Flatbacks of note

**brunello97** · Sep-17-2014, 4:19pm

A lone voice crying in the wilderness....

I was going to say that I thought that repaired center line crack looked a bit off.

Currently up over $300 by current dollar-to-pound currency rate. Should I wait until after tomorrow's vote to see if the cambio improves?

Mick

**brunello97** · Nov-20-2014, 8:39pm

Despite myself I launched a desultory snipe bid and wound up winning this B+J Victoria mandola. The seller thinks Regal-made and I have no reason to doubt him, though I haven't poked around in Bob Carlin's book at all to see if there is any confirmation there.

It arrived yesterday in VG condition, better actually than the seller implied. It's quite enjoyable to play bright and loud though perhaps not as nuanced as the Truax 'spinet' bowldola I have, which is the only day-to-day functioning CGDA I have at the moment. Seems like I've been fussing with the frets on my Puglisi mandola forever (longer even than the full sized bowldolas I have waiting for repair.)

Really enjoying the "Regal" which has reminded me how much I like that lower end. We saw the PEI band Vishten at the Ark here in AA a couple weeks back and one of the sisters (or maybe both) played a cittern or OM or something big (I had a pint or two in me and my glasses off) which sounded great. Well everything they played sounded great. I guess I have them to thank for even tossing in a bid on this. This all has me in mind for a proper OM.

Mick

**Jim Garber** · Nov-20-2014, 9:18pm

That is a nice one, Mick. I like the shape of the pickguard and I always liked that Regalian headstock shape as well. Nice and simple but appealing. Glad to hear that it plays and sounds well also.

**DavidKOS** · Nov-20-2014, 9:29pm

brunello97 , lovely mandola, enjoy playing it!

**billkilpatrick** · Nov-21-2014, 2:46am

looks good.

it's all about that bass ...

**Rob Zamites** · Nov-30-2014, 12:31pm

Nice instrument, and the Ark is a great place for shows! Enjoy playing her!

**Jim Garber** · Nov-30-2014, 1:56pm

Nice, Mick. I would say Regal too by that headstock. I love the lower end instruments that truly have soul! Enjoy.

**Jim Garber** · Nov-30-2014, 4:24pm

Mick: I found this page of Harwood mandolins in a 1926 JW Jenkins Co catalog. They resemble your simple mandola, at least in style and prob were made by the same maker, likely Regal.

BTW what is the scale on your mandola?

**brunello97** · Nov-30-2014, 4:58pm

Thanks, Jim and Rob. The scale is 16.5" mas o menos.

The Harwood mandolin images do look pretty much dead-on for the Regal mandolin shown on pg 72 of Bob Carlin's book. He has a page from the "Progressive Musical Instrument Corp." and makes note that the Model 110 was labeled for Harwood and Ditson as well.

Page 71 of Bob's book shows a Regal Mandola model 2365 which looks dead-on for mine with the B+J Victoria label. Mahogany stain on birch, etc. $10.00.

That's not a lot of money even in 1928 bucks. The CPI inflation calculator maps that out to $128 in 2014. I paid too much!

It does play and sound nicely.

Mick

**brunello97** · Jul-17-2015, 9:43pm

Another interesting flatback mandolin under the label H Webb. Seller says label reads:

"Estab. 1886, H. Webb, Princess St., W' Hampton"

Appears to have a similar headstock and side sound portals as the other Webb example from a few years back.

English Walnut?

Mick

**Jim Garber** · Jul-19-2015, 5:04pm

Interesting, Mick. I also wonder why the seller says Edinburgh. I am no expert on UK geography but a quick search put Hampton as a suburb of London. That back button is very elongated.

Here are a few more picks of the other Webb I have in my files from 2008 (same as the one you link to). The neck joint/button looks less elongated on this older one.

**brunello97** · Jul-19-2015, 8:21pm

Yeah, Jim, either something went awry or else the designer wanted to make sure that neck wouldn't bend! Hard to imagine playing above the 5th fret on this one.

Brings to mind the old baseball player Walt "No Neck" Williams.

Mick

**derbex** · Jul-20-2015, 10:39am

Originally Posted by Jim Garber

Interesting, Mick. I also wonder why the seller says Edinburgh. I am no expert on UK geography but a quick search put Hampton as a suburb of London.

Hi Jim -the most famous Princess St. in the UK is in Edinburgh, so i guess that's why. 'Princess St., W' Hampton' suggests to me Wolverhampton though -and there is a Princess St. there.

I used to live close to Hampton, come to think of it I used to play in an Irish session there, and I don't recall a Princess St. -also W. Hampton doesn't exist as such, it's Hampton, Hampton Wick or Hampton Court. Too much useless information

**Jim Garber** · Jul-20-2015, 10:58am

Thanks, Derbex!!

**brunello97** · Aug-30-2015, 9:31am

Here's a Martin made Ditson labeled flatback with some of the Martin B model wood and details. I had one of these for some time and my example wasn't quite up to the sound quality of the other Martin Bs I have played. Could have been a one-off aberration.

This one does have the split cone neck joint detail sometimes referred to here as a 'volute'. Jim, I am now on board with the term. A bit confusing, perhaps, but grounded in the fossil record.

Mick

**mandrian** · Aug-30-2015, 9:42am

Hi,

Bit late to this thread, but note that the famous street in Edinburgh is Princes Street, not Princess Street.

Regards,

Originally Posted by derbex

Hi Jim -the most famous Princess St. in the UK is in Edinburgh, so i guess that's why. 'Princess St., W' Hampton' suggests to me Wolverhampton though -and there is a Princess St. there.

I used to live close to Hampton, come to think of it I used to play in an Irish session there, and I don't recall a Princess St. -also W. Hampton doesn't exist as such, it's Hampton, Hampton Wick or Hampton Court. Too much useless information