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Mandolins
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The soundboards on these instruments are steamed and clamped in a mold to dry for about a week. They are then finely shaped and reinforced with a carbon lattice. This makes the soundboard lighter and stronger than a carved top instrument. It also uses a curved 'zone brace' that separates the edge of the soundboard from the middle. This allows the lightweight top to produce the lower mids of a good carved top instrument, but adds the extra volume and response of a light carbon soundboard. I am using stainless steel frets because they last many times longer than the standard nickel silver watch videos > Redwing and Country Waltz |
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This is a 10 string version of an octave mandolin. It would probably be called a cittern by celtic musicians. It is tuned an octave below a normal mandolin and the extra high pair is tuned to A. The body is also tuned an octave below a mandolin and has a 19 inch scale. I was really impressed by the power and balance of this special order and would look forward to making another. |
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Another design option is to reduce the string length by one fret. This lowers the tension of the strings which is good for a guitar or fiddle player who doesn't want to adapt ot high tension mandolin strings. An .011 gauge E string on a normal mandolin is tighter than the same gauge on a guitar, and is then doubled. |
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The Blackwood tops have a dry but very balanced tone. This makes them particularly good for stage use with a pickup. The saddle/bridge design that is used on all my mandolins is better suited to amplification than the traditional Gibson style bridge. A deep saddle slot makes it easy to adjust the height with shims, avoiding the tone loss that is associated with adjustable screw bridges. The saddle slot makes it easy to fit an undersaddle pickup like the K&K FantaStick, which I can supply and fit for $120Aud. |
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The zero fret system, tapered head and low head angle, tune much better than traditional style instruments. This is because there is almost no friction at the nut.
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I am mostly using these 1:15 ratio Rubner brass tuning heads from Germany.
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The solid cast Ashton Bailey is currently my preferred tailpiece. The sides and back of the mandolin are double layered, using two 3mm layers to make 6mm. This helps the sound to project forwards just like a speaker box, and the heavy tailpiece adds to this effect. |
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I use local Eucalypts on the majority of my mandolins. The mixture of stripe and fiddleback creates a look that I hope will raise the status of this undervalued timber. One of the species I use is the tallest flowering tree on the planet. A long dead one was found that, when it was alive, exceeded the height of the tallest Redwood. |
Tom Chippindall is a mandolin player who worked with me for several years and helped me to develop these ideas. He is now producing his own designs using similar concepts.
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