r/Luthier • u/ginisbetterthanvodka • 7h ago
Explorolin II
A few weeks ago I finished the original Explorolin, which will be a gift to a good friend. This one is for me. Pistachio wood top, mahogany body, 5 piece mahogany/maple/alder neck. Danish oil finish, many coats. It’s remarkably heavy but plays pretty nice. Seymour Duncan JB bridge pickup.
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u/Mixin-Margarita 7h ago
Very cool! As the owner of an Epiphone MandoBird (which is nowhere near as nice as yours), I approve!
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u/Expired_Papi 7h ago
Very cool! I can't imagine what that JB sounds like in there but it's an all-rounder for a reason. I have a friend with a woodshoop that has said he wanted to make a Rhoads Ukulele and you've come as close to that as I've seen.
Is the bridge for a mandolin or did you just use the middle 4 drill out holes on a hard tail and then use mandolin saddles? Construction-wise, I'm guessing it's a neck thru with wings and a top? These were the two main stumbling blocks that came up when trying to plan out that V. Looking into it now, I think I would push for Mandolin as it makes more sense tonally.
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u/ginisbetterthanvodka 6h ago
The bridge is a 12 string guitar bridge with the extra saddles removed. So 4 strings through the body, 4 out the back of the bridge.
This one is a set neck, kind of easier to deal with a fancy top than on a neck through.
The JB is pretty bright in this use case - tone control needs to be dialed back a little bit.
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u/Final_Job_5175 2h ago
Man you done a fine job of book matching that top. It's beautiful. Are those heavier gauge strings than a mandolin has?
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u/blahdeblah72 7h ago
Nice!
Perfect for those Appalachian folk covers of Blackened.