Mystery Mandolin

[ColdBeerGoCubs]

The end of the fretboard looks like an Eastman, the finish not so much.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mandolin-F-5...ht_1202wt_1046

[P.D. Kirby]

So now we got knock offs of knock offs Maybe the next thing will be a copy of a Rogue for $20.00. It's getting so nothing is safe from being copied I'm waiting for a knock off of The Shmergel Devastator.

[MikeEdgerton]

These mandolins have been discussed a few times over the last few years. One member here actually bought one and his review wasn't overly kind.

[jim simpson]

One gets the feeling that they use a stock photo of a nice example. Sadly the best looking instrument can be a pig with lipstick.

[timv]

These mandolins have been discussed a few times over the last few years. One member here actually bought one and his review wasn't overly kind.

Mike, do you have a link to that review? The only one I've seen for an instrument from that seller wasn't for this particular model. And yes the review wasn't kind, but I don't think it was entirely fair either. For example, he was distressed that it shipped without the bridge installed under the strings, which AFAIK is pretty standard practice for safety.

I just got one like this, from a different eBay ID ("violin king") but it's the same model from the same actual seller. I been busy with work and haven't had time to write anything on it yet, and I'm still tinkering with the setup but so far it's turned out to be a reasonable hand-carved imported mandolin. The carving is nicely done, the finish needs a final polish but at least it's thin, and the binding is surprisingly good. The tuners are nothing more than entry-level, but I figure they can replaced easily enough with my own choice of premium tuner rather than someone else's, and the ones that came on it will upgrade a beater some day.

Before buying it, I'd thought about trying to build an F-style kit. But I really don't have time to take that on right now. And this thing was as cheap as any F-style solid wood kit I found, and it even includes a nice case. Like all of these cheap mandolins, it needed some setup and finishing touches, but any instrument needs to be tweaked to my preference. No show-stoppers on mine.

So now we got knock offs of knock offs Maybe the next thing will be a copy of a Rogue for $20.00. It's getting so nothing is safe from being copied I'm waiting for a knock off of The Shmergel Devastator.

The end of the fretboard looks kind of like an Eastman--but exactly like a recent Kentucky KM-6xx series. I'm pretty sure that's what it is except without the brand. The finish looks like a KM-650 from the past couple of years. (Which, to be honest, I prefer to the murky Cremona sunburst that's on everything all of a sudden.) I'm just going by pictures on the web, but the only details I can find that differ are the cheaper tuners, the missing headstock logo, and no engraving on the tailpiece. I'd be surprised if they didn't come out of the same factory.

It's fun to be cynical and snarky about this stuff, but no fun for me today. I'm actually quite happy with mine.

[Pete Summers]

Here's a small luthiery (is that a word?) in China that has a couple of f style mandolins, this one with the Savannah label on it:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/brown-color-...#ht_8831wt_932

He also has another one on his site just like it, only without the Savannah logo. My assumption is that this small shop is one of the shops contracted by Savannah to make their instruments, and that these two were excess inventory, for one reason or another. I think something similar might be going on with the mandolin in this thread.

For what it's worth, I've purchased two new fiddles from this shop, Song Violin Company, directly from the factory and found them to be excellent in all regards - workmanship, tone, set-up and low cost. I wouldn't hesitate to purchase a violin from them again, but I have no experience with the mandolins. They look like a pretty decent instrument for the price, but as we all know, looks can be deceiving. Then again, maybe not.

[Barry Wilson]

I bought a blond from that seller.... it shipped to me with a left handed bridge, rust on parts, and rusted strings... how's that for a pro setup. oh and the truss rod was rattling loose in the neck. I had to buy a new bridge, and do a lot of setup. the nut wasn't secured to the neck...

the case was nice and it was a loud mandolin. I sold mine for a loss after getting it playable to a friend to get him going.

[Bill Snyder]

Pete, Savannah would not come from a small shop but a big shop that produces instruments by the 1000'.

[Pete Summers]

Pete, Savannah would not come from a small shop but a big shop that produces instruments by the 1000'.

Yeah, you're probably right. I don't know why they have these 3 mandolins on their site, though, or where they got them. They make mostly fiddles, including some pretty weird ones, from what I can see.

[allenhopkins]

Last edited by P.D. Kirby; Today at 3:53am. Reason: to correct spelling of Shmergel less I get flogged by Alan

Now, all you need to do is correct the spelling of "Allen..."

Hasn't eBay seller "houstonbrass" cropped up on the Cafe in the past? Seems familiar.

[John McCoy]

Hasn't eBay seller "houstonbrass" cropped up on the Cafe in the past? Seems familiar.

For "houstonbrass" go to this thread. Look at item # 19.

It shows up in a few other places too.

== John ==

[timv]

For "houstonbrass" go to this thread. Look at item # 19.

Thanks for the link john. That's the one I was thinking of.

The issues I have with that one are: (1) The poster is a deadbeat bidder. He won an auction--two actually, due to his mistake--from a seller with good feedback and a good return policy and he didn't pay. Really bad form. (2) He asked the seller for a picture of the actual mandolin he was going to get and the seller sent it, and he freaked because the bridge wasn't installed, which it wouldn't be on a mandolin that's prepared for shipping. I didn't give a great deal of weight to that comment when I realized that the poster hadn't actually completed a transaction with the seller or seen the instrument in person and seemed to have panicked unnecessarily.

Here's a thread that I started before buying mine:

http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/sh...s-from-Houston

I got a helpful reply from Allen but none from anyone who'd actually purchased anything from violinking/houstonbrass/microscopecity (all of which might or might not actually be "Texas Music Instrument Company" of Spring, TX, based on the phone number in the listings.)

I took a flyer on the purchase because of the obvious resemblance to recent Kentucky Artist models and because there was a good return policy if it turned out to be something totally different than I expected. It wasn't. (Just to be clear for those who haven't followed the whole thread, I got the model in the auction linked at the start of this topic. It looks just like the one in the picture.)

I get the impression that the seller isn't a native English speaker, but I received a very prompt reply to a question I asked just to check. The deal went smoothly, the mandolin was shipped quickly, and I'm happy with what I got. Yeah, it needed a real set of strings (I had a pack of J-74s waiting for it) and a real setup. It ain't a Gibson but Gibsons ain't $400 either. It is a carved solid wood F-style mandolin with a very nice flamed back that's put together well and it's a big step up from what I had. Plus it's something that I'm not likely to see someone else bring to the same jam session.

[P.D. Kirby]

Now, all you need to do is correct the spelling of "Allen..."

Hasn't eBay seller "houstonbrass" cropped up on the Cafe in the past? Seems familiar.

My Bad, I always look for the red lines but I guess spell checker isn't perfect like I spell my first name Phillip but it will accept Philip as well. Noted for future posts... Hey at least I finally got Shmergel right

[John McCoy]

My Bad, I always look for the red lines but I guess spell checker isn't perfect like I spell my first name Phillip but it will accept Philip as well. Noted for future posts... Hey at least I finally got Shmergel right

Hence the one-size-fits-all-Phil(l)ips nickname: Phil. No need to count.

== John ==