E mando progress

Well the French polishing of Tony’s mandolin continues and in between polishing sessions I’ve been working on the e-mandolin. Believe me, it has been very much a week of experimentation!

The blade humbucker works very well; using a blade style eliminates any worries about the alignment of pole-pieces. 

I tried a couple of different piezo transducers to see which works best; an Artec and a Headway. I had to make up a rough bridge in order test them and in this situation i.e. without the benefit resonant hollow body, the Artec unit seemed to work best- its higher output balances better with the humbucker and by the time it goes through an external pre-amp the tone is really good too. I also made 3 different saddles; ebony, bone and micarta. Without doubt the ebony worked best by reducing some of the harshness and helping to limit the sustain. 

So next week, I can start sorting out the fiddly bits, prep for finishing and apply the finish- Tru-oil in this case; my favourite solid body finish.

Remember John’s twin-point?

Well he posted a thread on Mandolin Café forum and you can read what he and others have to say about it, whilst I quietly blush! Many thanks for posting this John. The link's below.

A Magic Nava Twinpoint