Musical Instrument Geeks - A Mandolin/True Crime Story

Cafe Society
1

So - what’s cooler, the geeked-out find for the Antiques Roadshow or the true crime story?

For the Geeks - Gibson invented the modern Mandolin. The roundback type was used in Europe; Orville Gibson and later, the Gibson company, created modern flatback mando’s - the teardrop A model and the, well, fancier-shaped F model. Bluegrass was invented by Bill Monroe (and others) using a Gibson F5 - but not just any F5; an F5 built by Gibson’s master innovator - the man who put Gibson on the map for the next 40+ years, Lloyd Loar, who innovated the design of mandolins, banjos, guitars and more. And not just any Loar mandolin - but an F5 signed by Loar and dated March 31, 1924. We’re talking geek-specific stuff here.

So, any Loar-signed Gibson F5 from 3/31/24 is basically the Holy Grail, okay? And on this clip of AR, a woman shows up with one that she got at a garage sale.

This, in and of itself, is totally cool - a 3/31/24 F5 goes for $250,000 these days.

But there’s more.

It turns out that, a few years ago, some nefarious shmoe knew enough about Loar F5’s to research them, find a serial number of a 3/31/24 F5 that had not been found. He found a replica, claimed it was the real deal, got it insured and them claimed it was stolen - and sought to collect the $250,000 it was worth.

This is the mandolin that actually has that serial number.

Here is a linkto a thread on the Mandolin Cafe that traces both the Antiques Roadshow find AND the history behind the fraudulant claim. Fascinating. Btw “Fern” refers to the Fern inlay on the headstock of 3/31/24 Loar F5’s. Oh yeah, there’s much geekery afoot :wink:

2

Baha! Great story, WordMan. The scammer gets revealed years before, and then the subject of the scams surfaces on televisions, authentic as all getout. Sweet!

Now then: can you clue me what “3/31/24” means (is that a date, a measurement…)? Google sez: “0.00403225806”. Second cite is this thread. :slight_smile:
Thanks!

3

31/3/24 or the 31st of March 1924 in non-US English.

4

Indeed.

5

Yanno, WordMan, you really should teach a college class that includes all these elements of music that you enjoy and present so well; the instruments, the innovators, the musicians, the styles, theory, the songs. I’d imagine it would be very well received.

Cool story, this.

6

That’s very nice of you to say; thanks. That would be fun.

7

Very interesting, Wordman - I wonder if the found mandolin is worth any more because it was the subject of an atttempted scam? I wish I’d seen that ep of Antiques Roadshow - the instrument guys must’ve been beside themselves.

StG

8

I am pretty sure that in that thread I linked to, there is a link to the AR show in question. Not sure if you have to wade through the appraisals that come before the F5 - I am on the road and won’t be able to look at it until I am back home…

Fwiw, and this is only IMHO, but I doubt the scandal would raise the value of true F5 - it is already a Holy Grail. If it was played by Bill Monroe or someone similarly famous, certainly. I know that a few mandolin hotshots have found ways to get into Loar F5’s - I want to say Chris Theile - one of the top mando gunslingers these days - has one…

9

Doh. :smack: Thought it was mandolin terminology or sumpin’.

10

Wordman - I watched the AR clip. The woman didn’t get the mandolin at a garage sale, it was her great grandfather’s, who purchased it in the depression from a neighbor who was hard up for cash. He paid $20, and bought it because he wanted his son (the woman’s grandfather) to learn a musical instrument. There was no mention of the serial number having been absconded with. The appraisal amount was $75K.

StG

11

Sorry I blew the origin; I’ll watch it tomorrow. On the Mando Cafe thread, they reported the appraisal at $175,000, not $75,000, with some discussion about how it would be restored and sold by a dealer closer to the $275,000. That board has some pretty hardcore experts, but I need to see the AR clip myself.

ETA: oh, and yeah, all the skullduggery is in the message board thread, where the “Grand Canyon F5 fraud” had been an ongoing topic since 2007, when I think it played out. Get this: the guy who processed the claim is the guy I insure my instruments with! Who knew? :wink:

12

Wordman - It was $175K. The was a typo. I’m sorry.

StG

13

Please - I blew the origin story; it’s all good!

14

François Girard’s latest film - ‘The Brown Mandolin’ !!

It would be so cool if Antiques Roadshow did a follow-up about the failed insurance scam.

15

This makes a lot more sense than the ‘Fender Mandolin’ I heard this reported as. It was puzzling me.