I contracted with Takeshi Iwamoto in February 2020 to build a mandolin for me.
http://www.acousticworld.com/mandolin.html
I've been posting on the progress of the build process and you can check out that thread here:
https://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/t...18-in-progress
Some quick background:
Iwamoto-san has been building mandolins, guitars, dobros, banjos and violins in Tokyo since 1978. He's regarded as one of the finest luthiers in the country. He is well regarded by cafe members who have met him and played his instruments.
I played one of his mandolins at Dusty Strings in Seattle in Feb 2019 and was very impressed with it. Unfortunately, I was unable to buy it at the time and another lucky cafe member ended up with it.
I couldn't stop thinking about that mandolin and eventually reached out to Iwamoto-san and he was very easy to work with.
He accommodated every request that I made regarding finish, inlay, binding, neck shape, fingerboard radius, fretwire, hardware and strings.
He kept me updated with every phase of the building process and sent pictures as he completed each stage.
Anyhow, I received The Iwamoto #118 a few days ago and it is terrific!
Specs:
Solid hand-carved red spruce top with honey amber finish
Solid hand-carved flame maple back and sides with amber-burst finish
One piece flamed maple neck
Tortoise binding, front, back, fingerboard and headstock
Radiused ebony fingerboard (9.5"), 21 frets with scooped extension
Radiused ebony bridge with gold adjustment wheels
EVO gold medium fretwire
Ebony peghead overlay with MOP fern inlay
MOP truss rod cover
Bone nut - 1 1/8"
James tailpiece gold
Gotoh worm-under gold tuning machines with black buttons
Gloss nitrocellulose lacquer finish
Some photos:
The mandolin is comfortable to play. The neck has a slight V profile. A bit more substantial than the standard Collings, but not as chunky as the standard Weber.
It is weighted well and hangs comfortably from the strap.
The setup is superb. Low action with great intonation. Tuning machines are smooth and function well.
The finish work is top notch.
The sound is very good, to my ears. Extremely responsive and a wide range of volume.
Good chop and also great sustain.
I've added a matching maple McClung armrest with gold hardware from Hill Country String Works.
Video review to follow.
Thanks!
Edit- I have no idea why most of my photos posted sideways
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