Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 25 of 46

Thread: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

  1. #1
    Registered User Russ Donahue's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2012
    Location
    Maine
    Posts
    869

    Default Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    Most recent sighting I can identify was back in March of 2017 by Steve Ostrander:

    https://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/s...AT-IS-IT/page2

    We know these are rare, but are they so rare as to go almost a year between sightings?
    Make America Grateful Again!

    2013 Collings MF, 2017 Northfield NF2S, 2019 Northfield Big Mon F
    1968 Martin D12-20, 2008 Martin HD28, 2022 Martin CEO 7
    1978 Ibanez Artist "Flying Eagle" Masterclone Banjo

  2. #2
    Moderator MikeEdgerton's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    Howell, NJ
    Posts
    26,874

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    Earlier today someone had posted a broken fretboard for one in the classifieds but it sold immediately and the ad is gone now.
    "It's comparable to playing a cheese slicer."
    --M. Stillion

    "Bargain instruments are no bargains if you can't play them"
    --J. Garber

  3. The following members say thank you to MikeEdgerton for this post:


  4. #3
    acoustically inert F-2 Dave's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Location
    Halfway, MO
    Posts
    2,128

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    I heard there was one at Davos this year, but then I hear a lot of things.
    "Mongo only pawn in game of life." --- Mongo

  5. The following members say thank you to F-2 Dave for this post:


  6. #4
    Registered User Russ Donahue's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2012
    Location
    Maine
    Posts
    869

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    Quote Originally Posted by MikeEdgerton View Post
    Earlier today someone had posted a broken fretboard for one in the classifieds but it sold immediately and the ad is gone now.
    Do you recall if it was for the Devastator?
    Make America Grateful Again!

    2013 Collings MF, 2017 Northfield NF2S, 2019 Northfield Big Mon F
    1968 Martin D12-20, 2008 Martin HD28, 2022 Martin CEO 7
    1978 Ibanez Artist "Flying Eagle" Masterclone Banjo

  7. #5
    Moderator MikeEdgerton's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    Howell, NJ
    Posts
    26,874

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    Quote Originally Posted by Russ Donahue View Post
    Do you recall if it was for the Devastator?
    The price was pretty high so I assume it was.
    "It's comparable to playing a cheese slicer."
    --M. Stillion

    "Bargain instruments are no bargains if you can't play them"
    --J. Garber

  8. The following members say thank you to MikeEdgerton for this post:


  9. #6

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    I've seen a memo that contains a lot of details about these mandolins. A lot of details.

  10. The Following 8 Users Say Thank You to OldSausage For This Useful Post:


  11. #7
    Registered User sblock's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2009
    Location
    Redwood City, CA
    Posts
    2,335

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    That Schmergel lacks a certificate. I don't know, but that's what people are saying. I sent some investigators to find out, and when their report comes out, I think folks will agree that it's really a PacRim instrument. Sad!

  12. The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to sblock For This Useful Post:


  13. #8
    mandolin slinger Steve Ostrander's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2007
    Location
    Capitol of MI
    Posts
    2,795

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    There have been some reports of fake Schmergels showing up on Ebay. One way to tell a fake instantly is the headstock inlay says "Schmergle." It's a small typo but it speaks volumes....
    Living’ in the Mitten

  14. The following members say thank you to Steve Ostrander for this post:


  15. #9
    Registered User bennyb's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2003
    Location
    Oregon, USA
    Posts
    415

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    There's no "c" in Shmergel.

  16. The following members say thank you to bennyb for this post:


  17. #10

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    One was recently reported near a secret government facility outside Roswell

  18. The following members say thank you to CarlM for this post:


  19. #11

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    Wasn't he that creepy character in Lord Of The Rings?

  20. The following members say thank you to banjoboy for this post:


  21. #12
    acoustically inert F-2 Dave's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Location
    Halfway, MO
    Posts
    2,128

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    Quote Originally Posted by sblock View Post
    That Schmergel lacks a certificate. I don't know, but that's what people are saying. I sent some investigators to find out, and when their report comes out, I think folks will agree that it's really a PacRim instrument. Sad!
    Could be a ‘The Schmergel’. Watch out. NOT a real Schmergel. No affiliation with Schmergel. None.

  22. The following members say thank you to F-2 Dave for this post:


  23. #13

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    Someone's been cheating on their Loar... clever disguise job, but as soon as a photograph is taken, the reality becomes clear....

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	180625-full.jpg 
Views:	153 
Size:	117.4 KB 
ID:	164334

  24. The Following 3 Users Say Thank You to Marty Jacobson For This Useful Post:


  25. #14
    Full Grown and Cussin' brunello97's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2005
    Location
    Ann Arbor/Austin
    Posts
    6,281

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    So that's where most of the MacArthur Grant money went.

    Mick
    Ever tried, ever failed? No matter. Try again, fail again. Fail better.--Samuel Beckett
    ______________________

    '05 Cuisinart Toaster
    '93 Chuck Taylor lowtops
    '12 Stetson Open Road
    '06 Bialetti expresso maker
    '14 Irish Linen Ramon Puig

  26. The following members say thank you to brunello97 for this post:


  27. #15
    Registered User Kevin Stueve's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2015
    Location
    Kansas
    Posts
    475

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    Quote Originally Posted by MikeEdgerton View Post
    Earlier today someone had posted a broken fretboard for one in the classifieds but it sold immediately and the ad is gone now.
    I know someone who knows someone who says that fretboard went to North Korea

  28. The following members say thank you to Kevin Stueve for this post:


  29. #16
    mandolin slinger Steve Ostrander's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2007
    Location
    Capitol of MI
    Posts
    2,795

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    There's no "c" in Shmergel.
    Are you saying that I've been had? But the guy from Nigeria that sold it to me was so nice...he said he was a prince....
    Living’ in the Mitten

  30. The following members say thank you to Steve Ostrander for this post:


  31. #17
    Mando accumulator allenhopkins's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Location
    Rochester NY 14610
    Posts
    17,378

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    You guys...

    First, it's Shmergel. No "c," as pointed out above.

    Second, you don't get Shmergel "sightings." You get "adorations."

    Third, none of the tiny, close-knit fraternity/sorority of Shmergel Devastator owners, would be foolish enough to admit ownership publicly, much less bring the ultimate mandolin out into general view, where it might be exposed to the elements, jostling from hoi polloi, and other risks. When you have the real Holy Grail of plectral music, you guard it jealously, protecting it from the vicissitudes of actual musical performance. The guy busking in the subway doesn't bring his Stradivarius, now does he?

    Keep hoping, fellas, but don't expect to see or hear one in your lifetime. There are an impossibly small number of real Shmergels anyway; Gibson Lloyd Loar F-5's are commonplace by comparison. Closest I've come is meeting a guy who knew a guy whose cousin thought he'd heard that some other guy had seen part of one once. Frustrating, but it's hard to approach dazzling pure mandolin perfection, without a stepladder and sunglasses. Keep hoping.
    Last edited by allenhopkins; Jan-25-2018 at 11:14pm.
    Allen Hopkins
    Gibsn: '54 F5 3pt F2 A-N Custm K1 m'cello
    Natl Triolian Dobro mando
    Victoria b-back Merrill alumnm b-back
    H-O mandolinetto
    Stradolin Vega banjolin
    Sobell'dola Washburn b-back'dola
    Eastmn: 615'dola 805 m'cello
    Flatiron 3K OM

  32. #18

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    Quote Originally Posted by OldSausage View Post
    I've seen a memo that contains a lot of details about these mandolins. A lot of details.
    What is that a reference to? The post has a bunch of "thank you's" on it already, so the phrase must ring a bell for people, but I don't recognize it from anywhere. Is it something from pop culture (movies/TV/music) or from politics or ??? I Googled that phrase (except for the word mandolin), complete with quotation marks, and got nothing useful. What am I missing?

  33. #19
    Innocent Bystander JeffD's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2006
    Location
    Upstate New York
    Posts
    24,807
    Blog Entries
    56

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    Quote Originally Posted by Marty Jacobson View Post
    Someone's been cheating on their Loar... clever disguise job, but as soon as a photograph is taken, the reality becomes clear....

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	180625-full.jpg 
Views:	153 
Size:	117.4 KB 
ID:	164334
    So Thile has been playing a Shmergel disguised as a signed Loar F5, so that folks wouldn't think he was showing off.
    A talent for trivializin' the momentous and complicatin' the obvious.

    The entire staff
    funny....

  34. The following members say thank you to JeffD for this post:


  35. #20

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    Quote Originally Posted by JeffD View Post
    So Thile has been playing a Shmergel disguised as a signed Loar F5, so that folks wouldn't think he was showing off.

  36. #21
    Unfamous String Buster Beanzy's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
    Location
    Cornwall & London
    Posts
    2,921
    Blog Entries
    5

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    Quote Originally Posted by JL277z View Post
    What is that a reference to? The post has a bunch of "thank you's" on it already, so the phrase must ring a bell for people, but I don't recognize it from anywhere. Is it something from pop culture (movies/TV/music) or from politics or ??? I Googled that phrase (except for the word mandolin), complete with quotation marks, and got nothing useful. What am I missing?
    Apparently you need teeny weeny hands to read a memo like this. It’s fake memo. Bad.

    Many people believe all of that gives us what I think people in this country are going to want to know….
    Eoin



    "Forget that anyone is listening to you and always listen to yourself" - Fryderyk Chopin

  37. #22

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    Quote Originally Posted by JeffD View Post
    So Thile has been playing a Shmergel disguised as a signed Loar F5, so that folks wouldn't think he was showing off.
    He's all about the tone, the risks of playing one in public do not outweigh the benefits of such a supremely superb instrument. And who brings a camera to a radio show anyway?
    You and I can tell the difference from an FM radio performance, but the average Joe is going to think it's a Loar. Gibson probably owes him royalties for recent sales!

  38. #23
    Mando accumulator allenhopkins's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Location
    Rochester NY 14610
    Posts
    17,378

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    Quote Originally Posted by JL277z View Post
    What is that a reference to?...
    Congratulations! You lead an interesting, fulfilling life, and avoid cable news.
    Allen Hopkins
    Gibsn: '54 F5 3pt F2 A-N Custm K1 m'cello
    Natl Triolian Dobro mando
    Victoria b-back Merrill alumnm b-back
    H-O mandolinetto
    Stradolin Vega banjolin
    Sobell'dola Washburn b-back'dola
    Eastmn: 615'dola 805 m'cello
    Flatiron 3K OM

  39. #24
    Orrig Onion HonketyHank's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2015
    Location
    Beaverton, OR, USA
    Posts
    1,778
    Blog Entries
    1

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    I thought I had one once. Got a good deal from a guy who said he found it in his grandma's attic. But the finish started flaking off the headstock. I rubbed a little bit and pretty soon I could see a big capital K. Total ripoff. You gotta be careful. They look enough like a Kelvinator that you can be easily fooled.
    New to mando? Click this link -->Newbies to join us at the Newbies Social Group.

    Just send an email to rob.meldrum@gmail.com with "mandolin setup" in the subject line and he will email you a copy of his ebook for free (free to all mandolincafe members).

    My website and blog: honketyhank.com

  40. #25
    but that's just me Bertram Henze's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2005
    Location
    0.8 mpc from NGC224, upstairs
    Posts
    10,054

    Default Re: Any recent sightings of a Schmergel?

    Quote Originally Posted by allenhopkins View Post
    Congratulations! You lead an interesting, fulfilling life, and avoid cable news.
    There is a three step approach to that.
    #1 you sit in front of TV and practise.
    #2 you find the chatter of people on TV distracting from practising and turn off the sound.
    #3 you find the sight of people on TV make you look at your fretboard more often. That's when you insert that fireplace DVD you haven't seen since christmas.
    the world is better off without bad ideas, good ideas are better off without the world

Bookmarks

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •