San Juan Mandolins!

After the show the other night in Delores, I got talking with a guy about my banjo ukes. It turns it his name was Bobby and he builds San Juan Mandolins. I have known about him for a long time and I was glad to get to meet him. Instead of staying at the hotel, I went back to his shop to check out what he is working on, listen to Leadbelly records and play some tunes in his kitchen. Here are some pics:

First, here is a new mandolin in progress for Drew Emmitt. Notice the one piece maple back and awesome sunburst. Up close and personal, you can see Bobby's careful scroll carving. You may have read in the last Fretboard Journal about Drew selling his Nugget mandolin to Jeff Austin. Well, he sold it so he could order this one!




Here is a spruce top and maple back being joined for an "A" style mandola.


And lastly, here is the scroll of Bobby's personal mandolin. Great inlay and peep the awesome engraved Waverly tuners!