Oh, one more thing Piht, I've seen some mandolins from down your way that used an armadillo shell for the body. No armadillos in WV but I'm on the look out for a snapping turtle shell!
Hey Piht, I've also made 4 string mandolins with nylon strings. Similar to a ukelele but tuned G,D,A,E like a mando. A lot less tension and maybe a good starting point for mandolin making. Still, it doesn't have that distinctive double course, slightly out of tune mando tone, but a great little practice instrument.
Thanks Unc. Sadly, the pull knob is epoxied in one place so I can only sing low notes!
Thanks anonymous and Piht. Yeah Piht, a 5/8" dowel is affixed to the heel and runs through the box to the tailpiece end. My friend Red Henry told me there's about 200 lbs. of tension on a mandolin so I went with as much support as I could. Maybe overkill but 200 lbs exploding in your arms ain't good.
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Oh, one more thing Piht, I've seen some mandolins from down your way that used an armadillo shell for the body. No armadillos in WV but I'm on the look out for a snapping turtle shell!
Hey Piht, I've also made 4 string mandolins with nylon strings. Similar to a ukelele but tuned G,D,A,E like a mando. A lot less tension and maybe a good starting point for mandolin making. Still, it doesn't have that distinctive double course, slightly out of tune mando tone, but a great little practice instrument.
ok . i was thinking that but wasnt sure . i really want a mandolin . back to my roots so to speak .
Thanks Unc. Sadly, the pull knob is epoxied in one place so I can only sing low notes!
Thanks anonymous and Piht. Yeah Piht, a 5/8" dowel is affixed to the heel and runs through the box to the tailpiece end. My friend Red Henry told me there's about 200 lbs. of tension on a mandolin so I went with as much support as I could. Maybe overkill but 200 lbs exploding in your arms ain't good.
Oh yeah Unc, a demo is uploading as we speak.
Wonderful job, Jim. I've heard you play your mandos and know they play and sound well.
Piht, mandos are tough. I've made 3-4 and none came out great. Good luck to you on one.
i wanna build a mandolin so bad . do you have to support the neck with a truss rod ? ive never seen one up close but i love the sound .
nice!