Repair Work in Upstate New York?

[b.herkel]

I'm in the Albany, NY area and have a 1917 Gibson A model that I would like to have the tuners and (possibly) bridge replaced on. Does anyone know of someone reputable with mandolins in the general area? There primarily seems to be guitar guys around that will tell you they can do the work, but I'd prefer someone well acquainted with mandolins (specifically these old Gibsons). Thanks.

[rnjl]

B:

I'm down the river in Poughkeepsie, and I've posted similar inquiries on this forum. You can search the archives for "hudson" and "New york" and similar terms, but in general, I don't think there is a mandolin specialist in the Hudson River region. There are some really good luthiers around- I would certainly take most normal work to Steve Kovachik near Albany, for example, and Ed Diehl down here in Poughkeepsie does beautiful set ups on my mandolins and guitars.

Ed does a lot of instrument restorations and repairs but he's not a mandolin expert, per se. He's done nice work on my leaning mando bridge- resanding it and resetting it, and you could certainly call him. (PM me for his number, or google it.) You could also drive 2.5 hours to get to Lark Street Music or Mandolin Bros or one of the NYC area shops; there are also some people in CT that come well-recommended.

However, if you really want a mandolin expert to do major surgery like replacing tuners, I might suggest that you pack up your mandolin and send it to a mandolin builder or someone with specific expertise, of which there are no shortage once you are willing to put it in a box and take it to USPS.

It's pretty safe and can be a lot less hassle than driving several hours, and then you'll get it to somebody who really knows their old Gibsons, or whatever.

hope this helps,

Neal

[allenhopkins]

If you went as far west as Rochester, you'd have a decent choice. The people at Stutzman's Guitar Center have done a bunch of work on my mandolins, and Bernie Lehmann has done repairs and builds for me as well. John Bernunzio, while primarily a dealer, has a repair shop as well; don't know if they'll work on others' instruments. You could also check out Ithaca Guitar Works, or Bob Macblane in Preble, south of Syracuse.

All, however, do involve "driving several hours."

[Andy B]

Steve Sauve of Sauve Guitars in North Adams Mass, less than 90 minutes from Albany, has done all my mandolin work for nearly 16 years. He's an expert, very detail oriented, and has lots of experience with vintage mandolins. I've been very pleased with his work.

[MikeEdgerton]

Contact David Nichols at www.custompearlinlay.com in Malone, NY. He's a mandolin guy.

[Jim Garber]

Last time I heard Troy Harris was in Poughkeepsie, but his web site still says Ithaca. he did a beautiful restoration on a friend's Gibson A. Of course, the aforementioned Eddie Diehl is certainly no slouch either.

You can also check out Fretted Instrument Workshop in Amherst, MA.

[rnjl]

Hi- that's interesting that Troy Harris is in Poughkeepsie, I hadn't heard that. Does he do repair work as well as building? Do you have contact info around here for him?

Eddie Diehl is only about half a mile from my office, and he just did wonderful work repairing some cracks and other restoration on my wife's 40 year old Guild classical guitar, but it wouldn't hurt to know of other mandolin experts around here.

Thanks!

Neal

[swampstomper]

In Ithaca/T-burg area are two very good choices, they've both done work on my mandolins: Eric Aceto of Ithaca Stringed Instruments (actually, located NW of Ithaca in Schuyler County outside T-burg) and Nate Clark of Finger Lakes Guitar Repair. Nate is purely a repairman, he's more specialized on guitars but is a mando player and loves to talk with clients about their needs. Eric is of course a master builder but he does repairs and is really a great guy all around to work with, not to mention being a super musician.

Nate's shop is about a mile down the road from Troy Harris' studio. I had not heard about the move, if it's true. He shares(d?) the studio with a violin builder.

[Marc Berman]

Troy is working at Stamell Strings in Poughkeepsie. As far as I know he's not taking on any repair work. Last time we discussed it he told me all of his time is taken up with Stamell work and building his mandolins.

[Jim Garber]

Marc... that is what I heard as of a year or so ago. I wasn't sure if he would take on repair work, but what you say does make sense.

[b.herkel]

Hey everybody, thanks for the suggestions. I've actually decided to ship it to Big Joe in Nashville. I have no apprehension sending it to his shop. I was just going to take the local route out of lack of patience, but I figure I'm better off sending it to someone like Big Joe for piece of mind. Plus, he's a really great guy to deal with.

[Michael Eck]

Understand that you've already sent it off, but for the record, Tom Murphy at Parkway Music in Clifton Park is a mandolin picker who does fine set-up work and repair, as does store repairman Todd Dupuis.

Also, Mike Otis, from Gallupville, in nearby Schoharie County, is an excellent mandolin builder who also does fine repair work on mandos and fiddles. Can't recommend him highly enough.

[swampstomper]

Nothing at all against Big Joe, I am sure you will get excellent work done there. But it seems a shame you didn't check out one or more of the fine people nearby, not only to support the local economy but to be face-to-face with the person doing the repair. I've learned a lot about what really makes an instrument "tick" while spec'ing and picking up my instruments from the shops I mentioned.