Lyon & Healy Style B Carved Top Mandolin (1919)
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Lyon & Healy Style B Model Carved Top Mandolin (1919), made in Chicago, serial # 925, natural top, dark stained back and sides finish, maple back and sides, spruce top; mahogany neck with ebony fingerboard, original black hard shell case.
This Washburn Style B Mandolin is one of the elaborate and beautifully crafted "Own Make" mandolin family instruments that Lyon & Healy introduced in 1917 -- the only really serious competition Gibson ever faced in the carved-top 8-string market. Lyon & Healy used the finest materials and an original design for these models, although the general concept harks back to Kalamazoo.
The Chicago company launched this line with a blaze of publicity and claims of superiority, likely alarmed that their dominance of the bowl-back mandolin market had been dramatically undercut by the overwhelming success of the revolutionary Gibsons. Lyon & Healy carved-top mandolins were fairly successful although they never came close to matching Gibson's sales. They continued to be built (both under that brand and subsequently as "Washburn") into the Depression years.
This Style B was the middle instrument in a three-model line and today seems to be the rarest of the trio. It is basically the same design as the top-line Style A but lacks the elaborate scroll peghead, instead using a conventional shape with a carved pediment that looks like it came off a piece of colonial furniture. The 2-point carved tiger maple body and tight-grained spruce top, shaped pickguard, pull-out leg rest and elaborate clamp tailpiece are all signature features shared with its more pricey sister. The 3-piece laminated mahogany neck is fairly chunky with a rounder backed profile than period Gibsons, with a heavy dot-inlaid extended ebony fingerboard.
The sound of these instruments is more delicate and lighter than most period Gibsons, with a nicely rounded top end and less percussive "bark". They have been considered since the 1920s to be the best instruments ever made for classical mandolin playing, but have not been much known or used by old-time or country musicians. We are always impressed by both the sound and craftsmanship of the Lyon & Healy mandolins, and this Style B -- although the middle of the line model -- is still an extremely fine instrument fully equal to a Style A in sound and playability and worthy of any player's or collector's attention.
Overall length is 25 in. (63.5 cm.), 9 3/4 in. (24.8 cm.) width, and 1 13/16 in. (4.6 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 13 1/2 in. (343 mm.). Width of nut is 1 1/8 in. (29 mm.).
This instrument remains in splendid original condition, with just some very light general wear and discreet repair. The finish shows some tiny dings and dents, but no major wear. The only notable loss to the top finish are some marks under the bridge from it being relocated over time. Oft-missing hardware pieces like the large fibre pickguard, the pull-out peg for seated playing and the elaborate engraved tailpiece cover are present and accounted for.
Some of the back/side seams have been neatly resealed, the there is a crack along the rim on the bass side adjacent to the neck block that is very neatly sealed up but not over finished, so visible. There is a visible line on the headstock face where the veneer over the center laminate is stressed but not an open cracks or seam. There are no other cracks or visible repairs.
This Style B plays extremely well, with a sweet and somewhat lighter sound compared to similar Gibson's. Even with the repairs this is as nice an example of this somewhat rare instrument as we have seen. It is housed in the original shaped hard-shell case in very solid shape with a new handle and the top of the center latch missing. It hardly looks as if 100+ years have passed since this left Chicago, but this little time capsule is an enchanting survivor of the ups and downs of the last century. Overall Excellent Condition.
This Washburn Style B Mandolin is one of the elaborate and beautifully crafted "Own Make" mandolin family instruments that Lyon & Healy introduced in 1917 -- the only really serious competition Gibson ever faced in the carved-top 8-string market. Lyon & Healy used the finest materials and an original design for these models, although the general concept harks back to Kalamazoo.
The Chicago company launched this line with a blaze of publicity and claims of superiority, likely alarmed that their dominance of the bowl-back mandolin market had been dramatically undercut by the overwhelming success of the revolutionary Gibsons. Lyon & Healy carved-top mandolins were fairly successful although they never came close to matching Gibson's sales. They continued to be built (both under that brand and subsequently as "Washburn") into the Depression years.
This Style B was the middle instrument in a three-model line and today seems to be the rarest of the trio. It is basically the same design as the top-line Style A but lacks the elaborate scroll peghead, instead using a conventional shape with a carved pediment that looks like it came off a piece of colonial furniture. The 2-point carved tiger maple body and tight-grained spruce top, shaped pickguard, pull-out leg rest and elaborate clamp tailpiece are all signature features shared with its more pricey sister. The 3-piece laminated mahogany neck is fairly chunky with a rounder backed profile than period Gibsons, with a heavy dot-inlaid extended ebony fingerboard.
The sound of these instruments is more delicate and lighter than most period Gibsons, with a nicely rounded top end and less percussive "bark". They have been considered since the 1920s to be the best instruments ever made for classical mandolin playing, but have not been much known or used by old-time or country musicians. We are always impressed by both the sound and craftsmanship of the Lyon & Healy mandolins, and this Style B -- although the middle of the line model -- is still an extremely fine instrument fully equal to a Style A in sound and playability and worthy of any player's or collector's attention.
Overall length is 25 in. (63.5 cm.), 9 3/4 in. (24.8 cm.) width, and 1 13/16 in. (4.6 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 13 1/2 in. (343 mm.). Width of nut is 1 1/8 in. (29 mm.).
This instrument remains in splendid original condition, with just some very light general wear and discreet repair. The finish shows some tiny dings and dents, but no major wear. The only notable loss to the top finish are some marks under the bridge from it being relocated over time. Oft-missing hardware pieces like the large fibre pickguard, the pull-out peg for seated playing and the elaborate engraved tailpiece cover are present and accounted for.
Some of the back/side seams have been neatly resealed, the there is a crack along the rim on the bass side adjacent to the neck block that is very neatly sealed up but not over finished, so visible. There is a visible line on the headstock face where the veneer over the center laminate is stressed but not an open cracks or seam. There are no other cracks or visible repairs.
This Style B plays extremely well, with a sweet and somewhat lighter sound compared to similar Gibson's. Even with the repairs this is as nice an example of this somewhat rare instrument as we have seen. It is housed in the original shaped hard-shell case in very solid shape with a new handle and the top of the center latch missing. It hardly looks as if 100+ years have passed since this left Chicago, but this little time capsule is an enchanting survivor of the ups and downs of the last century. Overall Excellent Condition.