Kit options and accessories
Our mandolin kits are not just pieces thrown in a box. We call them "kits" because they are comprised of numerous shaped parts. And, because we prepare our kits on an order-by-order basis, we can provide you with the opportunity to select the best components to build the perfect mandolin to suit your personal needs and tastes. Here is an overview of the kinds of options that are available along with some of the accessories:
Custom peghead veneers: Our kits come with Gaboon ebony peghead veneers. In out top level kits, the veneers are already attached to the peghead and the peghead is shaped. But you can choose from several veneers including Indian rosewood, Brazilian rosewood, curly maple
Peghead back veneers: Kits do not include back veneers, but these are an option. We have dyed pearwood and thin black fiberboard, but you can also choose from other wood veneers to cap the back of your peghead.
Rib sets: Most of our kits feature curly maple, but you can choose from Black Walnut, Honduras mahogany, plain maple, cherry, bird's eye maple, and rosewood.
Soundboards: Sitka spruce is the standard soundboard for our kits. We also have a fine selection of Adirondack Red spruce, German Silver spruce, Western Red cedar, California Redwood, and Douglas Fir. Each of these offer different tonal qualities and we'd be glad to discuss the virtues with you to help you get the ideal tone you are looking for.
Backboard: Curly maple two-piece backboards are standard on most kits, but we also have Black Walnut, Honduras mahogany, plain maple, and bird's eye maple.
Fretboard extender: Maple fretboard extenders have been the standard for most mandolin builders and we have always included maple extenders in our kit. However, the original F5 mandolins featured fretboard extenders made of ebony to make the end of the fretboard stiff and to prevent it from being so limber that it would tend to wick off (damp) vibrations.
Peg hole and bushing drilling: Most builders of our kits will drill their own pegholes to match the hole position of their tuners, get the right size hole for the bushings they plan to use, and get the holes where they want them to go around inlays, etc. As an option, we can fixture-drill the peg holes in the standard position for either regular or inverted machines (where the worm gear is above the round gear). And, we can drill the bushing recesses to the size of your choice. (If you buy the machines from us, we'll drill the bushing recesses at no charge.)
Neck joints: There are lots of ways to do the neck joint, so our kits are prepared without one. However, we can do a traditional dovetail joint or our well-known Siminoff "V" joint. The V-joint is a lot more forgiving when it comes to getting the neck in the right place!
Hardware: We a wide array of tuners and tailpieces in nickel and gold finishes. If you are not sure which one you want, we'll be glad to talk it through with you.
Inlay sets: Our catalog of inlay sets features four wonderful designs created by DiAnne Patrick of Nashville, TN. These inlays are available in white mother-of-pearl, pearl heart, green abalone, and gold mother-of-pearl.
Misc parts: There are so many choices for nuts, corner points, and fretwire that we don't include them in the kit. For nuts, we have mother-of-pearl (used on original F5), bone, abalone, and Corean. For corner points, we have mother-of-pearl, bone (used on original F5), abalone, and Corean. For fretwire, we have two sizes of nickel-silver fretwire; a small size similar to what was used on original F5s, and a slightly larger wire
Rim assembly: Our kits do not come with the rim assembled. It is our firm belief that the mandolin rim and block set should be locked up in a fixture and be held that way until the soundboard is glued on to maintain a perfect and accurate shape of the mandolin's body. If you are hesitant of assembling the rim and attaching the soundboard, we can do that for you as an option, and we also have an option in which we attach the neck and the backboard.
Tap Tuning: Tap tuning is not a necessity - you can build a very good sounding mandolin by just assembling the professionally-crafted parts that you find in our kit. Our soundboards and backboards are carved very close to the final shaping and graduation and just need sanding. You can sand and assemble and come up with very good results. Tap tuning takes you one step further - it ensures that the stiffness of the soundboard and backboard are adjusted to an ideal tone, and that the tuning of the air chamber (by adjusting the size of the f-holes) is ideal to provide you with the ultimate tone. This step of tap tuning is what Loar did to the early F5 mandolins that makes them so special today. We can provide you with the tools to learn how to do tap tuning, or we can provide you with a tap tuning OPTION in which we tune the body for you.
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OPTION PRICES: The price of an option is simply the difference between the cost of the two parts in our price list. However, the parts in our kits are discounted and for confusion sake, we don't show each part's individual discounted prices in our pricelist. For example, if you purchased all of the parts of our #700 F5 mandolin kit serparately, the total cost would be $635.95 compared to the "kit" price of $529.00. So, we will be happy to advise you of the difference between the price of the option and the discounted price of the part you want to exchange for when you contact us.
ACCESSORIES and SERIVCES: These costs are listed in the respective parts of our web site.
Puzzled with what to do? Don't be puzzled - email or call us and let's talk it through. We're really looking forward to working with you!
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