After several years playing my Dad's old Gibson A-40, I decided it was finally time to have a mandolin made for me. Coincidentally, it arrived just a few days before my birthday!
I play bluegrass but am becoming more and more interested in other genres (classical, Irish, jazz) and wanted something with a warmer, fuller sound. I also don't play very fast and so greater sustain was high on the list of priorities. In addition, while I love the Gibson and I would never sell it, the C-shaped neck and nut width were not ideal for my left hand.
After searching around for a while I read about Don Paine at Pomeroy Instruments and immediately knew that he was producing mandolins with the sound I was looking for in his violin-style instruments. Don was great to work with and not only did I get the mandolin of my dreams, I also received a first class education in mandolin construction!
So here is my beautiful new violin-style mandolin, made with walnut back and sides and a red spruce top, and (new for me) a radius fretboard. Don suggested trying flat wound strings and he was right. The sound is incredible. It sustains for days. Hopefully I will get it together to post an audio file soon, but in the meantime here are some pictures of Pomeroy #274.
More pictures and audio files of his v-style mandolins:https://pomeroyinstruments.com/
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