c.1912 Vega Bowlback Mando

[Jake Wildwood]

I love this mando... very tempted, of course, as I'm a Vega fan. Work included: bowl seam repairs, fret level/dress, cleaning, setup. It had a couple of old bowl repairs to begin with that weren't done perfectly, but are sturdy.

Sounds excellent. It sounds a lot like my Martin flatback (40s) but with a bit more sweet clarity and less suckerpunch. Reallllly sounds good in open tunings for fiddle tunes.

More pics & writeup here!

[Tavy]

Very nice, I have an almost identical one in the works, so it's good to hear they sound good!

[Martucci]

Really nice Jake. The top side is quite handsome with just the right amount of detail. Could you tell me what it is that you placed under the strings at the tail?

Thanks, Fred

[Jake Wildwood]

Fred: just a pad of leather as a mute.

[Jim Garber]

nice work, Jake, as usual. I love Vegas, as you know (not "Las"!!) I think they are among the best of the American vintage bowlbacks.

[brunello97]

Count me in, Jake, on the Vegas love-fest. This one is very pretty. I think I had the same model for awhile (not sure which it was) and enjoyed it alot. One of the herd that was thinned that I regret sometimes. I look forward to John's reaction once his is up and running. I expect, once again, that the MC will influence the market.

But man, I am still getting savvy to hidden nuances of Jake-speak. What do you mean by "less sucker punch"?

Mick

[Jake Wildwood]

Mick: I mean that sort of creamy thud that flatbacks can have in the lower register. The Martin I have doesn't have that sort of wishy-washy unfocused thing going on but it does have more of a thick warmth on the bottom vs. your typical archtop mando. This bowlback is hard to pin down... the Vegas are about 5x warmer and less-spidery (favoring treble and tremolo) than your average bowlback, so to me they sound like a mix of the clarity of a good archtop plus the extended sweetness of a flatback. Very focused.

[brunello97]

Thanks, Jake. I appreciate your POV since there are few folks around here who can appreciate (let alone describe) select US bowls and flatbacks on their own terms, rather than as some kind of compromise because an archtop or top shelf Italian bowl isn't on and (or in budget.) The stock phrase "well, it's good for Celtic or old-time music" gets my Irish up.

I had a great time last night A-B-Cing my Vega with Martin and Leland flat backs. Or should I say "wallowing".

Mick