|
|
#1
11-24-2018, 06:55 PM
|
||||
|
||||
Handmade Irish Bouzouki - SOLD
For sale is a handmade Irish bouzouki built by Jan Muyllaert in 2009. Jan is Ireland’s premier harp luthier, but he got his start making fretted instruments in the 1970s and has continued to build mandolin-family instruments, guitars, and fiddles alongside his harps. If you are unfamiliar with his work, check out his website: http://irishharps.net/. His bouzouki base price is €1850 and his list is closed until December 2019.
     This Irish bouzouki is topped with Canadian Red Cedar. The back and sides are a lovely quilted Maple (Jan calls this “Native Irish Sycamore”—either way it’s Acer pseudoplatanus) as is the front headstock veneer. The neck is USA Black Walnut with a center laminate of Maple. The fingerboard and bridge are Rosewood and the body is bound in a wide rope pattern of Ebony and Maple. The bracing is “well-seasoned and close grained” Spruce salvaged from an old piano frame. The whole instrument is finished in satin.     I know the octave mandolin vs Irish bouzouki classification can get a bit nebulous, but in my opinion the 25.5” scale length on this particular instrument places it firmly in the bouzouki camp. That longer scale translates into a notably loud instrument with exceptional sustain. Though I generally associate a Cedar top with a warmer voice, the Maple back and sides and full scale length give it a bright, punchy timbre.   I’m the original owner: I bought it from Tony Ryan's shop in Cork, Ireland. This bouzouki has always been kept in a properly controlled, smoke-free environment. It's never been gigged and is in great shape. No dings of note, just some light marks on the soundboard and wear under the treble strings (see pictures). No cracks, loose braces, neck warp, bridge lift, seam separations, or worn-out frets. This summer I had Ron Jones of Cream City Music cut a new bone nut (the original one was made of some cheaper plastic material and had reached the end of its life) and perform a set up.    Here are the full specs: • Date: 2009 • Soundboard: Canadian Red Cedar • Back: Quilted Maple with Ebony stripes • Sides: Quilted Maple • Neck: USA Black Walnut and Maple • Nut width: 1-3/8” • String spacing: 1-3/16” • Saddle spacing: 2-19/32” • Fingerboard: Rosewood • Bridge: Rosewood • Binding: Ebony and Maple in a wide rope pattern • Headstock: front veneer in quilted Maple • Scale: 25.5” • Bracing: Spruce from an old piano frame • Dimensions: ---- Body Length: 15-7/8” ---- Width: 12-7/16” ---- Neck Heel Depth: 2-3/4” ---- End Graft Depth: 3-1/8” • Finish: Satin • Handmade in Ardbraccan, Navan, County Meath, Ireland  Includes the original modified TGI banjo case. Tony Ryan recut the neck compartment to convert the case for this bouzouki. I’ve added in some foam to fill out the negative space around the body. I bought some green felt to match that foam to the rest for the case, but never got around to installing it. I’ve included that along with the key and 2 sets of D’Addario Irish Bouzouki strings (PB .11-.40). $$$$ including PayPal fees and shipping. Last edited by Erithon; 12-09-2018 at 11:18 PM. 
|
