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Thread: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

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    Default '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!


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    Registered User Roger Moss's Avatar
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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    D--n!
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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    Quote Originally Posted by Doug Freeman View Post
    He says it's a 1937, but then he says:

    "This mandolin features a gorgeous Lloyd Loar era solid Adirondack Red Spruce top,"

    Is the seller trying to say that the item does not have the original 1937 top, but instead the top got replaced with a 1924-or-earlier "Lloyd Loar era" top? No wait, he said it's "all original"... so...

    Apparently then, the seller is trying to imply that a 1937 mandolin is somehow part of the "Lloyd Loar era", um, I thought Loar left Gibson in 1924?? That's 13 years difference. Not the same "era" at all, as far as Gibson mandolins are concerned?

    Maybe it depend on how one chooses to define the word "era". To me, 13 years off is *not* anywhere close to being of that "era". But I suppose to someone (buyer or seller) who looks at all old instruments as being the same (hypothetical example: "93 years old, 79 years old, what's the difference, it's just old"), maybe 1937 would qualify as the "Lloyd Loar era".

    Or a marketing strategy... maybe, name-dropping "Lloyd Loar" just complements all the keyword stuffing (Fender, Roland, Yamaha, Gretsch, Rickenbacker, and a couple dozen other famous names) that shows up at the bottom of that listing, clearly unrelated to the item being sold. Doesn't exactly inspire confidence/trust.
    Last edited by Jess L.; Feb-18-2017 at 4:03am.

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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    Marketing hype!

    What's with the -

    "Archtop Flat top Fender Gibson Marshall Carvin Martin Taylor Yamaha Guild Gretsch Music Man Musicman Mesa Boogie Twin Reverb Amp Amplifier Tube Solid State Strat Stratocaster Tele Telecaster Mustang Junior Jr Les Paul Anderson Prs SE Paul Reed Smith SG P90 P-90 Single Coil Humbucker MIJ CIJ MIA Acoustic Electric Nash G&L Jaguar Vibrato Roland Jazz Chorus Bad Cat Blackstar Peavey Bass Lakland Precision Jazz Guitar Soldano Vox Ovation Adamas Larrivee Seagull Vintage Limited Edition Anniversary Semi-Hollow Semi Hollow A-E Deluxe Reverend Custom Hard Shell Case OHSC Gig Bag Weber Kentucky Collings SS Stewart Harmony Kay Regal Rickenbacker Hilo Breedlove Takamine Adamas Ovation Acoustic Electric Pre-War Pre War A F Style"

    ??

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    Registered User Roger Moss's Avatar
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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    The seller is clearly trying to overhype they mandolin. This hyperbole is common on craigslist. They are as well trying to hit as many keyword searches as possible. Poor salesmanship yes but it has no bearing on the instrument itself. No of course it is not a Loar era instrument bit this claim is common with people who dont know much about instruments thinking is sounds good. Still seems like a nice mandolin and a pretty good deal.

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    Registered User NEH57's Avatar
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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    Well.....using the finest mandolin reference site as a research facility - which the seller may well have done - according to this query
    http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/sh...Lloyd-Loar-era
    1920's/1930's wasn't decried as not being LL era so by default it 'could' for the purposes of those not better informed ?

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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    Ugh, I'm on the fence with this one. First, without digging through the old mail Craigslist sends me, the seller has probably come down at least half on the price in the last week or so (I thought I remembered it starting at $600), and yet the price is firm. Combine that with the keyword stuffing the over-selling, and ... it just doesn't smell right, ya know? And Tacoma isn't a short drive for me.

    OTOH, this is how bargains are had...

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    Mando accumulator allenhopkins's Avatar
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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    Not to nit-pick, but:

    1. The Kalamazoo is not "nearly identical to Gibson's pancake style mandolin," by which I guess the seller means the Army-Navy model. Body shape's significantly different; this one has "shoulders," the Army-Navy didn't.

    2. Kalamazoo instruments, a budget line Gibson introduced during the Depression when their regular instrument sales dipped, have absolutely nothing to do with Lloyd Loar. If there was a piece of "Loar era" spruce hanging around the Gibson factory for a decade, it might have been made into this mandolin's top -- pretty unlikely.

    3. The ad says "with Guardian case," then you find the case is $50 extra. Not cool.

    The one positive comment, is that at $250, the mandolin is quite a bargain (assuming no defects). Googling around, I find no similar Kalamazoos listed for less than $500, and many over $700.
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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    I love my '42 Kzoo KM-12, and it cost a lot more than this one. It consistently earns compliments for its tone. I would jump all over this one, despite the apparent contradictions.
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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    Jeez, tough room. Seems like a no brainer good deal if it's what's pictured, case or not. I didn't take the time to read into the details everyone here has. Based on my decades of buying and selling experience I'd size this seller up as a generalist, not versed in mandolin history or even musical instruments, who employs the usual tools of the online selling trade. I don't necessarily infer any deception on his or her part. Anyone in the Tacoma area who's interested can easily assess it; anyone from remote can take it or leave it. If I wanted one of these I'd consider it, doing reasonable due diligence. It ain't that much money or risk in this day and age.

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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    So what if the seller is not a mandolin expert? It still seems like a good deal to me.

    In fact, I often buy from sellers who know less than I do............

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    fishing with my mando darrylicshon's Avatar
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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    If I was close I would love to check it out
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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    A few months ago I saw one like this on CL for $350 but it was about an hour away from me. I couldn't find the time to go check it out. I would have been all over it had it been in my town. I'm with Allen on this, For $250 I would jump on it assuming it checks out OK.
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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    Listing deleted already.

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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    Quote Originally Posted by LadysSolo View Post
    Listing deleted already.
    It popped up again in my search agent email. So maybe a different ad, so one will have to a search on Seattle Craigslist if interested. (EDIT: dug the mail out of the trash: https://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/msg/6010091230.html)

    I'd go look, but I'm busy trying to convince the wife that I need the Pava F5 in the classifieds.

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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    Quote Originally Posted by Mike Stewart View Post
    It popped up again ...
    Yup, it's back (clicky). Still has all the shady keyword spam at the bottom of the listing.

    I see one thing different this time around, or maybe I just didn't notice it before since I was distracted by other details, now there's mention of:

    "a 1/2" hairline crack on the brace directly under the sound hole, but does not affect playability"

    Quote Originally Posted by Mike Stewart View Post
    ... I'd go look, but I'm busy trying to convince the wife that I need the Pava F5 in the classifieds.

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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    And it's back again: https://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/msg/6020493581.html It had briefly disappeared, came back, disappeared, and is back again for $350. Was $400 yesterday.

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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    This is a (sort of) helpful thread to follow, if a bit frustrating.

    I've got a KM11 that I'm going to be putting up for sale shortly. Not sure what to price it at given the weird and wild range I see on the Ebay and now apparently on CL. CL ad suggests one large. That's nuts.

    I've had a few of these over the years and like them a lot. I've got two now and should really let one of them go. Nice mandolins.

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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    Quote Originally Posted by Ray(T) View Post
    Marketing hype!

    What's with the -

    "Archtop Flat top Fender Gibson Marshall Carvin Martin Taylor Yamaha Guild Gretsch Music Man Musicman Mesa Boogie Twin Reverb Amp Amplifier Tube Solid State Strat Stratocaster Tele Telecaster Mustang Junior Jr Les Paul Anderson Prs SE Paul Reed Smith SG P90 P-90 Single Coil Humbucker MIJ CIJ MIA Acoustic Electric Nash G&L Jaguar Vibrato Roland Jazz Chorus Bad Cat Blackstar Peavey Bass Lakland Precision Jazz Guitar Soldano Vox Ovation Adamas Larrivee Seagull Vintage Limited Edition Anniversary Semi-Hollow Semi Hollow A-E Deluxe Reverend Custom Hard Shell Case OHSC Gig Bag Weber Kentucky Collings SS Stewart Harmony Kay Regal Rickenbacker Hilo Breedlove Takamine Adamas Ovation Acoustic Electric Pre-War Pre War A F Style"

    ??
    They could have successfully added Nike, Adidas and Double Bass for the same purpose )

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    Martin Stillion mrmando's Avatar
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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    The seller just keeps relisting it and changing the price. Not a great sales strategy if you ask me.
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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    Should have sold quickly at $250 in most any market, IMHO. I also think the problem is with the seller.

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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    Quote Originally Posted by Jeff Mando View Post
    Should have sold quickly at $250 in most any market, IMHO. I also think the problem is with the seller.
    That's why I haven't hopped in the car for the drive to Tacoma: this just has "there's something you're not telling me" written all over it. If it were 20 minutes away, I'd look. But Tacoma's 45 minutes on a good day. You don't want to know what a bad day's like.

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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    Quote Originally Posted by Jeff Mando View Post
    Should have sold quickly at $250 in most any market, IMHO. I also think the problem is with the seller.
    There's a lot of fake Seattle CL ads for e.g. gaming PCs that are too cheap to be true, they're just collecting email addresses to spam.

    _____________

    EDIT: they're collecting cellphone numbers to spam, nobody cares about email spam anymore. So "No response without valid phone number" or something along those lines.

    And yeah, you'd think it's too small a market to deal with, but maybe CL is getitng better at flagging ad posters who never reply.
    Last edited by gtani7; Mar-04-2017 at 10:26pm.
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    Default Re: '30s Kalamazoo for $250 in Tacoma!

    Quote Originally Posted by gtani7 View Post
    There's a lot of fake Seattle CL ads for e.g. gaming PCs that are too cheap to be true, they're just collecting email addresses to spam.
    Probably true, but I can't understand the logic......that is, the "tiny" number of mandolin people in the world vs. sports, cars, trucks, beer, guitars, phones, tennis shoes, etc., you know -- just about anything else. Doesn't seem worth the effort for so few addresses, IMHO. (of course, what do I know about spamming?)

    I would rather think it is a case of a seller being "on the fence" about selling it, due to something the rest of us can't see or understand, such as it being something of sentimental value or whatever. This would explain the changing of prices and being difficult to deal with. Having worked in a vintage guitar store, I've seen many cases of "skewed logic" when trying to deal with customers selling instruments. More than once someone has told me, "I've researched these and they seem to sell for $750, but I'd like to get $2500 for mine, are you interested?" Another seller quoted a price for his instrument and we said we couldn't pay that for it. He responded by saying, "were you thinking higher or lower?" (with a straight face, believe it or not!) I think some of it, honestly, is just inexperience with buying and selling.
    Last edited by Jeff Mando; Mar-04-2017 at 10:37pm.

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