i'm a neapolitan luthier,i'm specialized in mandolins and guitars building. I started about 10 years ago, may be more, in restauring ancient mandolins.

i have to say that living in Naples it was very easy for me to find old mandolins at cheap prices to make some experience,sometimes by destroying some!

since '800 Naples was full of luthiers who built mandolins (there were about 200 of them),even if few of them are known nowaday. the most known are Calace,Vinaccia,etc, but there were some others being as good as them.

during '800/900, it was easy to find mandolins aestetically fine, but in the most of times hadn't a good sound and had a very bad set up. this 'cause at that time there wasn't a mandolin musical culture like for the violin, so the luthiers prefered to care for the look.

that is not like that today! the mandolin players prefere a simple instrument, but with a good tone and a perfect set up. of course the union of both would be great, but a heavy inlayed instrument doesn't play as it should.

one of my speciality is the following:

 'cause there are lots of good manolins with a good bowl (woods being seasoned naturally for over 100 years) at very good prices, by changing the sound board, the neck and the headstock I  obtained a very good sounding instrument.

i then invented bracing system that i call "floating arch" which allows the top to vibrate more freely increasig the volume ( one of the neapolitan mandolin loss).

in the end, if the violin has had centuryes of studies on it, that is not true for the mandolin that for years has been considered a "barber shop instrument", but that is having a new birth (look the japaneses).

so mates there's always something to learn in all!!!!!!!! www.oldmandolins .com

Of course my speciality are the Neapolitan style mandolins, because, liveing in Naples, i have had the possibility to see/buy many Calace, Vinaccia, and sometimes, Embergher mandolins.

Into the 1800/ 1900's years, in naples there was many others luthiers, and some of them was VERY good luthiers, like Calace Vinaccia, but the people in all the world know only Vinaccia and Calace.

Also: into the 1800's years, there was people/luthiers, named : "cassari" that built only the "bowl back part" of the mandolins, for the more important factory, as Calace and Vinaccia.

There was also luthiers specialized into the "decores" . The most famouses of them came from "Torre del Grego "city, where also today there are the famouses  "corallari", ( coral's workers, MOP worker..etc .))

Do you think that , as example, this mandolin:   Vinaccia 1895  was built ALL into the vinaccia workshop??? Is possible that many parts of its was built from these persons, that was specialized in variouses phases of the building. 

Infact, is usually find in naples, mandolins, for example, with a WONDERFULL bowl back part, but with a low grade of quality of the, as example: the top, the neck.. etc etc .

These mandolins, in naples, are a lot of, and cost not much money. With a good restore , changeing/modifeing for example the TOP, neck , fingerboard,.etc.., is possible get mandolins of HIGH grade/quality, but with the bowl-back ribs that have about 100 years, that for the sound is the best thing.  This is  one of my speciality!!

best regards

Carlo Mazzaccara, Luthier