Went through my old notes last night to reacquaint myself with octave mandolin specs.
The skip guitar has a scale length of 608mm (23.9"), and a nut width of 46mm. Octave mandolins don't seem to have a standardised scale length, but can sit anywhere between 20.5" and 23.5" (though I also found some as short as 19"), so the guitar is at the longer end, but will work.
The final instrument will be double strung and tuned GDAE (one octave below a mandolin), with the extra strings on the bass side being an octave higher (like on a 12 string guitar). I'm probably going to down tune to GDGD, as all the traditional Chinese instruments I play are tuned this way and it feels more comfortable for me.
Because it's double strung, I'm a bit worried about the tension on the neck. I have previously used Thomastik flat wound strings on my older, antique mandolins because even though they're expensive they have really low tension and so they protect the neck. I don't know if there is a longer version available, but will investigate. Will also think about adding in a truss rod.
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