Originally Posted by
Rob Roy
Hi Joe, Your Wienman is an incredibly beautiful instrument! That one piece back is mesmerizing.
I put the narrow gauge nickel silver wire in one of my earlier builds. It was an oval hole and I was going for that old sound. Well that small wire didn't last too long and also has a shorter bead, so getting the usual level-and-recrown out of it was less successful. I put 0.080" EVO gold in my other f hole mandos and am quite comfortable with the sound and feel of it. So when I refretted the oval, I put the that same wire in it. All of my mandos show almost no signs of wear with 6+ years of play on the the EVO. The wider wire is quite comfortable, especially on slides. Of course, the most important thing is having the setup dialed in, especially the nut slots.
The standard 0.080" "banjo wire" has become quite ubiquitous and is standard equipment with many builders, including many upper tier instruments. Tonewise, if you're playing with any strength, I find it hard to tell the difference. The skinny wire is easier to get a more delicate tone out of, and of course is easier to fret cleanly when you get into the upper frets.
Jescar makes EVO gold in the skinny wire as well, so that could be an option if you wanted to stay with the traditional gauge. It doesn't sound like you're playing enough to warrant stainless steel. BTW, congrats on getting back your Gilchrist! I've been listening to Andy Leftwich lately and he pulls amazing stuff out of a Gil. I've also been playing the same strings as you on my one mando that's just a little thin on the high E, they work well and feel good. Stay well!