Left-Handed Questions for Mandolin Players
Subject: Left handed mandolin
Date: Fri, 13 Feb 2004 19:22:47 +0000
Hello there wood folk!
Firstly Great job on the website, you have everything here, and to my suprise help for lefthanders.. wow, i dont get much info on mandolins in the UK so its been great to just log on and find so much on your site!!
You're most welcome...we're glad to be of help...I'm a lefty myself...
Well im a simple English chap who wants to learn the Mandolin, well ive got the mandolin, i thought that would be a good place to start! Lol well anyway i always had restringing it in mind, as being in the United Kingdom it isnt that easy to get left handed mandolins so i knew i would have to make do.
I also learned to play right-handed...which is still an option for us lefties...albeit, an unnatural one to start with...yet, still an option. I encourage all lefties to play what they feel intuitively is right...follow your own calling.
The problem is there is no places in the area that i can get it set for left handed play,
As a matter of fact, I do have an associate located in England...who may be of assistance to you (see below)...
so my dad is gonna do it, he is good at things like this but he has never done anything with a mandolin before. Well the main problem is i dont really know what to do about the bracing... we can string it the other way round, sort out the bridge and the nut seems do-able. But i dont really know what the brace is :o/ it is internal isnt it?
Yes, the bracing is internal...which more than likely has a bass bar on the bass end of the strings...only, it's not necessary to change this after restringing...it may still sound OK...for that matter, it would be next to impossible to change without separating the top to gain access...
Check with my friends at the Acoustic Music Shoppe located in England...and, best of luck with your mandolin journeys...Mickey
Well i was just wandering what you actually do with it and whether it is possible.
Thanks anyway
Bye!
From the little English guy with the mandolin :o)
Be sure to check with our associates for further assistance:
Trevor Moyle
The Acoustic Music Company Ltd.
39, St James's St
Brighton
BN2 1RG
England
Phone 00 44 (0) 1273 671841
Fax 00 44 (0) 1273 671862
www.theacousticmusicco.co.uk
info@theacousticmusicco.co.uk
Date: Sat, 17 Jan 2004 23:15:57 -0500
Subject: mandolin
I am planning on ordering a mandolin I am left handed so i will need to get the bridge changed.will I be able to learn to play it using books and tapes if I am unable to find a instructor to teach a left handed person,and do they have books for left handed people or will I be able to use regular books.Our ability to get material s local is limited.I enjoy your web site.Thanks for the help.
Greetings,
I happen to be a left-hander that learned to play right-handed...I do know what you're up against.
Now, on standard mando books, with some familiarization, you'll find that it becomes easier and easier to correlate to left-handed playing. I believe video is quite a bit more difficult. If you'll learn to read tab or standard notation, it still means the same when you see a D note...it's still on the same 5th fret of the A string...whether playing right or left-handed...
Be sure to check out our Free Lessons section:
http://www.folkofthewood.com/page3.htm
You'll find lessons on reading tablature along with exercises and studies...with some orientation, I believe you'll quickly see that learning to apply the technique to left-handed playing is relatively the same as application in standard right-hand approach.
Mickey
Date: Wed, 17 Dec 2003 17:36:30 EST
Subject: REVERSING STRINGS
A FREIND OF MINE JUST BOUGHT ME A MANDOLINE AND I AM LEFT HANDED CAN THE STRINGS BE REVERSED OR NOT ....... THANK YOU
Yes, the strings can be reversed, however keep a few things in mind:
1. If the mandolin is an F-style...it will not feel or look right converted to lefty...
2. Bracing on many right-handed models are set up with a tone bar...that is a long brace that resides above the bass end...this bracing will be on the treble side after converting and may alter the natural tone the instrument was designed to emit.
3. Be careful with the string slots in both the nut and the bridge...some slots are larger to accommodate a large diameter string bass side...some smaller treble side...you'll have to recut these to fit the new string arrangement.
My recommendation would be not to attempt to do this yourself...to take it to a local repair person...and have it done professionally. It should cost no more than 35.00 or so...
Wishing you the best in your research efforts, Mickey
Subject: Left Hand Mandolin
Date: Tue, 25 Nov 2003 18:04:03 -0500
Looking for a Left hand Mandolin for my 15 year old daughter.
Greetings,
Glad to assist:
What style of music does she hope to achieve on her new mandolin? This usually determines which body style and soundhole type to purchase...
We do left-handed conversions for any mandolin purchased through us...keep in mind, an F-style cannot be converted...
I'm left-handed and ultimately learned to play right handed...I still recommend that a left-hander pursue what's comfortable...and, playing left-handed certainly will not impede musicianship...
I'm looking forward to assisting you through this, Mickey
Date: Tue, 11 Nov 2003 22:13:32 -0700
Subject: Lefty Customized Weber Bitterroot
Just wanted you guys to know that if Greg the lefty, owner of the custom
Weber Black Bitterroot mando on your website, ever trades in his mando there
is another lefty Greg that will be glad to take it off your hands. What a
beauty!!
Greg another lefty LeBlanc
Greetings Greg,
Greg Rowles happens to perform at the Alabama Theatre in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina...this is part of the Carolina Opry circuit...if you ever get a chance, and you're ever in the SC area, be sure to check out their show...Greg is also a world class recording artist...he plays with a long-time partner of mine named Bob Napier.
A note of left-handed interest: I'm also left-handed....when I first started, being unaware at the time that a guitar can be re-strung, I learned to play right-handed.
We live in a backwards world...
Mickey
Subject: lefthanded
Date: Sun, 30 Nov 2003 12:37:58 +0100
dear folkofthewood,
I have some question about lefthanded mandolins. i like to purchase a morgan monroe mm-1a. but i'm left, so you have to turn the bridge around and the frettop. but i am a bit scared because i have a guitar and they dide the same, they turnded around the frettop, and it has a completly false sound. the hole origenal sound is gone. now my qeustion is, if you do the conversion on the mandolin, will the sound be the same, and not get lost or false.
greets, danny
Glad to assist:
I'm a left-hander that learned to play right handed...it was a difficult journey to say the least...I believe you're on the right track in making an effort to find a good left-handed mandolin.
In all reality, the best left-handed mandolin would be custom made by Weber...or another qualified manufacturer.
Yes, most mandolins are made with tone bar bracing...and, what happens is that the bass bar ends up on the treble side after converting to left-handed. However, this isn't so bad on a student mandolin....where you're looking to learn to play and attune your ears in the process...it would still take a discriminating ear to determine any tonal differences from before and after a lefty conversion.
It's far more critical on an expensive mandolin...fortunately, most manufacturers will convert to left-handed at a reasonable cost anyway...I especially like the Weber Bitterroot F-Style Lefty conversions I've seen to date...
Mickey
Date: Fri, 6 Sep 2002 15:12:52 -0400
Thanks for your prompt reply.
Do you think a lefty could play a F style instrument upside down or would it restrict access to the upper neck too much?
I guess it could be done...and yes, it will restrict the upper register access...I've never seen any lefty approach an F-style in this way to date. If it works out for you, let us know...we'll post it on our site.
I am interested in an affordable new or used Left handed F style Mandolin.
I currently play the guitar lefty, (upside down and backwards, No
restringing).I like the visual appeal of the F, but the configuration
doesn't lend itself to picking with the left hand and fingering right
handed which is how I have to play. I know I can get an A style and restring it,
but is a "Lefty F" gonna break me?
A true "lefty F" (with the scroll body reversed) is only available
from American manufacturers and they are pricey. Weber charges a
400.00 custom lefty charge for their f-styles. Gibson, and other
makes, charge about the same.
Currently, none of the more affordable import f-style models are
available in a lefty version.
Lefty A-styles are much more affordable, and are more popular.
More info on the lefty mando subject can be found on our website's
'frequently asked questions' pages.
Please let us know if we can be of any further assistance...
Thanks!!
Subject: RE: Left hand bridge
Date: Mon, 11 Feb 2002 12:51:26 -0500
Thanks for the reply:
If I turn the bridge around, the staggered positions of the "saddles" are
backwards, and intonation is off. Correct?
Regards
Steve
Greetings Steve,
That's a valid estimation...although, what happens is that the bridge repeats the same stagger pattern from the reverse side. So, we can still achieve the same accurate intonation in the forward or reverse positions.
Sent: Monday, February 11, 2002 12:11 PM
Subject: Re: Left hand bridge
Hello;
I recently bought a Kentucky KM-180S from a friend. I am left handed and
would like to get a bridge for this thatis left handed. Can you help?
Hello Steve,
We do lefty conversions here on Kentucky mandos all the time. With
the bridge, we just turn it 180 degrees (so that the larger G string
notches are at the bottom). To my knowledge, there is no lefty
Kentucky mando bridge available.
Please let me know if I can be of any further assistance - Thanks!!
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