Daley Mandolins are Back?

[Boge Quinn]

You guys remember my friend Sim Daley, protégé of Charlie Derrington, former honcho at Gibson, and maker of the wonderful Daley mandolins; he moved back to his beloved Cornwall a couple years ago to fish and make whiskey. He is considering making a few high-end mandolins in the $10K (lacquer) to $14K (varnish) price range. These will be made in a new shop in Cornwall. What do y'all think?

[Rob Beck]

I live just up the road from where Sim is now based, and, if I had the cash, I'd commission one in a heartbeat! It would be a shame for that talent not to go into making mandolins, and it would be really cool to have them made in Cornwall. He did some excellent set up work for me on my Shippey A5 about a year ago. Also, I believe from conversations at the time he is making gin at his distillery rather than whiskey - It might be called Copperfish (disclaimer - this information has been filtered through middle aged memory ).

[Ivan Kelsall]

From Boge Quinn - "..... he moved back to his beloved Cornwall a couple years ago." I read the same - but !. His website still has his US contact phone # ??. I've read nothing about Sim actually being back in the UK - so did he call his move off or ????.
( Telephone: 615-876-3741 ). Puzzled !.

Re. any mandolin that Sim Daley makes - ''wherever'' - without any shadow of a doubt,they'll still be superb mandolins,
Ivan

PS - I just read Rob Beck's post above !. Many thanks - but the phone # is still a puzzle.

[Boge Quinn]

I believe from conversations at the time he is making gin at his distillery rather than whiskey - It might be called Copperfish (disclaimer - this information has been filtered through middle aged memory ).

Copperfish is correct. So far he's selling gin, as it will take some years before the whiskey is aged.

Boge

[Jeff Mando]

He is considering making a few high-end mandolins in the $10K (lacquer) to $14K (varnish) price range. These will be made in a new shop in Cornwall. What do y'all think?

I'd say if you have the talent and the demand is there to command such a price, that would put a builder in a very exclusive category.

[G7MOF]

Why is it an extra $4000 to have it sprayed with varnish?

[Boge Quinn]

Why is it an extra $4000 to have it sprayed with varnish?

Varnish mandolins always cost more, I suppose there is a lot more work involved.

[FLATROCK HILL]

Why is it an extra $4000 to have it sprayed with varnish?

[j. condino]

It is a whole lot easier to sell $10,000 of gin or whiskey than a $10,000 mandolin!

[Ivan Kelsall]

$10,000 / $14,000 US - That's around £7,900 & £11,000 UK. Those prices are top of the range prices over here. A new Ellis F5 costs around £9,695. I wouldn't expect a huge demand for an £11,000 mandolin in the UK,unless you're going to be earning quite a bit of money with it. I'm certain that there are folk like myself who would love one - but the emptiness of one's wallet comes into play !.

Building in the UK to sell abroad comes with the addition of duty/tax etc. Nevertheless,if Sim Daley does decide to begin building over here,i wish him well,
Ivan

[G7MOF]

As in the video he says the first full coat takes 45 minutes then 30 minutes each day after that for 3 to 4 days to finish it off, so I still cant see how less than 3 hours work costs another $4000!
Looking at it realistically does it make it sound $4000 better?

[Mandobar]

Every builder’s finish process is different. What makes a $12k mandolin worth more than a $3k one? I think you have to judge each instrument on its own merits. And not all varnishes are the same. It’s all pretty proprietary, and you are paying for skill levels. What makes a BMW X5 different from a Ford Explorer? The builders have different approaches and methodologies. Vote with your wallet.

[Drew Streip]

As in the video he says the first full coat takes 45 minutes then 30 minutes each day after that for 3 to 4 days to finish it off, so I still cant see how less than 3 hours work costs another $4000!
Looking at it realistically does it make it sound $4000 better?

Probably not, but I will tell you that in general, hand application is almost always more difficult to do right than spraying. And I guarantee that even an experienced pro is spending more than 3 hours.

1) With a good spray system, you can evenly coat the instrument, even most nooks and crannies. It sprays an even swath, several inches wide. Compare that to using a 1" brush or a pad, and trying to get into the right angles by the fretboard or the curves of the scroll.

The result is that you have to level your hand-applied finish more often to get of overlaps, runs, drips or the inevitable fingerprint that happens over the course of finishing.

2) Lacquer also melts into itself, making it easier to build the layers seamlessly. With many varnishes, the leveling process also abrades the surface to give the new coat something to bond to. If not done correctly, you'll be able to see the different layers.

Is the expertise and sound worth $4,000? Who knows. Is his mandolin worth $10,000 to begin with? If somebody pays it, then yes.

Having finished a couple instruments by hand, I can tell you that I spent a lot more time on them and they are nowhere near perfect. In fact, they're pretty laughable compared to anything that I'd ever dream of selling. I probably wouldn't even purchase my own instrument, unless there was nothing within 100 miles to compare it to.