1910s Gibson A-1 Carved-Top Mandolin

The factory order number and serial number are illegible on this guy, but I'm sure it's a 1910s-era Gibson A. As you'd expect, its voice is both husky and sweet. It has good clarity and punch, but is mellow at the same time. I just love these old fellas.

This one's lived a little bit of a rough life and it has its share of random repairs, though overall it looks spiffy. The back and sides are refinished and the top is oversprayed.

It came in for a glorified setup and left with some seam repairs, a headstock hairline crack repair (split along the "ears"), a fret level/dress, fit of a new rosewood adjustable bridge, cleaning, and setup. When it was dropped off, it also had some old, '60s-era tuners on it. I replaced those with some original Gibson-style Waverly tuners that I happened to have in my parts-bins and were correct for the instrument.

These have a carved, spruce top and birch back and sides. The neck is mahogany with a triangular-shaped reinforcement wedge of maple under the (ebony) fretboard.

Setup notes: action is perfect with a straight neck and 1/16" height at the 12th fret. Strings are 36w-10 in gauge.

Condition notes: as noted above -- refinished back/sides, oversprayed top, replacement bridge, replacement (period correct) tuners, minor usewear throughout -- light scratches/small nicks.