The search continues...

[Demetrius]

Isn't that the same thing?

[pops1]

Put the names in a hat and draw one out.

[KMaynard]

I've been following the thread from the beginning. However, I'm now wondering if this isn't just some sort of publicity stunt. With the addition of the wife and a blog, now vlog, all signs point to something else going on here besides trying to find a mandolin.

Just one bystanders opinion.

[Demetrius]

A publicity stunt? Really?

[Denman John]

Unplug for the day and go for a walk in the woods alone ...

My vote would be for the Apitius

[Demetrius]

How's that a publicity stunt? That's giving me way too much credit.

It's simple: I want a mandolin, I'm having trouble deciding, and my wife finds it slightly humorous, so (since she's an English teacher and enjoys writing), she decided to share the experience in a blog.

As far as myself, I find everyone on here incredibly helpful, and I love sharing this experience with you guys.

[Demetrius]

Thanks, Denman John. Yeah, that Apitius looks like a killer mandolin. Thanks for the vote.

[George R. Lane]

Can someone please help me find this mandolin?
Maybe the owner would be willing to share their
thoughts on it, or maybe even willing to part with it.
https://brentrupmandolinregistry.wor...08-eclipse-v6/

I visited Hans in the fall of 2008 and spent a few hours getting a shop tour and playing several of his instruments. I remember that Eclipse because of the tailpiece cover. At that time I wasn't much of a player, but that one had the sweetest tone and if I had the money I would have went home with it. Hans is gracious man to let a beginner play so many mandos and to explain how each of the 8 instruments were made and why he chose the woods for them. I explained that
I would not be able to purchase one of his mandolins, as I just was starting a new business and he said that didn't matter because he was happy just to talk about his mandolin and get any feedback from either a beginner or a professional.It just a shame he had to stop building. It is a great loss to the musical world.

[Steve-o]

I vote for the Wiens.

Ignore those negative comments. If folks are jealous or cynical, they should leave this thread alone. I've enjoyed it.

[Jim Garber]

Brentrup M23V (used) — that is my vote.

My reasons (if you need them):

• I believe that you mentioned him as a builder more than any other
• he is no longer building vs. the others who are still building
• I am prejudiced in his favor as an owner of one of his and my favorite mandolin

Does the predictor of the most votes win something? BTW, Demetrius, I think you might consider a Mix/NewMad mandolin so you can play in the shower.

[JKA]

After therapy I would buy the Apitius (keeping the Eastman as a beater) because:
They sound great
They look traditional
They're made by a great luthier
You won't lose out financially
They have kudos
They are niche
You might discover it's the one
You might choose to fall in love with it
You'll become part of its journey and history (a copy of your wife's blog should accompany its travels)
You'll have fun playing it
You'll be inspired

Having read through the reasons why, I've just realised this applies to any of the aforementioned mandolins...oops

[pops1]

Without them all in my hand to play for hours and hours I would find this a hard decision too. Even if you call each seller and have them play into the phone and use a headphone on your phone for the best possible sound (however bad that is) it would still be a hard decision. You have chosen some wonderful mandolins and I believe you or anyone here would be very glad to have any one of them. Other than my post of the hat, you could play pin the tail on the mandolin and have some, if not a conscious, choice in the matter. Good luck.

[9lbShellhamer]

My vote is to buy none of them.

You clearly have the funds for the right mandolin whatever it is, but it's impossible to gauge which mandolin is your...soulmate, without playing it. Mandolins from even the same builder can sound different.

Taking a trip to Nashville and hanging at Carter's would be my vote. Wait until one BLOWS YOUR MIND, then buy it. Those are sure fire odds of buying, "the one", otherwise to be honest it's really russian roulette.

Quite often I've made a trip to Carter to play one, and it thoroughly underwhelmed me, only to have another I didn't suspect blow my socks off, then I go back a year later, only to have the make and model that once blew my mind feel lackluster while another mandolin seems explosive. The point here being, its about the individual mandolin in hand, not only the builder.


Enjoy the journey.

[red7flag]

I totally agree with Troy. What you get from this thread is the logical reasons a person would pick what ever instrument THEY prefer. But, as Troy stated, what you are looking for is a soul mate, not the soul mate of others. I would just continue the search. I have always been told if I have to think about it, it is the wrong decision. How do you know? You just reach in your gut and see if it feels right. My only mandolin buys that I regret were logical ones. But in the end, if it does not feel right, it just doesn't stick. This is why had to buy an Ellis for the second time. I listened to my defective reasoning and sold my first one.

[Steve-o]

I totally agree with you Troy and Tony. I think the voting concept was just for the fun of it (right Demetrius?). If it were my choice, I'd make a trip to Nashville just like you suggest and spend a long time playing as many high end mandolins as possible.

[Bob Clark]

I agree with Troy, as well. If you buy based on this poll, I think you will be back in the market in no time. I think it would be best to spend some time traveling to a few stores, playing a bunch of mandolins and letting the right one find you. In time, it will find you. Don't rush it. Really, you can't rush it. It happens when it happens.

Best wishes for a successful search,

Bob

[darylcrisp]

OK

D, buy my Northfield F5s. Take the remainder funds, and take your mom and wife on a nice quiet vacation, some old world town near an ocean. No computer, no cell phones, and take the NF. Play it, fall in love. Come home and soon you will be hanging out with Mike M, Emory L, and the other members in Michigan. You will advance into the Artist series and put my old NF in the classifieds, well worn and broken in , it will be grabbed up quickly. We will watch you in video as you play your englemann top, 5 bar Artist model. And it will sound great.

Nothing to fix, nothing to wonder about, you will finally be in your zone.

**and if you go against my advice, I vote Apitius**

d

[Demetrius]

Wow, some incredible votes here and definite fine words of wisdom.
I plan to respond to each suggestion, and comment on here for I am extremely
grateful for the time you've taken to post. Believe it or not, it helps and it makes it fun.
I love how's some of you are posting your votes and stating the reason why you
are voting for those specific builders. I loved the Hans Brentrup story.... Thank you so much for that. I have a story that I will share with you all of how I came
Across the guitar that I've been exclusively been my #1 acoustic guitar for 10 years.
I know it's regarding a guitar but I promise the story coincides with this Mando search.
Hey at least it's not a banjo story. Lol

[Demetrius]

I believe voting wise Brentrup and Apitius are in the lead.
These are two of the nicest guys in the world of lutherie...

[Josh Levine]

OK

D, buy my Northfield F5s. Take the remainder funds, and take your mom and wife on a nice quiet vacation, some old world town near an ocean. No computer, no cell phones, and take the NF. Play it, fall in love. Come home and soon you will be hanging out with Mike M, Emory L, and the other members in Michigan. You will advance into the Artist series and put my old NF in the classifieds, well worn and broken in , it will be grabbed up quickly. We will watch you in video as you play your englemann top, 5 bar Artist model. And it will sound great.

Nothing to fix, nothing to wonder about, you will finally be in your zone.

**and if you go against my advice, I vote Apitius**

d

... D has this thread flared up your own MAS?

[William Smith]

Its too bad about the Gilchrist, just wondering why you just didn't fix the binding and do the setup yourself,or had someone else do it for ya, every high end mandolin I bought/traded for needed a setup and its not all that hard to do it right, My 82 Gil I bought was terrible and my thinking at the time was why in the H did they send this to me like that, well I refit the bridge, adjusted the rod checked out spacing and bam, Heck of a mandolin. Maybe you already said and for that sorry but this is a long thread! I even got a radius fretboard mandolin with a flat bridge/saddle awful man, just changed it out. Now a dream. You mentioned that the Gil needed "waking" up or played well with the correct setup it would have been like night and day. Is the Gil back at Gryphons yet, to late to set her up yet? Just curious I guess.

[LadysSolo]

It can happen with any instrument - I had it happen with my current favorite guitar - I went to play two guitars, and one "spoke to me" as soon as I played it. I played some others, and the favorite was out of my price range. The second favorite was in my price range, and had the guy not taken my offer I would have been okay with #2, but he took my offer on the favorite, and I smile every time I play it. I feel the same about my mandolins, but they all have "grown on me," so to speak. I now feel the same about them too, they have become "soulmates."

[CES]

Can't recall if anyone has mentioned Giacomel yet. I played one at Gruhn's a couple of summers ago, and it could have been my "the one." It just came alive in my hands and blew my doors off. My wife, who's a musician who sings and plays piano but really could care less about my little portable instruments, paid attention to that one (it was the only one that really turned her head that day, between 3 stores and a couple dozen mandos). Then she saw the look on my face and was actually afraid we were going to leave with it. Believe me, I was crunching numbers like crazy. Unfortunately, my budget was only conducive to the National RM-1 that I took home from Artisan Guitars . Don't let the funky style throw you, they (the Giacomels) look positively gorgeous in person.

I agree that a trip to Nashville or maybe Elderly may be the best route for you. That Saturday was an education for me, and I'll totally agree that I was unimpressed in a couple I went expecting to love, and very impressed with a few I wouldn't have thought twice about had I not gotten them into my hands.

This MAS thing is a BEAST!

[Demetrius]

And just to think, I lived in Nashville for 7 yrs and of course I wasn't on a search for a mandolin that entire time.
In fact when I was 16 had bought a cheap Washburn mandolin while I was living in New England, just to mess around on.
I sold everything to move to Nashville and almost immediately revisited the mandolin. I was really just starting out
I rem bought the prototype Gibson F-9. Id go to the factory in Opry Mills and watch these mandolins being built and I was a kid in a candy store. Everyone there was so nice to me, and would let me try every mandolin they had. I rem seeing Nickel Creek doing a cmt appearance there, was anyone else there? Id spend a lot of time at Gruhn back then too but the selection wasn't what it is today. Maybe it was and they just had it all upstairs. I just wasn't plugged into that world enough then to know the difference. I rem they brought me upstairs and Ricky Skaggs was up there, and I was like hey where are the stratocasters at? I wish Carters had been around back then, but they were working at Gruhn still. Then again I would've mostly been looking at the strats. Anyhow I was telling my buddy about the latest mandolin video from Carters of the Gilchrist Model 3. Ive been eyeing that on the website and they finally put up a video. The cool thing is that was my first mandolin teacher "Marc Macglashan".. He's the guy in that video, he's still as awesome as ever. I still have all those old lessons on video that I recorded with my camcorder. Im just rambling right now, but all these comments about visiting Nashville has left me very nostalgic. Ive been back since but it was always just a quick through when I was on tour. Anyhow keep all the votes coming, and really explain why you think thats a good mandolin to go for.
Thanks,
Dem

[Charles E.]

Have you considered the new mandolins that Steve Sorensen is building? He is very much inspired by Hans Bentrup. His new "F" models are spectacular to look at and I have heard them played at the IBMA, first class all the way.

http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/sh...ensen-VX/page2