Zither search

[Rudy Mueller]

You may also want to check out the Goodwill.com and/or Goodwillebay.com sites occasionally.
rudi

[Gunter]

Graham, I took your advise and passed on this zither.
The discoloration led me to believe that it got wet. He said it didn’t.
I got him to take a pic or video from the front and it showed delamination, but no sign of being dropped that I could tell.
I decided, with your input, I didn’t want to have to rebuild an instrument.
Thank you for your input.
Michael

[Gunter]

I passed on another zither on Goodwill. It had some wood screws in the bottom, but also had tuning pins on the greffbrei. It had no maker label, either.
I also lost a bid on one on eBay. Maybe one day the right one will come along and land in my lap. In the mean time I can cruel over pictures of one’s that others own, or that are above my price. LOL!

[Graham]

I bought two off German e-bay, as Covid lockdown survival projects! The first was a Bohemian 34 string zither by Votava (Prague), which needed quite a lot of work but is now fully playable, with a nice tone, but unfortunately out of tune as the griffbrett is just ...slightly inaccurate, so it will NEVER be in tune, and never has been!

The second is an Ernst Rudolf Glier 36 string concert zither from Markneukirchen, Saxony, which is later, maybe 1920s, which is really nice. It only needed cleaning, minor repairs and restringing.

If you do not mind a wait because of the distance, and possibly customs charges, there is a MUCH bigger selection on German e-bay, including relatively new instruments by Wuensch, etc.

[Gunter]

Thanks Graham. I’m in the United States, in west Oklahoma City suburb. I’ve seen some of those beautiful German zithers, but was suggested that I not buy one from Germany. I wasn’t told the reason, though.
I did see a Tiffenbruenner (sp) but it looked like it was dropped on the same corner as the one I posted. It had a very poor looking repair and needed strings.
I’ve about decided to sell my hammered dulcimer to provide finance for a zither that’s not needing repair.
But time will tell.
I do appreciate your help and suggestions, and I’m not in any hurry.
Thanks, again

[Carmen]

If you buy one off ebay in Germany, make sure that -yep it was 't dropped-, that there are no breaks, well ask the seller if the tuners are still working fine (if they are too loose it will never stay in tune, if the are too tight, you won't really be able to tune the instrument), also ask how long the instrument was put away.
Instruments usually doesn't like to not be played, plus if you buy a Gither that was played until recently you can be sure that it's tuning works.

If you need help, I can have a look at Zithers on ebay Germany.

Have a lovely day, Carmen

[Gunter]

I appreciate your help, Carmen. I don’t speak or read any language but English.
I’ve looked a goodwill, there is one there for $7.99 with a case but no strings.
I’ve looked at Etsy and EBay. I’ve been outbid on Ebay twice.

[Gunter]

Carmen, I did look at zithers on German EBay and was impressed. Their ones that looked to be in need of repair looked in better shape than some ot the ones in the U.S. since I don’t know about German language, I don’t think I could buy one without help. My funds are still a bit limiting, too. I’m not sure what cost would be for any taxes, import/export duties, shipping and handling and any other charges that might be added on their.
TIA,
Gunter

[Carmen]

Hi Gunter,
I need to recheck how much import costa would be, but YES our used Zithers are usually still in a pretty good shape.

You always can email me for any question:
carmenamrein@yahoo.de

Cheers,
Carmen

[Gunter]

Thanks, Carmen. I tried to send you an email, but my email is not always working. Not very dependable.
I sent you a private message.