This sold the other day for $250- but it's quite a beauty and is worth a view by others. I am taking the easy option by suggesting it was made by L & H.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Acme-Profes...p2047675.l2557
This sold the other day for $250- but it's quite a beauty and is worth a view by others. I am taking the easy option by suggesting it was made by L & H.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Acme-Profes...p2047675.l2557
Yeah, I'm not sure. It does look nice though. The seller had no clue as to how old it actually was and he should turn off Auto-correct or at least proof read. The engraved tailpiece cover kind of sets me back a little from L&H but I have no other alternatives to point to.
For posterity:Up for Sale is
Acme Professional Mandolin
Vintage 1900's with Original Case!
I can not find a lot of info on the moado but what little info there is I
believe it was made in the mid 1900's. It is in very nice condition concertinaing
it's age. The original case is inclined. One of the latches is not functional.
Thank you for looking!
"It's comparable to playing a cheese slicer."
--M. Stillion
"Bargain instruments are no bargains if you can't play them"
--J. Garber
The headstock and it's inlay are wrong for L&H.
The other brand names I know associated with L&H are Washburn, American Conservatory and Tonk Brothers. Never heard of Acme being associated with them.
Pretty mandolin though.
Charley
A bunch of stuff with four strings
I believe the Acme Professionals were built and sold by Stewart & Bauer in Philadelphia. Only Chicago connection was that Stewart built banjos for Sears at one point.
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
Yes, it looks like Jim has hit the nail squarely on the head. Here's one that is even more of an eyeful!
https://billsbanjos.com/Acmemandolin.htm
Yes, probably Stewart and Bauer. There's not much info available on Bauer. We know that he partnered with the ailing S.S. Stewart in 1898, and continued the S.S. Stewart operation with Stewart's sons after the elder Stewart passed later in that year. Within a few years, Bauer had complete control of the Stewart name, and Stewart's son's made an unsuccessful attempt to go into business for themselves.
After some research, I'm not sure where the Stewart and Bauer instruments were made. Banjos made after 1902 or so bear no resemblance to earlier Stewart instruments in either construction or design. Some of the later banjos bear characteristics of instruments made by Rettburg & Lange and Weymann.
And the Stewart company made few, if any mandolins at all before the Bauer partnership. My best guess is that Bauer either had at least some of the instruments built for him by another manufacturer, or that he gutted the old Stewart factory and employees and moved his own people in.
I did notice that the heel carving on the ebay mandolin is similar to the crude floral carving I have seen on several late Stewart banjos. It bears no resemblance at all to the high quality carving we see on 19th century Stewart instruments.
Whoever built it, that's a nice looking mandolin.
Last edited by rcc56; Apr-14-2020 at 1:05pm.
Here's a not-very-high-quality image of an Acme mandolin catalog page. Jim might have one in better resolution.
Mick
Ever tried, ever failed? No matter. Try again, fail again. Fail better.--Samuel Beckett
______________________
'05 Cuisinart Toaster
'93 Chuck Taylor lowtops
'12 Stetson Open Road
'06 Bialetti expresso maker
'14 Irish Linen Ramon Puig
my Acme Professional Banjo was built by Stewart. It's branded Sears.
I'm with Jim.
f-d
ˇpapá gordo ain’t no madre flaca!
'20 A3, '30 L-1, '97 914, 2012 Cohen A5, 2012 Muth A5, '14 OM28A
Bookmarks