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I'm working on my first carved top mandolin and things are going pretty well. It is an A2 style. The plans that I have calls for a dovetail to attach the neck. I'm not jigged up for routing a dovetail in a mandolin so I'll probably cut it by hand. In some other thread (here or elsewhere), I heard reference to "the dowel method" to attach a mandolin neck. I don't have a clear definition of this method. I once recall seeing a drawing or picture of a mandolin neck that had dowels but I don't know if that was what people are refering to when they talk about the dowel method. I've sketched out what I remember seeing. Is this what they are talking about?

That looks like the type of joint described in the Siminoff book. He makes a dovetail joint and ties the heel to the neck by putting in two dowels right where you have them in your diagram.

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I thought this joint was a straight mortice and tenon. I've wondered you the neck was pulled tightly against the body. I looks like you have to set the neck and clamp or strap it in place before you drill the dowel holes. On a violin you use big rubber bands to pull the neck in. Is is similar on a mandolin?

You have it right, Mike. This is usiually a straight M&T, though tapered in the same shape as the heel. You make a jig to hold the body and neck to their proper relationship, and glue it up. Once the glue has set, drill for a 1/4" dowel on each side to lock the joint.

It's a really, really strong enck joint, and can still be dissasembled readily if the neck ever needs to come out, as long as you use hide or titebond glue.

I use this joint, still, on my mandolins. I prefer it to the dovetail, as it locks the neck more tightly, with more surface area, with less finicking in the fitting. I make mine with a slight taper, so it is also a shallow angle dovetial. Basically, I just carry the fretboard's taper up into that area, which along with the heel's taper, creates a shallow dovetail. Add dowels, and you have a joint that will never move...

Why not a bolt on neck like a guitar and make a long hex T to go in through the end pin hole. I found an old custom Mando in ebay a yr back, and someone had built a new neck and used a butt joint bolt on. I haven't strung it up yet, but it comes off and on really easy. Before I glued the back on I put the bolts in the hole and taped them in place. Then when I need to put the neck on, I grab my custom long T hex screw and go through the end pin hole to screw the neck on. Seems to be the easiest joint I know of. Have no idea how it will hold up, but they guy who set this up says he does this on all his mando's with no problems.
Tracy

yeah... What Tracy said. It's not easy to get the bolts in & out with F holes, but possible. If you're using a round or oval hole, it's a snap.
My bouzoukis have a bolted M&T joint & it's plenty strong.

I do use a bolt on for my flat top mandolins. THe A2 mandolin does have an oval sound hole so we could use bolts. I just want to have an understanding of what all the options are. I had heard of the dowel method and wondered what it looked like and what it's merits were. (Thanks Mario)

The heal block on this mandolin is pretty big and I wonder if bolts might add a bit more weight than I'm willing to accept. Right now, I don't know.

Bolt-ons are used on mandolins. Gisons were made like for a good while. Unfortunately, those were also bad years, and guess what? The market turns its nose at bolted neck mandolins. So..., until we have a Bob Taylor and/or a Bill Collings to come along and break the tradition like they did for us in the guitar markets, you won't be seeing a lot of bolted mandolins.

Besides, with its short neck, and arched top and adjustable bridge, resets on mandolins are rare. Even dropped, they rarely break a neck, it being so short and strong.

Not to mention getting to the bolts to tighten/loosen.

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