any thoughts on this Mittenwald FS?

[woodamand]

I have never heard of a Mittenwald
can anyone enlighten me?

[msw]

I think I am accurate when I say Mittenwald is a regional name in Germany and not a maker per say.

[basstef]

Originally Posted by woodamand

I have never heard of a Mittenwald
can anyone enlighten me?

Mittenwald is a small town in the Bavarian Alps, south of Germany, with a big tradition in lutherie. Matthias Klotz was born and worked there, and then many others, up to the Poellmann family.

[bassteban]

I have a Hammig(the label inside says 'J. Heinrich Hammig, Mittenwald' IIRC; can't seem to find a flashlight at the moment).

Edit: Just looked at the link; looks very much like mine. Sad to say mine's also in much the same condition.

[arnoldschnitzer]

That's a plywood bass.

[billengelman]

The label on my bass reads: E.R. Schmidt Geigenbaumeister Mittenwald, Bayern. It looks very similar to the one pictured on ebay, only in better condition, recently set up and has Spirocores on it. I've tried to sell it for that same price, $1200 and have had no takers.

[Ed Fuqua]

I play a Mittenwald factory bass (mid 20s) and I love the way it sounds. If you go to the Jeff Silverbush website (in my profile) you can hear some soundfiles of it.

The "Made In Germany" may date it to late 40's/early50's, they only started adding English after WWII and primarily for instruments made to be exported. The bass looks a lot like mine, but the worrisome thing is what looks to be a crack near the neck block.

But $1200, that sounds like a plywood not a carved bass. THAT'S the question to ask. I mean the label "Handarbeiten" that generally means carved (even if in a "factory" setting), but somebody can put a label in anything.

[bassist14]

Originally Posted by Ed Fuqua

I mean the label "Handarbeiten" that generally means carved (even if in a "factory" setting), but somebody can put a label in anything.

imho (as a german bassplayer) "handarbeit" means only "made by hand" and has nothing to do with "carved" or "ply"


i think the ebay-bass has nothing more in common with the one at "the contrabasse-shoppe" the seller refers to, than origin,shape and color.
i would not pay more than 500-700€ (depending on the sound) for it. and the starting-bid is 1200$...
(and i would never pay 7500 £ for the one at "the contrabasse-shoppe"...)

[Ed Fuqua]

So "handwork" doesn't mean anything?

At any rate, my bass IS carved and the only label inside reads "Handarbeiten aus Mittenwald".

[bassist14]

Originally Posted by Ed Fuqua

So "handwork" doesn't mean anything?

Right!