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Thread: Ellwood Mandolins

  1. #1

    Default Ellwood Mandolins

    Looking for information about this maker. Any info would be appreciated!
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  2. #2
    Formerly F5JOURNL Darryl Wolfe's Avatar
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    Default Re: Ellwood Mandolins

    I have not heard of these. It looks to be quite well made. All of the lines flow smoothly and are very accurate to the original Loars.
    Darryl G. Wolfe, The F5 Journal
    www.f5journal.com

  3. #3

    Default Re: Ellwood Mandolins

    Thanks for having a look Darryl. The mystery continues!

  4. #4
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    Default Re: Ellwood Mandolins

    Quote Originally Posted by Tstrings1 View Post
    Looking for information about this maker. Any info would be appreciated!
    Have you contacted TR Crandall with an inquiry?
    too many strings

  5. #5
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    Default Re: Ellwood Mandolins

    Built by a fella name of Jamey Pope, perhaps in MA…it has been suggested that he is not currently active building mandolins
    too many strings

  6. #6

    Default Re: Ellwood Mandolins

    Mystery solved! With a bit of a leap of faith I purchased the Ellwood F style from TR Crandall in NYC. During my inspection of the mando I found Jamey Pope’s signature pencilled on the inside of the top. I was able to locate him and have since had a nice conversation about the mandolin. Turns out this is the second Loar replica F mandolin that Jamey built. He has also built many clawhammer style banjos and has a batch of F style mandolins in the works. Jamey is an instructor at the famous North Bennet St School in Boston. He is a fine woodworker of the highest caliber and the build quality of this mando is wonderful especially for an early build. I'm having a blast playing this instrument. Its a very faithful reproduction and it sounds like it! Every wood component of the mando was hand made and sports some fine improvements such as the James tailpiece and a set of really fine Alessi tuners. I'm looking forward to seeing what this thoughtful builder offers up in the future! Thanks to those of you who assisted in putting a name to the Ellwood!

  7. #7
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    Default Re: Ellwood Mandolins

    Huzzah and congratulations on taking a chance and coming out on top!! I am shocked that a high-end shop like Crandall failed to recognize it as being worthy of a higher asking price...and they have a 1970s Harmony mandolin at the same price??? Did you mention to Pope what the mandolin sold for? And I cannot help but wonder what he will ask for his next batch of mandolins? You are indeed a fortunate mandolin buyer!
    too many strings

  8. #8
    Registered User jim simpson's Avatar
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    Default Re: Ellwood Mandolins

    I am not surprised by the reasonable price for this one, glad it turned out to be an exceptional one. I see bargains often by lesser known builders who don't have the name recognition beyond a certain group. I've taken chances on some myself and have been pretty happy with results.
    Old Hometown, Cabin Fever String Band

  9. #9
    Registered User G. Fisher's Avatar
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    Default Re: Ellwood Mandolins

    Quote Originally Posted by Tstrings1 View Post
    Mystery solved! With a bit of a leap of faith I purchased the Ellwood F style from TR Crandall in NYC. During my inspection of the mando I found Jamey Pope’s signature pencilled on the inside of the top. I was able to locate him and have since had a nice conversation about the mandolin. Turns out this is the second Loar replica F mandolin that Jamey built. He has also built many clawhammer style banjos and has a batch of F style mandolins in the works. Jamey is an instructor at the famous North Bennet St School in Boston. He is a fine woodworker of the highest caliber and the build quality of this mando is wonderful especially for an early build. I'm having a blast playing this instrument. Its a very faithful reproduction and it sounds like it! Every wood component of the mando was hand made and sports some fine improvements such as the James tailpiece and a set of really fine Alessi tuners. I'm looking forward to seeing what this thoughtful builder offers up in the future! Thanks to those of you who assisted in putting a name to the Ellwood!
    I think you should share a video or sound clip with the MC family.
    “Wise men speak because they have something to say; Fools because they have to say something.”

    My Mandos:
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    2001 Lloyd LaPlant F5 #57
    2006 Lloyd LaPlant F5 #106
    2017 Boeh F5 #27
    2020 Boeh 2-point #31
    2012 Grey Eagle 2-point #57V

  10. #10
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    Default Re: Ellwood Mandolins

    Quote Originally Posted by jim simpson View Post
    I am not surprised by the reasonable price for this one…
    I again must state that I am shocked. TR Crandall is a high-end stringed instrument retailer, operated by experienced, knowledgable individuals. I would think that a couple minutes under their eyeballs, followed by a quick sonic evaluation (presuming it does sound good) would have tipped them off that this was a top-notch, craftsman-built piece. Going by the pricing of the other mandolins in their stock list, the price on this seems a joke!

    https://trcrandall.com/collections/mandolin-family
    too many strings

  11. #11
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    Default Re: Ellwood Mandolins

    If is sounds as good as it looks I'm sending the buyer a virtual high five. Perhaps the price answers the question posed by the recent thread here: https://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/t...rument-instead
    that is to say, resale on a mando by an unknown builder is iffy.
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  12. #12

    Default Re: Ellwood Mandolins

    Hi all,

    Scott at TR Crandall was very responsive to all my questions and did his very best to describe the mandolin accurately. This was a consigned instrument and the Crandall staff did not get much of any info or provenance from the owner. It could have been a stewmac kit for all we knew. In fairness to the shop, the pencil signature on the inside top was pretty hard to see. Anyhooo… alls well that ends well! I've been asked to post some audio, so here's a link to a quick video I shot today. I'm having some good winter fun with all this mystery mando stuff!
    Best,
    Tim
    https://youtu.be/HHfdr9eteA8

  13. #13
    Registered User G. Fisher's Avatar
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    Default Re: Ellwood Mandolins

    Quote Originally Posted by Tstrings1 View Post
    Hi all,

    Scott at TR Crandall was very responsive to all my questions and did his very best to describe the mandolin accurately. This was a consigned instrument and the Crandall staff did not get much of any info or provenance from the owner. It could have been a stewmac kit for all we knew. In fairness to the shop, the pencil signature on the inside top was pretty hard to see. Anyhooo… alls well that ends well! I've been asked to post some audio, so here's a link to a quick video I shot today. I'm having some good winter fun with all this mystery mando stuff!
    Best,
    Tim
    https://youtu.be/HHfdr9eteA8
    Your video is set to private so we can't view it.
    “Wise men speak because they have something to say; Fools because they have to say something.”

    My Mandos:
    1981 Lloyd LaPlant F5 #6
    2001 Lloyd LaPlant F5 #57
    2006 Lloyd LaPlant F5 #106
    2017 Boeh F5 #27
    2020 Boeh 2-point #31
    2012 Grey Eagle 2-point #57V

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