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Thread: Finally built one for myself

  1. #1
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    Default Finally built one for myself

    I gave a video presentation at the CMSA convention in the cloud last November. In the following zoom Q&A session, a participant asked me if I had ever built a mandolin for myself. I have had various demos, built on spec, hanging around that I have played, but I had to admit that I have not built one specifically for myself. So I decided that I would finally complete one, incorporating an orphaned top plate, for myself. In 2015, I had built a mandolin for a CMSA player that I particularly liked. I had built two top plates for the instrument at that time, and arbitrarily chose one of them for his mandolin. So I incorporated that other orphaned top plate into the mandolin in the photos here. The top plate is redwood, the back, sides, and neck are plain Eastern black walnut (obtained locally, likely steamed, definitely nothing special). The headplate, pick guard, tailpiece cover, and tail inlay are Macassar ebony. Binding is mostly curly maple with some Pau ferro. I'm being good to myself and no longer spraying nitro. The finish on this one is French polish. It's certainly labor-intensive, but a much safer alternative than filling the shop with lacquer solvent vapor.
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  3. #2
    harvester of clams Bill McCall's Avatar
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    Default Re: Finally built one for myself

    A beauty, as always. A sound lip perhaps?
    Not all the clams are at the beach

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  4. #3

    Default Re: Finally built one for myself

    Quote Originally Posted by Bill McCall View Post
    A beauty, as always. A sound lip perhaps?
    How's the emboucher, Dr. Dave? Nice to hear from you again. Beautiful mandolin and you deserve to have one for your very-own-self.

    Len B.
    Clearwater, FL

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  6. #4
    My Florida is scooped pheffernan's Avatar
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    Default Re: Finally built one for myself

    How much?
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  7. #5
    Registered User Djsmith628's Avatar
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    Default Re: Finally built one for myself

    Very nice work. Beautifully executed.
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  8. #6
    Registered User bbcee's Avatar
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    Default Re: Finally built one for myself

    The slotted headstock is a great touch and so elegant. Nice work as always, Dave.

  9. #7

    Default Re: Finally built one for myself

    Really like the slotted headstock. Would you share your source for the tuners?
    Mike

  10. #8
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    Default Re: Finally built one for myself

    Forgot to mention: The tuners are Rubners (the ones that were on sale a few months back). Rubber offers the posts for slotted headstocks as an option on all but their F-style tuners, iirc.

  11. #9
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    Default Re: Finally built one for myself

    <<How much? >>

    There is one in every crowd!

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  13. #10
    Mando-Accumulator Jim Garber's Avatar
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    Default Re: Finally built one for myself

    Great, Dave, congratulations on your new mandolin!

    I loved the way your mandolins sounded and played and it was fun hanging with you years ago at CMSA.
    Jim

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  14. #11
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    Default Re: Finally built one for myself

    Very nice, and about time don't you think.
    THE WORLD IS A BETTER PLACE JUST FOR YOUR SMILE!

  15. #12
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    Default Re: Finally built one for myself

    Lovely!

  16. #13
    Registered User slimt's Avatar
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    Default Re: Finally built one for myself

    That looks really Nice.

  17. #14

    Default Re: Finally built one for myself

    Quote Originally Posted by SternART View Post
    <<How much? >>

    There is one in every crowd!
    The slot head mandolin tuner for the thrifty seems to be a thing of the past. I followed the old Cafe threads to Schaller. I inquired and recived this email from the CEO today.

    many thanks, the old mandolin tuners we don`t have anymore for many years.
    Please check in our webshop the new GrandTune Mandolin tuners.
    Kind regards
    Dr. Lars Bünning

    Schaller GmbH
    Dr. Lars Bünning
    Geschäftsführender Gesellschafter
    Managing Director – Owner

  18. #15
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    Default Re: Finally built one for myself

    Assuming SternArt was asking about the cost of the tuners (which is not clear), the cost of the set of Rubner tuners in this mandolin was about $100 usd. Schaller Grandtunes could be had for ~$155 last time I checked.

  19. #16
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    Default Re: Finally built one for myself

    Oops. Question was from Pheffernan.

  20. #17

    Default Re: Finally built one for myself

    I had assumed "how much" was about the tuners too. It is a beautiful mandolin!

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