The reason this mandolin is called Custom Vintage is because it has some upgraded features. Immediately one sees (like a shining beacon) its “The Weber” headstock inlay with the large and flowery (well, it is a flower pot, after all) urn with the fern and below that the matte finish, shapely truss rod cover held in place by two nickel-plated Phillips head screws. The tuners are engraved plate with pearloid buttons and a recessed nickel Phillips head screw at the end of each button. Said ‘stock is bordered in a slim ring of white purfling and then tortoise shell outermost, and so is each of the sides. The oval (or D-shape) soundhole is bound in tortoise shell and then, around 3/8” away, by a ring of black, then rope marquetry, then black. The bridge is a Brekke adjustable; the nickel-plated tailpiece bears the big, raised “W.” Back, sides and back of neck are all curly (flamed) maple and the top is wide grained spruce – so wide of grain that it makes us wonder if it might be Adirondack. Weber will never tell.
About this model the Weber Company writes (edited and paraphrased): The Yellowstone A carries standard features exquisite enough to make many other mandolins pale in comparison [we’ve seen it – they turn their heads away but we can tell]. Its tone bar braced, aged spruce top and Traditional Brekke Bridge provide head-turning tone, while the delicately inlaid tapered headstock and rich nitro-cellulose finish give the puppy a sleek, classic look. The standard radiused fingerboard, with its 7 tiny pearl diamonds in 6 fret positions brings playability to match the instrument. If you want F Style chop and projection from an A Style mandolin, the Yellowstone A is a perfect fit. To this we’d like to add that the fingerboard is elevated and cantilevered in a manner that reminds one of the diving board on an Olympic® swimming pool. The torch inlay on the black headstock overlay is enough to make the average mandolin player drool to the point of leaving a poodle on the floor. The headplate on this mandolin is polished, glossy ebony; the heel cap is similarly polished ebony.
In case additional proof of its loveliness is required, here are the Weber specifications: The top is hand graduated and tuned, and of course it is solid spruce; the bracing is hand-scalloped tone bar, the back, sides & neck are flamed maple, the peghead is “tapered A, tortoise shell and ivoroid bound; the peghead is inlaid in pearl script “The Weber” which is named for Bruce Weber, the last Supervisor of the former Gibson Mandolin Division at Bozeman, Montana. Below that is a colorful and consummately crafted flower pot with flowers. It has .808 nickel-silver frets, a dual action adjustable truss rod, tortoise shell celluloid bindings, a honey gloss finish in Nitrocellulose lacquer, a cast Weber nickel tailpiece and nickel Grover tuners. The fingerboard is tortoise bound ebony that terminates in a single cutaway extension and it is radiused; the scale length is 14”, the nut width is 1 1/8th”. The back of the headstock is painted black and comes down to a point behind the first fret, in a style popularized by some other company in the 1950s. The bridge is traditional Brekke; the case is deluxe hard shell. The sound is deluxe as well – it is full, deep, rich and radiant. It is the sound profound, with melody and harmony unbound; the full lyrical deal, with great tonal appeal, the peal unreal. Try it and squeal.