage you to consider the 2251 model. It’s only £30 more than the Army, has an adjustable truss rod (so does the Army but not the Portuguese), larger soundhole, snakehead peghead, and you could probably upgrade the tuners later, they look like standard-spacing types. Altogether has a more elegant look than the others. If I was going to be travelling in the UK and Europe for awhile and wanted to get a mando there rather than bring my own, I think I’d look at something like that.

[trodgers]

A couple more advantages for the Army/Navy style - An adjustable bridge which will help you dial in a comfortable setup and the neck joins the body past the 12 fret. More playable neck!

[Austin Bob]

Hard to tell by the pictures, but I think you have a reasonable expectation going in concerning the overall quality of these. The only thing I would add is that the tuners on the Portuguese style look a bit worrisome to me. I'd pick the Army/Navy style just because the tuners look to be a bit more standard design, and that can be pretty important on an entry level instrument. I have very limited experience with inexpensive classical style tuners on guitars, but most of the ones I've ever seen were suspect at best.

[mandroid]

Slot head tuners as a type are not that much different..

As far as staying in tune we have scores of posts,
by people seeking better tuners assuming that is why It's not staying in tune..

[Mac Coitir Óg]

I have no experience with either of these mandolins or seller, but I would go with the army/navy copy(2250). I like the aesthetics and it’s a design that’s been around for a century or so. I wouldn’t be turned off by laminated back and sides at this price point. Honestly, if my conversion is correct(about $225 US dollars), I’d buy this just to try(If it was available in the US)and possibly add to my collection.

I'm leaning towards this one, if only because it seems a bit more solidly built. I haven't seen any mandolins around in that style either, I think it's a bit unusual for Ireland.