Flatiron on Ebay

[Northwest Steve]

NFI -
http://www.ebay.com/itm/GIBSON-2001-...UAAOSwl9BWMjtU

Look at the pics - do you think this had water damage. Or possibly in a case for a long time in a humid environment? I would be hesitant to purchase with out a luthier inspection or at least looking at it in person. Maybe just a good cleaning ans setup and could be a good deal. What do you think?

[DataNick]

Something looks funky; yeah I hear ya, several things appear amiss.
Is that a private party or a store selling it?

Maybe they'll allow a trial period; I wouldn't be interested otherwise....YMMV

[Jeff Mando]

Tough call online. Looks like water damage/extreme humidity. Probably gonna need some work to play/look nice. The ad claims the case has a slight musty smell....I would be careful.

[jim simpson]

Looks to me like it has a mold coating on it from relative humidity. I've seen this on old instruments, they usually clean up pretty well. The dots on the edges of the fingerboard are odd. It could be a nice Flatiron for someone.

[MikeEdgerton]

The dots on the fretboard were from a system that I saw many years ago where you identified the notes you could play in a break.

[Mark Gunter]

According to seller, dots are in oil pastels - no problem. While I certainly defer to the experts here, I would personally take a chance on this one, had I the funds. There appears to be nothing significantly wrong with it, though it is a bit of a project. Tuners appear not original to me, but again, I'm not one of the experts here. The damage to tailpiece cover is probably due to a combination of body oils and humidity. Likewise, the lifting of the back plate at bottom of box and musty case smell is probably due to Florida humidity and maybe heat.

This is probably not something to clean up and play, but a project for someone interested in restoring a flatiron.

[OldGus]

You gotta read between the lines, an estate sale from Florida, probably an older person who retired and declined until death neglected this mandolin in a humid environment resulting in mold, rust and a fret board crack.

[allenhopkins]

The seller states the owner developed Alzheimer's disease, and moved to the humid east Florida coast.

So the mandolin probably sat unplayed for quite a while in a moist environment, and shows the effects. The broken string could have even resulted from an over-humidified top developing an increased arch, pushing up the bridge. Or not.

What puts me off is the aggressive "no returns!" policy of the seller. In the case of an instrument with several questions attached, I'd be very chary of sending off over a grand, sight unseen and mandolin unplayed, with the only recourse being outright fraud or misrepresentation. Not that I suspect fraud from the seller, but I would be worried about buying a mandolin that might be quite a bit funkier than expected -- or wanted...

[Northwest Steve]

Went for just over $2000........... There have been a lot of nice Flatiron's for sale recently from 2100-2800 and do not need the work this one does?

[colorado_al]

I'm not sure that ebay is a good place to buy a high dollar mandolin.