Gibson Style A-1 Snakehead Carved Top Mandolin (1924)
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Gibson Style A-1 Snakehead Model Carved Top Mandolin (1924), made in Kalamazoo, Michigan, serial # 76612, black top, dark stained back and sides finish, birch back and sides, spruce top, mahogany neck with ebony fingerboard, original black hard shell case.
This is a great-playing and sounding, nicely preserved Style A-1 mandolin from the height of the "Loar era" at Gibson. These "Snakeheads" are generally considered the best-sounding oval hole A style mandolins ever made, and this one certainly bears it out. This is a fine example of Gibson's craftsmanship at the apex of the mandolin era, just before the company's focus shifted to banjos and then guitars. This one has a Factory Order Number (FON) indicating it was built at the end of 1923, and the serial number penciled on the white oval label suggests it was shipped out in early/mid 1924.
These "Snakehead" instruments are named for their Loar-designed peghead that angles inward towards the tip, a very functional and logical design feature inexplicably abandoned by Gibson several years later. They are revered for their unmatched tone and projection and have other advanced features of the era including the adjustable truss rod neck, raised adjustable bridge and very slim neck profile. The top on this A-1 bears a striking black lacquer finish, bound in white celluloid with a thin double inlaid wood soundhole ring. The tailpiece has the engraved "The Gibson" cover plate and the tuners are Waverly strips with rounded ends. The thick multi-color stenciled "The Gibson" logo is an odd feature specific to this exact period, replaced the next year with a more elegant thinner silver script.
Lloyd Loar's tenure as acoustic engineer at Gibson has become so mythical that separating fact from fiction is difficult. Certainly the mandolin family instruments made during the period of his employment are the most perfectly realized in Gibson's history, and have become the template for most similar instruments since. Mandolins in particular of the "Loar era" show the influence of a master player on design and execution, although other Gibson employees (especially Thaddeus McHugh and Lewis A. Williams) actually engineered many of the technical improvements. Loar was primarily concerned with 'voicing' the instruments properly; the Master Model Style 5 line was his greatest contribution with their violin-style F-hole tops, but all Gibson instruments were refined at the same time. Even this basic "A" mandolin has sonic and playing improvements benefitting from "Master Loar's" input still evident today, 100 years on and these distinctive "snakehead" A mandolins have become ever more sought-after by discerning players.
Overall length is 25 3/4 in. (65.4 cm.), 10 in. (25.4 cm.) wide, and 1 7/8 in. (4.8 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 14 in. (356 mm.). Width of nut is 1 1/16 in. (27 mm.).
This is a great playing and sounding "snakehead" with some light wear but remaining original with the exception of a replica pickguard. The finish appears unaltered original except for a couple of small touched-up dinks in the top. It shows some minor dings, scrapes and dents overall but really for 100 years on the planet this is a pretty clean mandolin! The face of the headstock has a few dings and scrapes; the back of the neck is very clean.
All seams are solid and there are no visible repairs to the wood. The adjustable ebony bridge, tuners, tailpiece and cover are original; the pickguard is a high quality repro using the original hybrid bracket. There is a small split in the plastic over the mounting pin by the fingerboard but all is solid. The original small frets and fingerboard show hardly any wear. The mandolin plays great, sounds spectacular, and still resides in its clean original HSC. This lovely "snakehead" simply appears not much used over the last century, a splendid survivor of "Master Loar's" finest period. Excellent - Condition.
This is a great-playing and sounding, nicely preserved Style A-1 mandolin from the height of the "Loar era" at Gibson. These "Snakeheads" are generally considered the best-sounding oval hole A style mandolins ever made, and this one certainly bears it out. This is a fine example of Gibson's craftsmanship at the apex of the mandolin era, just before the company's focus shifted to banjos and then guitars. This one has a Factory Order Number (FON) indicating it was built at the end of 1923, and the serial number penciled on the white oval label suggests it was shipped out in early/mid 1924.
These "Snakehead" instruments are named for their Loar-designed peghead that angles inward towards the tip, a very functional and logical design feature inexplicably abandoned by Gibson several years later. They are revered for their unmatched tone and projection and have other advanced features of the era including the adjustable truss rod neck, raised adjustable bridge and very slim neck profile. The top on this A-1 bears a striking black lacquer finish, bound in white celluloid with a thin double inlaid wood soundhole ring. The tailpiece has the engraved "The Gibson" cover plate and the tuners are Waverly strips with rounded ends. The thick multi-color stenciled "The Gibson" logo is an odd feature specific to this exact period, replaced the next year with a more elegant thinner silver script.
Lloyd Loar's tenure as acoustic engineer at Gibson has become so mythical that separating fact from fiction is difficult. Certainly the mandolin family instruments made during the period of his employment are the most perfectly realized in Gibson's history, and have become the template for most similar instruments since. Mandolins in particular of the "Loar era" show the influence of a master player on design and execution, although other Gibson employees (especially Thaddeus McHugh and Lewis A. Williams) actually engineered many of the technical improvements. Loar was primarily concerned with 'voicing' the instruments properly; the Master Model Style 5 line was his greatest contribution with their violin-style F-hole tops, but all Gibson instruments were refined at the same time. Even this basic "A" mandolin has sonic and playing improvements benefitting from "Master Loar's" input still evident today, 100 years on and these distinctive "snakehead" A mandolins have become ever more sought-after by discerning players.
Overall length is 25 3/4 in. (65.4 cm.), 10 in. (25.4 cm.) wide, and 1 7/8 in. (4.8 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 14 in. (356 mm.). Width of nut is 1 1/16 in. (27 mm.).
This is a great playing and sounding "snakehead" with some light wear but remaining original with the exception of a replica pickguard. The finish appears unaltered original except for a couple of small touched-up dinks in the top. It shows some minor dings, scrapes and dents overall but really for 100 years on the planet this is a pretty clean mandolin! The face of the headstock has a few dings and scrapes; the back of the neck is very clean.
All seams are solid and there are no visible repairs to the wood. The adjustable ebony bridge, tuners, tailpiece and cover are original; the pickguard is a high quality repro using the original hybrid bracket. There is a small split in the plastic over the mounting pin by the fingerboard but all is solid. The original small frets and fingerboard show hardly any wear. The mandolin plays great, sounds spectacular, and still resides in its clean original HSC. This lovely "snakehead" simply appears not much used over the last century, a splendid survivor of "Master Loar's" finest period. Excellent - Condition.