1960s Fender "Mandocaster" Electric Mandolin & Case
A guy calls him on it, and he says:It comes in the Original Fender Case in very good condition with all hardware in working condition. The Mandolin plays well (although it could use new strings) and has no apparent electrical problems. The Sunburst finish on the Body of the Mandolin has no apparent "Checking". There are some chips in the finish which I have attempted to display in the pictures I've taken of the Mandolin's Body. The neck of the Mandolin is straight and has plenty of "Checking" which is not unusual for a wooden instrument of this age. On the neck mounting plate the Serial Number 02232 is clearly visible. The Kluson Deluxe Tuning Keys appear to fit exactly into the finish of the rear of the Headstock of the Mandolin and therefore seem to be original. Generally the Instrument and Case appear to have been treated well throughout all of its years.
1965 Fender Electric Mandolin specs:
Gold Fender decal thicker than previous "spaghetti" logo.
Plastic tortoise three layer pickguard replaces celluloid.
BOnus post:Q: Hasn't this been modified? It looks like a hole was routed out for a different pickup and holes drilled through to the back for strings for a different bridge. Then the original parts put back on to sell. But the holes are still there. Apr-08-10
A: Last year (I think it was in September) there was another, similar vintage Fender Electric Manodlin sold on ebay. It also had the same hand routed modification to the pickup well. The explination given by the seller at that time was that the hand routing was done at the factory. This was the best available information regarding the modification that I have come across. If you look at the underside of the pick guard you will see that the metal shielding was also cut to match the routing. Without a source of definitive information (like the individual who did the routing) I can only suggest that Fender may have considered installing a different pickup, or maybe change the existing pickup's orientation and after the fact made the adjustments to the body and pick guard to accomodate it. As far as the holes in the rear of the Mandolin go, I wasn't paying attention to them at the time, so I couldn't tell you if they present on the item previously sold or not. I will look around a bit to see if I can find additional pictures of similar instruments which show the rear of the Mandolin. If I find some I will forward them to you. Thank you for your questions and interest.
Q: Hello, Would you accept $500 for it plus shipping? Thanks! Craig Apr-03-10
A: No, but thank you for your interest.
