This information applies to all guitars, but includes information specifically for Mossman Instruments.
The best tip on evaluation anyone can give you is to take the instrument to an experienced luthier. Find a skilled and knowledgeable luthier. Don't complain if he asks for an evaluation fee. Good luthiers are worth it. There are a lot of pretenders out there, so ask a guitar player who has had several instruments repaired to recommend a luthier. Authorized "Brand-X" repair credentials foretell little about how good the luthier is.
Wood is better than metal when examining someone else's guitar because it won't hurt the finish. See the tools.html page for construction instructions.
Use this to peek inside the body.
Check Intonation
Measure string height (action) above the frets.
Is it a Mossman? I doubt you will find any clones or look-alikes. Nevertheless, for validation purposes, this page shows a useful sample of Mossman factory labels. Mossman Factory labels.
Remember, you want a total evaluation. Don't just focus on one issue. Nearly all vintage guitars have problems to varying degrees. You want to avoid a guitar with too many major problems, but a good one needing a not too expensive repair may be a great deal.
Make sure the neck has not moved significantly in relation to the body. That is; you are looking for significant upper bout distortion resulting in a bad neck to body angle, which of course results in excessively high action. The upper bout (where the neck joints to the body) should be straight for a distance of two inches either side of the neck joint. That is; imagine a flat surface (the straight part of the upper bout) intersecting with the neck joint line. When the guitar was new, this surface was flat. Any distortion indicates a corresponding degree of neck joint collapse or upper bout distortion.
Upper bout distortion may be serious or minimal. A proper evaluation is essential.
Over time, string tension causes the upper bout of all guitars to gradually become concave at the neck joint. This concavity can be pronounced or very slight. All guitars over twenty years old exhibit varying degrees of distortion in this area. The trick is to find one that is not excessively distorted. The longer the guitar had medium or heavy gauge strings strung to full tension, the more damage you will see. Perhaps the guitar you are evaluating has had a neck reset. This usually corrects action problems, but can not prevent further degradation in the upper bout and neck block. Occasionally, the entire neck block moves or comes unglued from the inside of the guitar. If the neck has already had one reset, major surgery may be required to correct the neck to body relationship and to stabilize the neck joint. That involves high dollar repairs.
Mossman guitars were lightly built: that is why they sound so good. Pre-1975 guitars did not have a cross bar brace attached under the top, beneath the end of finger board. In 1975, Mossman changed the neck block and upper bout structure so that upper bout distortion due to string tension would not occur so soon after the guitar was built. Now, this is not necessarily a deal killer. There are plenty of great pre-75 Mossmans out there. Just be sure to evaluate carefully. Scott Baxendale's Repair Shop (Colfax Guitars in Colorado) has the skills to repair pre-1975 Mossmans. This is an expensive repair ($500 in 2004). They do an operation called "The Agony of Defeet". Take this repair cost into consideration when evaluating all pre-1975 Mossmans.
Pre-1975 Mossmans can be very nice guitars. If you can acquire a pre-75 Great Plains Standard for less than $1300 or a Flint Hills for less than $1000, and all it needs is a neck reset (assuming a stable neck block structure) you may have a great deal on a wonderful used Mossman. I challenge you to find any pre-1969 Martin that sounds as good as a Great Plains Standard at that price level. This is why Mossmans are such a good value. They are great guitars at a great price, assuming no significant aging or damage problems. (The best guitar I own is a 73 GP.)
By the way, I have heard from fellow flat-pickers that the newer Mossmans made in Sulpher Springs Texas are excellent. Unfortunately, I have never played one.
Look for top cracks along the finger board extension A sure sign
of upper bout distortion or damage
is a top crack running along either side of
the finger board extension.
Sometimes you can see this by shinning a
light inside the guitar against the top under the finger board.
Look for a crack along side the ebony finger board. The light will shine
through the crack. Or, the crack maybe very visible from the top.
You can also use an inspection mirror to check the inside.
Here is an image of
top cracks along the finger board extension
This damage is possibly due to heat damage, or maybe someone sat on the guitar.
This is probably not due to string tension. This is pretty severe damage.
The finger board extesion top cracks I am referring to are not always easy to see.
The top distortion may be minimal. The above image illustrates where
the top damage can occur.
Verify that the sound hole is round. New guitars always have a perfectly round sound hole. If the hole is oval, or narrowed along the length-wise axis of the guitar, upper bout distortion has occurred. The sound hole can distort with or without cracks along the finger board extension. When you a evaluate Mossman, take along your sound hole checker. (See the sound hole tool ) Evaluate the sound hole roundness by fitting the circle into the sound hole. If it binds in any one or two spots, you have sound hole distortion and probable neck joint or upper bout distortion. This is a warning to look for significant structural Problems.
Use the action checking card to measure action. You should see maximum 4/64 to 5/64 between the underside of the sixth string and the fret top. You should see 2/64 to 3/64 between the underside of the first string and the fret top. Other strings measure somewhere in between. Some players prefer a higher action (or say they do because they can't afford to fix it.) But action much higher than these numbers indicate possible problems.
Too low is OK: This is easy to fix. Too high may be a problem.
The saddle is the small white colored plastic or bone object sticking in a slot cut into the bridge, which is glued to the top.
How much is sticking above the top of the bridge? New guitars have approximately 1/8 protruding above the top of the bridge. If the saddle is very low, compared to other guitars with comparable action, you know there is a problem. A guitar with very low saddle will almost certainly need a neck reset or upper bout repairs (neck block, etc.) in the near future. If you prefer high action, this may be acceptable to you, but most pickers like the lowest action possible commensurate with no string buzzing.
The bottom line in all action evaluation: is the guitar easy to play with no string buzzing or deadening? Some of this is personal preference, but if you had a choice, would you prefer a low action (easy to play) rather than a hard to play guitar? My guitar is set to the lowest possible string height so I can play hard and loud without string buzzing. This is only possible because it is in good structural condition. Don't let someone tell you that high action is personal preference just because the worn out guitar they want to sell you can't have the action set lower.
Look inside with the flashlight and inspection mirror. Look for any cracked braces or loose braces not stuck to the top or back.
Take note of the case. If the case has a flat top, pay careful attention to the two main braces. A flat top case magnifies the possibility of main brace damage because there is greater chance of impact damage to the string pins and therefore to the top and underlying bracing structure.
Again, look inside with the flashlight and inspection mirror. Directly under the bridge you will see a thin wooden patch or plate approximately two inches by three or four inches and less than 1/8 inch thick. The peg holes run right through the middle of this plate. You want to examine the peg holes. Ideally, they should be perfectly round, with the string ball ends sitting up on the surface of the plate. (You may see slots cut into the string holes towards the sound hole. These are OK as long as they are not longer than 1/16 inch.) A bad bridge plate has oblong, enlarged, or ragged holes. A very bad plate allows the string ball ends to sink down into the plate. Expensive repairs may be required in this case. However, there is a new tool which can solve this problem. See the Bridge Saver on the Tools page.
The most dangerous small cracks are along the fret board overhang. This is the part of the fret board which is glued to the top. Any cracks in this area indicate serious neck joint or neck block failure.
Cracks in the top wood below the bridge may indicate problems with braces, a bad top, excessively hard playing, using heavy gauge strings, heat or dryness damage, and many other problems. You will see guitars with cracked tops that sound fantastic. But, the braces have to be in perfect condition. This evaluation requires a qualified Luthier.
Many Mossmans have finish cracks resulting from improper storage during the Conn warehouse storage era. This is normally only a cosmetic problem. I'd love to get my hands on one of these old guitars. They were made in the glory days of Winfield production. Excluding other damage or wear, these are often superb instruments. After all, if it's playable, I don't care what it looks like, I am going to play it, not look at it.
Cracks in the side usually indicate serious impact damage. Examine all braces carefully. Make sure no side braces are loose.
See Side Cracks. Obviously, don't buy a guitar with a crack you can see through (unless you are certain it is Dan Crary's original instrument) or longer than 2 inches. Long cracks indicate serious damage.
Make sure the bridge is completely attached. Put on your best pair of glasses, or, even better use a magnifying glass or loupe. Study the line where the bottom of the bridge meets the spruce top. If the bridge is beginning to separate, you will see a little crack, often less than 1/64 or 1/128 of an inch. This is an easy repair, assuming there is no damage to the spruce underneath. If you see this problem, time to take it to a competent luthier.
Make sure the saddle has the same radius as the frets. Mossmans have a 20 inch radius. That is; the fret board curve is part of a circle 20 inches in diameter.
Examine the fret tops carefully on the first five frets. If the tops are flat, someone has filed down the fret tops to hide excessive fret wear. A good fret job with a really nice action adjustment is about $300 to $500 (East Coast prices). A complete fret job is a lot of work, especially on a bound neck Great Plains Standard. A Great Plains Custom with all that mother of pearl decoration up and down the fret board is even more. Sometimes a partial fret job is sufficient.
There might be enough fret metal left to re-crown the fret tops but this is unlikely. Mossman used a rather low fret. There is not much room for wear and re-crowning.
Can you believe some people actually play a beautiful guitar with an exotic wood (rosewood or ebony) finger board with long finger nails? Long nails damage the finger board. Why on earth would you damage that beautiful conglomeration of wood, glue, finish coatings, metal and plastic that you just paid $$$$$ for?
Finger board divots are tough to repair and make look nice. Why not just take care of the thing in the first place? See Frank Ford's site
Make sure the strap peg stays put with a nice friction fit in the lower bout. If this peg is excessively loose, you may have lower bout glue block damage or cracks. Or someone installed, then later removed, a pickup jack plug. Repairs: $100 at least to do it right.
A personal opinion here: I think pickups in acoustic guitars are silly. If you want to amplify an acoustic, use a microphone out front. When I am the buyer, evidence of any pickup installation reduces the value by at least one-third.
Brazilian rosewood is the Holy Grail of tone woods, but, it is over all tone quality that matters. Brazilian back and sides do not guarantee a great sound.
The catalogs and the authoritative articles you read from time to time are not always accurate when it comes to tone woods. In 1969, Brazil stopped exporting rosewood. By 1974, Brazilian rosewood was a rare commodity. Mossman had a good stock, but usually saved it for his best instruments. In 1975 there was a fire in the Mossman warehouse and all stocks of Brazilian were destroyed. Before 1975, he was using a mixture of Brazilian look alike's, Indian, and some Brazilian. After 1975, almost all guitars are Indian, with Brazilian used only on the best instruments.
We will try to list, in general, what woods were used in various models. Remember, it's the top that makes a great guitar. That is where Stew Mossman excelled.
Mossman did use Brazilian on lower priced guitars. I'd sure like to know why they did this. I have a '73 Flint Hills. The catalog says this is Indian Rosewood. Mine is beautiful, perfect, quarter sawn Brazilian Rosewood.
A guitar with good intonation plays in tune at all positions on the neck. No guitar is perfect, but good ones are close.
Check intonation by comparing the tone at the twelfth fret with the harmonic at the twelfth fret. This is easy to do with a good quality electronic tuner. A good tuner can hear the difference. If the differences are bad enough, bridge or saddle relocation may be needed. I would not accept a guitar with bad intonation unless the guitar was very nice and the deal was very good.
Seems like many people are unaware that the worst thing you can do to a guitar is leave it in a hot car. Nothing, except maybe flooding, ruins a vintage guitar faster. A critical place to look for damage is the neck block structure. Make sure the block is firmly attached to the upper bout side wood and the underside of the top. Also, make sure the bridge is firmly attached. These are the critical structures on the guitar. If either of these items is showing separation, the guitar is probably heat damaged. (You can have heat damage without finish cracks, which are caused by sudden changes from cold to warm air.)