Yes, I think that unless there are two D'A mandolin maniacs it will go reasonably -- possibly a bargain -- for these, like maybe $10-12K.
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Has anyone ever dealt with that store before? I've lived in LA most of my life and never heard of them.
Note that the eBay ad gives the location as Antelope Valley! Bit of a drive north from L.A. proper.
If that mandolin wasn't a D'Angelico, we would all be posting about how incredibly ugly it is. At very least, it would be in the "ugly scroll" thread.
I have this listed as 1940, from another website. It doesn't correspond to D'Angelico's logbook as it was published in the books about his instruments.
Mandolin Brothers listed this 1942 A model in the classifieds. I don't think that one was there when I visited a few months ago. Price is pretty reasonable.
New 12-string mandolin just up at the Mandolin Brothers website, serial #106:
http://www.mandoweb.com/Instruments/...olin-1930/2891
I would imagine that this is prob one of the only 12 strings that D'A built. Why, you may ask? Prob because someone asked him to and was willing to pay.
#106 makes this the earliest numbered D'angelico mandolin and also the first mandolin made which is not a bowlback... so far. It also appears to be the only 12 string... so far. Lastly, the date from Stan at Mandolin brothers of 1930 is interesting, and would place this mandolin's construction within the same period as his building of Bowlbacks, changing an assumption that I had, in which he transitioned from Bowlback to carved topped plains, excels, and scrolls.
I honestly think he was building whatever people asked him to. That would explain why he was building bowlbacks at all as late as 1930. Most manufacturers in the US stopped making them before then. In the 1924-5 L&H catalog, for instance, there were only a few bowlbacks -- this from a maker who sold tens of thousands in the teens.
That would explain the tiple:
http://puapua-ukulolo.blogspot.com/2...e-ukulele.html
Or the machine gun electric mandolin. hey, the guy had to make a living.
Mandolin Brothers has changed the date to circa 1939. Not unreasonable, given that #125 is from early 1940. Serial # lists suggest he was making about 10-13 mandolins a year at that point (at least he was in 1940 and 1941, according to the list in the Schmidt book).
There is a newly posted D'Angelico Bowlback listed for sale at Mandolin Brothers, being sold as is. I am excited to see images.
Hi everyone
it has been many years since I have posted on the cafe! I have had the pleasure of restoring a D'Angelico Asym two point many years ago, In doing so I was able to blueprint that specific model quite accurately , and have discovered many techniques that John had incorporated in the construction of at least that specific instrument! To me It is one of the finest sounding mandolins that I have ever heard or played! I did impress me enough to build two replicas, one blond , the other sunburst,It has been a slow endeavor as I have felt the need to do the pair as accurately as possible right down to the last detail, as opposed to doing my version or rendition of what I thought should be done! Having said that, the model that I restored was not entered into John's log book! It was in the next sequence of #'s 175 in the mandolin register, though I assure everyone that it was an original! Everyone might find it interesting to look up an article in Frets magazine By George Gruhn ( Nov 85) I'm not sure where one can find a copy but it is well worth the read!
Pete Langdell
Rigel insrtruments
The Metropolitan Museum of Art has a publication with its Guitar Heroes exhibition that contains a lot of information on D'Angelico instruments along with a select bibliography. Might be a good starting point for tracking down more of these instruments.
Bill
Good to see you here Pete! Do you have pics of the 2 you made???
Two more for the registry at Mandolin Brothers:
Bowlback -- big price, not great condition
12-string flatback -- even bigger price
This one has been added to my master list. Sold a few weeks ago after being brought back to life by retrofret!Attachment 98553
I just got my D'Angelico back from "the shop." This Hattiesburg, Mississippi mandolin is back in action. It has some serious overtones. Attachment 101322
1937 Scroll, from Mandolin Brothers. I look forward to Stan's description. Attachment 104723