How They’re Made
From hand carved tops, backs and necks to unique colorings and traditional finishes, each Kettler Mandolin is individually crafted with care and years of experience.
First, tops are chosen from tight grained, Adirondack spruce or ecologically harvested old growth Sitka spruce.
Backs, sides and necks are chosen from uniquely figured birdseye, fiddleback, and quilted maple.
After being roughed out, tops are hand carved and tuned, along with the backs, using tap tuning by ear, electronic means and checked for patterns created by a sine wave generator/speaker.
This creates a relationship between top and back also known as “voicing”. The tops will have a lower musical frequency than the backs due to the difference in density and stiffness.
Once the mandolin is assembled “in the white” it’s tested and played to break it in somewhat and to make sure the sound is clear and vibrant. Some of this work is done with the assistance of expert cats with many years of experience, as shown in the photo.
Any fine tuning that’s needed is done now before the process of finishing begins.
The mandolin then gets finishing touches, such as headstock inlays, bindings, and final sanding before the lacquer finish is applied. After multiple coats, leveling and scraping the bindings, the finish is either rubbed out to a fine high gloss or finished as a soft satin or matte. The instrument is then reassembled, set up and paired with a sturdy case ready to ship.