Dobro Model 210 Model Resophonic Mandolin, c. 1939, made in Chicago, faux wood grain top, black back and sides finish, laminated wood body, poplar neck with ebonized fingerboard, original black chipboard case.
Although the Dobro name is primarily associated with resonator guitars played in Hawaiian mode with a slide the company has made many other types of instruments over the decades since its founding in 1929. This relatively modest mandolin is a case in point; it was National/Dobro's least expensive 8-string in the late 1930s listing at all of $21 plus $4.35 for the case. Dobro made a line of mandolins at the time and they seem to have been passingly popular, at least enough to have stayed in production through the 1930s.
The wood parts of this one were likely made by Regal, with a laminated birch body and poplar neck. What little can be seen of the top has a faux woodgrain finish while the back and sides are lacquered dark. The body and fingerboard are bound and the coverplate has a "Moons and Stars" motif. An 8 1/2" Dobro cone and spider assembly sit underneath, powering the sound which is far less shrill than many might expect.
The "DOBRO" banner headstock logo is a silkscreen and the tuners are early Kluson strips, helping date this example to the just pre-WWII period. There is a small gold sticker inside the body visible under the upper soundhole reading "Montgomery Ward" so we would assume this mandolin was originally sold by them. This is a neat original package, a fairly obscure piece of the Dopyera Brothers' legacy but a cool one nonetheless still a good player 85 or so years along.
Overall length is 25 1/2 in. (64.8 cm.), 11 in. (27.9 cm.) across at the widest point, and 2 5/16 in. (5.9 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 13 1/2 in. (343 mm.). Width of nut is 1 3/16 in. (30 mm.).
This mandolin plays well with a nice straight neck, clean original frets and a decent neck angle. The all-original finish has some light dings, scuffs and scratches but no major wear, with a bit of finish worn off the back of the neck. There is some unusual occlusion to the plating on the coverplate that looks like spiderwebbing; we have not seen this before and do not know what caused it. At any rate it looks odd but does not affect the instrument in any functional way. This is a good example of this fairly obscure Dobro creation with no repairs or alterations except a strap button added to the heel. It offers a deeper and sweeter sound than most would expect from a resonator mandolin and still rests in the original chipboard case. Excellent - Condition.
