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I play electric because I like to play blues & find bending much easier on them. I also like to use pedals.

I think it's a question of what mid-level pricing means to you. I think you can find a good pancake OM in the $1500 range & the same for an archtop.

Congrats on the score! That's awesome! I'd be all over one of those if they offered a cutaway :grin:

Though I don't drink anymore, I found playing music while drinking is similar to playing pool. There's a fine line between enough & too much and the drop off in ability is steep :grin:

I use a both Kutzall & King Arthur carbide discs with my angle grinder for roughing and can attest to the strain it puts on your hands. I use vibration dampening gloves and still can't go more than...

I have a Big mon and a Skip Kelley A5 with extra body depth. I personally think they both tend to have a more pronounced low end & warmer tone.

I would think a larger body would affect the low end most. My Pono OM is a parlor sized body with a 21.5 scale & neck joint at the 12th fret.

Check out Graham McDonald's The Mandolin Project.

I believe it’s a cedar top & bocote back and sides. I’ll get a pic or two in a little bit.

I have one that I enjoy but has been cased for a while in favor of my Big Mon. It's been a bit since I played it but Richard definitely makes a fine mandolin!

I don't have any experience with Bourgeois but my Big Mon is my lifer. I haven't enjoyed the Eastman's I've played as much as I expected or wanted to but I think I'm a little biased towards...

The hunt is half the fun! You know you have lifer when the having outweighs the finding :grin:

That looks awesome!

Nice playing!

That sounds more like satisfaction!

Bruce does great work!

I always figured he was in Folsom for a different crime. :grin: Great rendition!!

I totally agree with John's advice, especially with a young family. Lutherie is an art and, as with any art, it's difficult to be financially successful.

My Big Mon has exactly the tone I'm looking for. I also have a large bodied A style from Skip Kelley that I love so it may just be me.

If you're looking for a short scale OM that sounds like a Gibson A, I'd stay away from the GBOMs. The Weber Gallatin OM will be a lot closer tonally and the 20" scale is about as short as you get...

I'm a sucker for koa & that's a helluva specimen! Nicely done sir!

Agreed! I much prefer 20"-22" for an OM.

If you're looking for something akin to Sarah's tone, I think you need to save for an archtop GBOM. I have a flattop Northfield GBOM with a spruce top & walnut back/sides & a Pono GBOM with a spruce...

Check out The Mandolin Blues Book by Brent Robitaille or Mandolin Blues by Rich DelGrosso.

How cool?! Random reconnections like that are great! I bumped into the son of two of my parents' oldest friends at a national autocross race in Kansas once. We hadn't seen each other since we were...