Larry, for $300 you can get a very nice instrument. That Cripple Creek could be good, but it might also have problems similar to those of recent instruments discussed in the forums I link to above. And as you can see, some of those were utterly unplayable.
Since the ad is on Craig's list, it is obviously local, and you can see and play the dulcimer before buying it. If you are really interested, take an electronic tuner with you when you go to see it. Tune it up and play a little bit. Is the action reasonable? Action refers to how high off the fretboard the strings are. If the action is too low, the strings will likely buzz. If it is too high, it will be hard to finger the strings. Additionally, high action might also lead to faulty intonation. Use your tuner to check each fret on each string as you move up the fretboard. Do the notes stay in tune or do they get sharp or flat as you move up the fretboard? Some of the other Cripple Creek dulciemrs described in those other discussions had bad intonation, perhaps due to faulty fret positioning. But that basically makes them unplayable. As you play,doesthe instrument stay in tuneor lose itstuning repeatedly? If the instrument has not been played recently and if the strings are old, it might have trouble staying in tune anyway, but if it seems to need constant retuning, that could be a sign of faulty tuning pegs.
Again, let me reiterate that $300 is a fair amount for a used instrument. In fact,I've paid that price for a used Blue Lion and also a used Laurel Mountain, both of which are probably better instruments than the Cripple Creek.I would advise definite caution here.There are fine new dulcimers that you can buy in the $300 range. For example, FOTMD member David Lynch sells several model dulcimers for $325 and a student model for $125. I have one of the student models which I use when I travel on the east coast. It is a wonderful instrument. I can only imagine how nice David's higher end instruments are. Check out his website here . You might also keep an eye on the For Sale Forum here at FOTMD. Periodically instrument come available there that might be better risks than the Cripple Creek. Or you might start a discussion asking about recommendations for dulcimers in the $300 range. A bunch of folks will probably recommend luthiers they know and trust.
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Dusty T., Northern California
Site Moderator
As a musician, you have to keep one foot back in the past and one foot forward into the future.
-- Dizzy Gillespie
