I've posted on this bluegrass forum a few times. (Same nickname). http://www.bluegrassworks.com/forum/index.phpmando-fiddle girl said:
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ClementofRome
Spelunking the most ancient caves of Xianity
Great discussion folks. I play some mandolin (getting better every day) in a gospel/crossover BG band called Ploughshare. I have a Michael Kelly F-model Dragonfly that I love (I am envious of your F2, dmiller!!!). I have only been playing for 2 years and have come a long way. I have been a BG nut since I was a small child.
In 1963-1967 my father was pastor of Union Grove Methodist Church. I was born in '61, so by the time I was able to walk and run I was going to the Fiddler's Conventions in Union Grove, NC put on my the Van Hoy family. I was watching the GREATS of BG very early on (and have a heck of a collection of live material dating back into the 50's). I played a little banjo in high school, but when I went to college switched to guitar (seemed to be "cooler"). When kids came along, I stopped playing but never stopped listening. For my 40th B-day my wife bought me the mandolin and I have been in hog heaven ever since.
I have a descent vocal range (that is why the band keeps me around), but my chopping is getting very good and my picking is coming along.
I hated missing GreyFox this past weekend. Always try to make Merelefest in NC in April. Have never made it to Telluride....someday!
Bless ya'll
In 1963-1967 my father was pastor of Union Grove Methodist Church. I was born in '61, so by the time I was able to walk and run I was going to the Fiddler's Conventions in Union Grove, NC put on my the Van Hoy family. I was watching the GREATS of BG very early on (and have a heck of a collection of live material dating back into the 50's). I played a little banjo in high school, but when I went to college switched to guitar (seemed to be "cooler"). When kids came along, I stopped playing but never stopped listening. For my 40th B-day my wife bought me the mandolin and I have been in hog heaven ever since.
I have a descent vocal range (that is why the band keeps me around), but my chopping is getting very good and my picking is coming along.
I hated missing GreyFox this past weekend. Always try to make Merelefest in NC in April. Have never made it to Telluride....someday!
Bless ya'll
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Clement --- Hey Bro, you may be envious of my mando, but I am envious of YOU, and your close proximity to Union Grove!!! Always wanted to go there, never have so far. I almost made it to Telluride one time (back in 1987), but didn't, and now am glad I did not.
It is a "closed corporation" from what I have heard, and I have heard it from those who have been there. By "closed corporation", I mean that all the good jams are not available to the general public. The good pickers are off in one room, and no one else is allowed in, without special permission.
In other words, --- you have to be a SOMEBODY, and "well known" to get into a decent jam.
Oh well -- such is life.
My mando is a gift from above. Plain and simple. I do not deserve such a wonderful instrument, but it is mine, and here is the story about how I got it.
I went to visit a friend of mine (Lloyd LaPlant - Grand Rapids, Minnesota) on New Year's Eve, 2001. He is an excellent luthier (retired cabinet-maker), and now makes both mandolins and guitars. Grand Rapids is about 80 mlles from where I live, and having nothing better to do that New Years Eve, I called up Lloyd to see if he was going to be home, cause I hadn't seen him for a while.
He said -- "come on up", so I did. When I got there, he and one of his sons were in his living room, with 4 or 5 mandolins laying on the living room rug (all vintage Gibson's), and "dinking on all of them" to see which one sounded the best.
In his southern exposure window, were 5 mandolins (literally) hanging on a clothes line -- that he had made, and the finish that he had put on them was "hanging out to dry".
So I walk in, and comment on the mandos on the clothes line, and he said --- "aw -- those need a lot of work. Here, take a look at these." He pointed to the ones on his living room floor, so I did. Myself, Lloyd, and Don (his son), just sat there for the next two hours picking, switching instruments, making comments about the sound, etc.
I really gravitated to the one I now have, and said "Lloyd, I think I'll have to take this one home with me". He told me I couldn't afford it, and after hearing the price (reduced for me, because I was a friend), I had to agree, but then asked "Uhmmmmm??? Payments??"
Short of the long of it is -- I came back a month later, put down $1,000, and paid off the rest in another year. Lloyd makes mandos that sound better than this one, but he is (to this day), kicking himself for letting this one go, because it sounds (and looks), so sweet.
His son Don (the one who was there that day), told him once (in my hearing) "Dad, you didn't hang on to that one long enough to really appreciate it!!
No he didn't, and I for one am glad he did not!!!!
So there is the story of how I got my 1917 F-2 Gibson Mandolin.
It is a "closed corporation" from what I have heard, and I have heard it from those who have been there. By "closed corporation", I mean that all the good jams are not available to the general public. The good pickers are off in one room, and no one else is allowed in, without special permission.
In other words, --- you have to be a SOMEBODY, and "well known" to get into a decent jam.
Oh well -- such is life.My mando is a gift from above. Plain and simple. I do not deserve such a wonderful instrument, but it is mine, and here is the story about how I got it.
I went to visit a friend of mine (Lloyd LaPlant - Grand Rapids, Minnesota) on New Year's Eve, 2001. He is an excellent luthier (retired cabinet-maker), and now makes both mandolins and guitars. Grand Rapids is about 80 mlles from where I live, and having nothing better to do that New Years Eve, I called up Lloyd to see if he was going to be home, cause I hadn't seen him for a while.
He said -- "come on up", so I did. When I got there, he and one of his sons were in his living room, with 4 or 5 mandolins laying on the living room rug (all vintage Gibson's), and "dinking on all of them" to see which one sounded the best.
In his southern exposure window, were 5 mandolins (literally) hanging on a clothes line -- that he had made, and the finish that he had put on them was "hanging out to dry".
So I walk in, and comment on the mandos on the clothes line, and he said --- "aw -- those need a lot of work. Here, take a look at these." He pointed to the ones on his living room floor, so I did. Myself, Lloyd, and Don (his son), just sat there for the next two hours picking, switching instruments, making comments about the sound, etc.
I really gravitated to the one I now have, and said "Lloyd, I think I'll have to take this one home with me". He told me I couldn't afford it, and after hearing the price (reduced for me, because I was a friend), I had to agree, but then asked "Uhmmmmm??? Payments??"
Short of the long of it is -- I came back a month later, put down $1,000, and paid off the rest in another year. Lloyd makes mandos that sound better than this one, but he is (to this day), kicking himself for letting this one go, because it sounds (and looks), so sweet.
His son Don (the one who was there that day), told him once (in my hearing) "Dad, you didn't hang on to that one long enough to really appreciate it!!
No he didn't, and I for one am glad he did not!!!!
So there is the story of how I got my 1917 F-2 Gibson Mandolin.
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And by the way -- as a PS to the above -- Lloyd has a back-order on any instrument he makes, be it guitars, or mandolins. Order one today, you might expect delivery in another 3 - 5 years. He is that good, and that busy!
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ClementofRome
Spelunking the most ancient caves of Xianity
All I can say is...."dang!" (forgive me Lord for my jealous heart). I am familiar with Lloyd through the discussions on mandolincafe.comdmiller said:Clement --- Hey Bro, you may be envious of my mando, but I am envious of YOU, and your close proximity to Union Grove!!! Always wanted to go there, never have so far. I almost made it to Telluride one time (back in 1987), but didn't, and now am glad I did not.
It is a "closed corporation" from what I have heard, and I have heard it from those who have been there. By "closed corporation", I mean that all the good jams are not available to the general public. The good pickers are off in one room, and no one else is allowed in, without special permission.
In other words, --- you have to be a SOMEBODY, and "well known" to get into a decent jam.
My mando is a gift from above. Plain and simple. I do not deserve such a wonderful instrument, but it is mine, and here is the story about how I got it.
I went to visit a friend of mine (Lloyd LaPlant - Grand Rapids, Minnesota) on New Year's Eve, 2001. He is an excellent luthier (retired cabinet-maker), and now makes both mandolins and guitars. Grand Rapids is about 80 mlles from where I live, and having nothing better to do that New Years Eve, I called up Lloyd to see if he was going to be home, cause I hadn't seen him for a while.
He said -- "come on up", so I did. When I got there, he and one of his sons were in his living room, with 4 or 5 mandolins laying on the living room rug (all vintage Gibson's), and "dinking on all of them" to see which one sounded the best.
In his southern exposure window, were 5 mandolins (literally) hanging on a clothes line -- that he had made, and the finish that he had put on them was "hanging out to dry".
So I walk in, and comment on the mandos on the clothes line, and he said --- "aw -- those need a lot of work. Here, take a look at these." He pointed to the ones on his living room floor, so I did. Myself, Lloyd, and Don (his son), just sat there for the next two hours picking, switching instruments, making comments about the sound, etc.
I really gravitated to the one I now have, and said "Lloyd, I think I'll have to take this one home with me". He told me I couldn't afford it, and after hearing the price (reduced for me, because I was a friend), I had to agree, but then asked "Uhmmmmm??? Payments??"
Short of the long of it is -- I came back a month later, put down $1,000, and paid off the rest in another year. Lloyd makes mandos that sound better than this one, but he is (to this day), kicking himself for letting this one go, because it sounds (and looks), so sweet.
His son Don (the one who was there that day), told him once (in my hearing) "Dad, you didn't hang on to that one long enough to really appreciate it!!
No he didn't, and I for one am glad he did not!!!!
So there is the story of how I got my 1917 F-2 Gibson Mandolin.
I would really love to own a fine handcrafted instrument some day. With one kid getting ready to go to college and the other headed into high school...I suspect tnat it would take a miracle for me to upgrade about now. But, I am thankful to the Lord for the instrument that I have and enjoy playing it.
Living in Asheville, NC has a lot of advantages for BG music. We get concert groups in all the time....but the real thrill is in the jams and smaller venues. We have Shindig on the Green downtown on the city square every Sat night in July....been there for decades.
Pick on!
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Lloyd, (and his wife Bev), are the salt of the earth. If you ever come this way, I will personally make sure you meet them, and I would give two to one odds, that you would have one of his instruments when you left.
Lloyd takes kindly to "real" folk!! And you sound like you are one of them!
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Amen to that! My fiddle is a "no-namer" from Illinois, hand-made by someone, but it still sounds good, loud, potent, etc., in the jam sessions.
It doesn't need to be a "name-brand" to be a good instrument. IMHO -- we have what we need -- for the moment, and when the moment changes, we get what we need then!
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Michael Kelly does some very decent mandolins. How's the sound of it? I've never tried a MK, they're not availale in Europe from what I've heard.ClementofRome said:
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ClementofRome
Spelunking the most ancient caves of Xianity
I got my MK around 2 years ago when they were internet sales only (I believe that they have gone to dealer networks now). It was the top of the line at the time....all solid wood maple back and sides and a solid carved spruce top. MK's are probably at the top of the heap for Korean production instruments. There seems to be fair quality control with them. The finish (which is polyurethane of some sort) is too heavy, but it does not damped the volume of the thing. After receiving it and playing it for a while, I sanded the poly off of the back of the neck and applied tung oil and I also scalloped the fret board extension (I tend to dig too deep when playing and the clicking was driving me nuts).mando-fiddle girl said:
As for sound, it ain't bad. With a set of d'Darrio J-75's on it, it is good and loud and has a monster chop. The picking tone is not what I would consider great. The tone seems better when playing in certain keys (A), but lacks a bit when played in lower keys (G). The sound is as good as some more expensive mandos that I have heard, but then again, i have a friend with a Rigel and the Rigel is just sweet compared to the MK. So, I suspect that tone is in the ear of the beholder.
My only real complaint is that I fear that i am going to need a fret job soon, and really don't know of putting any more money into this instrument is worth it. The frets seemed too soft to me. I cannot believe that I have worn them down in 2 years. Do you or dmiller have any experience with an instrument needing a fret job?
Blessings to you.
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ClementofRome
Spelunking the most ancient caves of Xianity
Man, that made me feel good. That is some real wisdom. I appreciated it...and my MK mando did too!dmiller said:
Blessings
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ClementofRome
Spelunking the most ancient caves of Xianity
I'd like that very much. Maybe some day. Thanks for the offer. I just can't imagine a luthier that would not be salt (however, I am sure that there are some who are not). It is just a salt kind of work, I would believe.dmiller said:Lloyd, (and his wife Bev), are the salt of the earth. If you ever come this way, I will personally make sure you meet them, and I would give two to one odds, that you would have one of his instruments when you left.
Lloyd takes kindly to "real" folk!! And you sound like you are one of them!
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Yes I do.
My Gibson banjo has serious neck problems, and I don't know if it can be fixed, so until I could find someone with the "expertise" to correct it -- I bought a GTR (Gibson-copy banjo - made in the 70's) as a replacement, so I could continue to pick.
The GTR is great, has the hearts and flower inlay, sounds terrific -- yet every last fret was cut off too short. I took it in to a local guy, and he said he would replace all the frets for me, but at $10.00 per fret!!
With 20 or so frets needing replacement (I capo up to the 7th fret quite a bit to play in "D"), I was looking at a hefty chunk of change to get it "more playable".
I decided to "learn to live with it". However -- I have gotten my guitar re-fretted before, since there were only 5 or 6 frets that were worn enough to warrent it.
Remember -- the steel of the strings is more dense than that of the frets, and the constant pressure on certain frets (#2, #4, & #5 especially), will wear them down in no time flat.
If you can get just the frets replaced that need it, it would be worthwhile, since it sounds like your mando is a good one, and you intend to keep playing it.
Good luck on this one!!
That's my story/ advice/ whatever!
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