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Thread: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

  1. #1

    Default Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    I've been thinking a lot lately about getting a banjo. (Feel free to tease me. I have it coming.) I'm thinking an open-back. I know I'm not interested in the whole Earl Scruggs to Bela end of the spectrum. Adam Hurt is my idea of a banjo player I enjoy listening to. While I might be more likely to finger pick it than frail, I would like to try to learn that style.

    Anybody have advice for somebody in my situation? I don't know the first thing about banjos. I've looked a lot at Dogwood and Pisgah models and am leaning the direction. Maybe a 12-inch rim for a little mellower tone? I also like the idea of a 25.5" scale. One of the things I prefer about mandolins to guitars is the shorter scale. Size matters!

    I've giving the below some serious thoughts but am 100% open to being schooled on the subject. What don't I know that I don't know that I'll know I should've known after I should have known it? : )

    http://www.pisgahbanjos.com/model/pisgah-wonder/
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  3. #2
    Registered User darylcrisp's Avatar
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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    as in everything, there's a lot to choose from and learn. neck sizes/shapes, scale lengths, tonerings, it can be a bit overwhelming.

    with banjos, especially open back, i personally feel you can get a fine instrument that will take you a long way, for a couple hundred dollars(around $500)-i am thinking of the Deering Americana(12" pot). These Goodtime line instruments tend to have excellent setups from the factory, very good to excellent fretwork, good cut nut slots, a lot of owner info on the Deering site(how to tighten the head, how to change the head. This line tends to have good tone as well, light in weight(around 5 lbs), very good wood, dry slick necks. The only thing is the scale on these are 26+". nut width usually 1 1/4". You can learn a lot on one of these, then go have hands on with more expensive makes and figure out what might work better. higher dollar Deerings that i think are worth investigating would be the Vega line. I especially like the Deering Vega Senator, around mid $2000 but there are two used ones at the BHO and may be here in the classifieds, $1650

    If its still available, Shaun Garrity( Sgarrity here on the cafe), did have an OME Wizard for around $1750 or so. That is a higher tier banjo, typically around 6 lbs, plays and sounds excellent, well built with high quality pretty wood, 1 3/8" nut width, 25.5" scale, based on how tight you draw the head tension you can have a bright or more bassy instrument. changing bridge weights can make a difference as well, along with string gauges. You can play fingerstyle or clawhammer on either of these just fine. The Wizard will have a thicker richer tone of course. The Ome Tupelo is a nice banjo to learn on as well, think of it as a Wizard with less brackets, less weight, and a slightly different tone(Tom Collins uses a Tupelo a lot, along with other Omes). Tupelos typically come in 12" and around $2000. excellent banjos.

    Owned Pisgah before and i really like the playability, tone, and quality of build. I don't always like the choice of wood or inlay, but thats a personal matter. You can get into a Pisgah for around $1500 newish.

    I'm not into bling or ornate instruments...........other than on banjos, then i'm wide open and bring it on. I love highly ornate elaborate old historical inlays.

    there are two types of banjos. Nechville and everybody else!
    If you want an easy to adjust on the fly neck angle, TR, or tone change, head towards a Nechville. The Atlas and Atlantis are excellent open back models, very comfortable, typcially around 5 lbs, allow a one bolt adjustment to change the string action on the neck, offer a lot of adjustability to achieve the tone you want, excellent fretwork, excellent tone. I do know Avenue Guitars is getting a shortscale 12" Atlas soon, not sure when exactly. There is an Atlas for sale on the BHO for around $1400, thats a great price.

    If you have the $, i would jump on the Wizard if Shaun still has it. OME is hard to beat, and you can always resale with little loss by buying used.

    d
    Last edited by darylcrisp; Mar-12-2021 at 9:45pm.

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    Registered User darylcrisp's Avatar
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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    Here are some suggestions for learning. I highly enjoy Tom Collins, he has a lot of free info on youtube, but for only $5 a month patreon you can have wide open doors to all the indepth teaching he offers. He really knows how to break things down to help it all make sense and give you a good roadmap to success. He offers a lot of beginner start up info and recently did a hour+ podcast that contains a wealth of info.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTjOV36chDQ


    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RocEKIlpCQM


    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mJgdatcfSI

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    Registered User darylcrisp's Avatar
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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dsP1D0ZfRHw&t=14s


    the next two videos are more recent and really explain the clawhammer stroke excellent, work on these principles is most important early on(and knowing how to hold the banjo so your stroke is efficient and relaxed).

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVG2nMuxFbg


    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vc3CbCdGD_o&t=33s

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    Registered User darylcrisp's Avatar
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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    and, i recommend Clawhammer Banjo
    with Evie Ladin on PegHeadNation. whereas Tom dissects deeply, Evie is like a free bird. Her classes are very enjoyable and she has an excellent way of teaching that helps you understand. Tom gives you solid instruction on technique, Evie takes you along learning tunes, imo. Use both.

    another video about the picking hand for clawhammer, Lukas is an excellent player/performer, you can see elements in his instruction that Tom Collins talked about. Sometimes seeing different people discussing the same thing helps.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FbtT-UoAmI&t=1s


    d
    Last edited by darylcrisp; Mar-12-2021 at 10:51pm.

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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    and yet one more video regarding the striking hand, probably the hardest part of clawhammer to understand and use efficiently, smoothly, and clean. this is older than the videos i posted above, but there's a lot of info in all these, i watch them over and over and always pick up something new or better that i can employ.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHovpY60W4Y&t=0s

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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    Hi Mike, just some thoughts about your post. First thanks for mentioning Adam Hurt. Just watched some YT videos and he's very good! There is a nice video of him and Kathy Fink playing together. She plays a more traditional clawhammer style while he plays IMHO whats now called clawgrass. Kind of a hybrid between clawhammer and three finger Scruggs style. But both are playing open back banjos. Three finger Scruggs style picker typically play resonator banjos and use metal finger picks. Clawhammer players brush the strings with the back of their middle finger and use the drop thumb on the fifth string. Clawgrass, well that's a style that I'm not so sure how they play it!
    Secondly please know that the mandolin and banjo are completely different instruments. (I play both, with clawhammer being my current preference. I played banjo before I took up mandolin). Aside from fretting little in common. So I'd approach purchasing a banjo as a separate entity.
    That being said I say you're looking for an open back banjo. I have a Deering Goodtime Americana Artisan that has a 12" rim. I do like the more old time deeper sound. No endorsement intended here. Plenty of other great instruments out there!
    Ratliff R5 2007, Capek A5 2003, Washburn M5S-SB Jethro Burns 1982, Mid-Mo M-2, Epiphone MM 30 Bk mandolins, Harmony Batwing 1970's, George Bauer bowlback early 1900's Philadelphia.


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  10. #8

    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    Well I'm pretty partial to Steve Gerritsen at Stone Banjo Company. I'm still a beginner but have owned several open backs and am finally down to 3. 2 Stone's(both 12" 25.5" scale and 1.35" nut) and one A Scale 11" Zach Hoyt. There are several, including those 2, that can sell and/or build you a fantastic banjo for under $1K that will blow a Deering out of the water. Personally if I were buying an off the shelf banjo I'd get a Gold Tone and Deering would be last choice.

    As to online instruction there are several, but Mandy Tyner / Banjo Lemonade is excellent and breaks it down real easy for beginners. She actually got me interested in Mandolins, lol.
    https://banjolemonade.com/
    https://www.youtube.com/user/BanjoLemonade


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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    Quote Originally Posted by darylcrisp View Post
    and yet one more video regarding the striking hand, probably the hardest part of clawhammer to understand and use efficiently, smoothly, and clean. this is older than the videos i posted above, but there's a lot of info in all these, i watch them over and over and always pick up something new or better that i can employ.
    Nice one! Just watched it for the first time ever and got some useful information out of it. I can also confirm the lesson from Evie Ladin at Peghead Nation are very good, the Bruce Molsky banjo lessons on Peghead Nation are also fun, but more advanced and with weird tunings.

    I've learned playing clawhammer (after playing Scruggs-style for years) on a Gold Tone banjo (I think it was the CC-OT), pretty good banjo for the money and quality enough to get you started. Now I've also got a hand built banjo made by David Prat, great builder, but he's based in Barcelona so probably not so interesting for you. But he's comparable with Pisgah and others, you can't go wrong there.

  12. #10

    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    Pretty happy with my Deering. The Gold Tone line is also pretty good.

  13. #11

    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    Wow, thanks for all the great information and insight! A couple of things I'm confused about are the options. Any thoughts on NOT getting at 25.5 scale neck? As a mandolin player, the shorter scale seems like it would be more comfortable. I'm not sure what a longer neck gets you but I am not concerned about playing louder/brighter or at the top of the register. The other thing is whether to get an 11 or 12 inch rim. Seems like 12 would have a deeper, more pleasant tone. But it also looks like 11 is standard on a lot of open 5s. Any advice on these two topics? Thanks!
    Ellis A5 Tradition, Red Diamond F5, Duff F5, D35, Gliga violin.
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  14. #12

    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    Don't forget nut width. 1-3/8" nut is a lot easier to play in my opinion. I can only tell you my preferences which are 25.5" scale, 1-3/8" nut width, and 12" pot(which not only sounds better to me, but also balance better in my lap).

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    Registered User Doug Brock's Avatar
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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    Quote Originally Posted by Michael Romkey View Post
    Wow, thanks for all the great information and insight! A couple of things I'm confused about are the options. Any thoughts on NOT getting at 25.5 scale neck? As a mandolin player, the shorter scale seems like it would be more comfortable. I'm not sure what a longer neck gets you but I am not concerned about playing louder/brighter or at the top of the register. The other thing is whether to get an 11 or 12 inch rim. Seems like 12 would have a deeper, more pleasant tone. But it also looks like 11 is standard on a lot of open 5s. Any advice on these two topics? Thanks!
    I had a Pisgah Wonder. 25.5” scale, 11” pot. It was a gorgeous instrument with flamed maple that highly appealed to these mandolin eyes! I liked the shorter scale. I think I would have preferred the 12” pot, but the 11” was still great.

    I ended up selling it because I just didn’t play clawhammer enough to justify the dollars tied up in it. I have a Recording King RK-R35 that can handle the bluegrass sound and still sounds ok with clawhammer. I have a Recording King RKOH-06 open back that I bought used for $125 and I fixed it up with better bridge, tailpiece and tuners. I leave it tuned double C when I want to plunk away with old timey tunes. Really, if you are wanting to dabble, I’ve liked the value of the Recording King instruments. If you go Recording King, shop somewhere like the Banjo Warehouse so they can cull out the worst instruments and can make sure the setup is ok.

    (Looking at the instruments in your signature, I’m thinking you may not be worried about the cost! )
    Doug Brock
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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    I also like the sound of a 12" pot, but I like 1 1/4" nut. I don't like that wide of a nut on a mandolin, but do on a banjo. Then I like 1 3/4" on a guitar too.
    THE WORLD IS A BETTER PLACE JUST FOR YOUR SMILE!

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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    Mike,

    Any of those banjos that you mention are great. I'd skip the Deering, unless you are going to look at their upper-level models. If you are used to playing really nice instruments (and I know you are) I'd stick with the Dogwood, Pisgah, OME, ODE (these are built by OME), etc. Pisgah makes great banjos, and Patrick is a super guy. I bought my first Pisgah (an all persimmon banjo with a persimmon tone ring) directly from him. Check out their on-line store. They have some banjos there, ready to go, for sale. I believe there is still a slotheaded one available too.

    Mike Chew at Dogwood is also a great builder and a terrific guy.

    As for the scale, I think it depends on the banjo. If you are looking for a more old-timely mellow sound, get something with a wooden tone ring like a Pisgah Possom. You can also tone down a brighter-sounding banjo with a skinhead. The only issue with skinheads is that humidity makes it harder to keep in tune (kind of like what it does to bow hair on a fiddle bow). But I have a variety of banjos now, and I just bought a used OME Jubliee with a 26.375" scale length. I figured if I didn't like it I could sell it. It's not going anywhere.

    I've been able to own and play a pretty fair amount of banjos (including ones from a couple of the upper-tier builders) to know what I like. Bill Rickard also makes a great banjo, and his tuners are probably the best that I have experienced on banjos. He also makes the Whyte Ladie tone rings that most builders use in their builds.

    Good luck!
    "your posts ... very VERY opinionated ...basing your opinion/recommendations ... pot calling ...kettle... black...sarcasm...comment ...unwarranted...unnecessary...."

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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    Mike, for dipping your toes in, I don’t think you need to sweat choosing pot size and scale length. With it’s reduced string tension and single course strings, the banjo is a bit more forgiving on the fretting hand than, say, an OM. I very much prefer a 20 inch OM, but I own a Gold Tone Cripple Creek model that’s 26 inches and change, and it doesn’t bother me at all. As with mandolin, you’ll learn what you really like/need as you play more of them and develop your technique. It’s kind of like a beginner worrying about flat vs radius fretboards on entry level mandolins. There are those who have strong preferences (who’ve most likely been playing for years), those that don’t really care, and those that don’t know, ie beginners. Those that don’t know are likely to be happy with either.

    You’re obviously experienced and have excellent taste in mandolins, so if you have a chance to get your hands on some banjos you may well find what you prefer very quickly. If not, I’d say find a good used one (excellent suggestions above) and get to playing. For an inexpensive trial, Gold Tone, Deering, and Recording King’s entry level (or slightly higher) instruments are well built instruments that would serve as a nice introduction (think Kentucky or Eastman). I’ve upgraded mandolins and guitars through the years, but not banjo. Turns out my wife hates the sound of those things, lol, so it doesn’t get much play time

    Good luck, it’s a fun adventure!
    Chuck

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    Mando-Accumulator Jim Garber's Avatar
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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    I am sure you got good advice above on new or newish banjos. I started playing old time music back when there were very few new banjo makers so the main source of open back 5-strings were old ones and most folks I knew were playing ones from around the turn of the last century. What is great about banjos is that they are simply constructed so if you have to adjust, say, the neck angle, it is often just loosening or tightening a screw or two. Most of the adjustments on banjos I have made myself on the old ones. My main 5-strings are from the turn of the last century, 1890 or so. You can find a no-name simple banjo for next to nothing and have it set up by someone for a few hundred. Just an alternative to spending $1200-2000 for a new good quality instrument.
    Jim

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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    I currently have a 12" Pisgah Dobson (26 1/4"sacle) nut width is 1 3/8", an 11" OME XXX made in 1973(26 1/4" scale), and a short scale State banjo that was built in the 1920's to which I added a 5th string. I really like the Pisgah best for old time/clawhammer, and I would highly recommend it. I always get very favorable comments about it's tone. The OME was my main banjo prior to the Pisgah. I like to OME, as well, but prefer the Pisgah for clawhammer. I mostly play Scruggs style on the OME. The old State banjo is fun and is pretty much an "A" scale as far as scale length is concerned (20 5/8"). I keep the State tuned to double "D".

    I started with a Deering Goodtime about ten years ago. Nothing wrong with the Deering's. The Goodtime label is pretty much aimed at the entry level player. I would look at their Vega line if you want a higher level instrument.

    Good luck with your search. Clawhammer banjo is not that difficult to learn, and it is a whole lot of fun.
    Richard

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    Registered User darylcrisp's Avatar
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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    if you really want to go and do it right from the start:
    https://www.elderly.com/products/chu...wood-tone-ring

    wood tone rings(no metal tone ring), can have really nice tone with a lot of projection if you want it. lighter in weight overall, and very pleasant to keep company with.

    12" typically gives you a warmer tone with deeper bass, 11" typically gives you a more direct distinct note quality with a more balanced string set. neither is best or worse, just different. banjos are much like an old truck from the 60's, a tightening or loosening of hardware here or there and you can change things a lot. skin heads tend to react to humidity changes, somewhat like an older person waking up-some days they feel really good, some days they feel slower/more drowsy "due to the weather". loosening the nuts that hold the hooks on the tension hoop can give a deeper tone, tightening give a brighter more direct tone. bridge height/bridge weight can offer changes also. find out the bridge height on what you are buying, get a few no name low cost bridges lower and higher so you can change out to see what you like.

    Here's a good article that gives a lot of info:
    https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/how-t...g%20the%20head.

    in my journey i have found light gauge strings to help initially. they will feel "too light" but will help in learning a soft touch and less tension in your throwing hand and body.

    learning to throw your hand and getting a clean note on all the strings will be frustrating and will more than likely take longer than you feel it should-lol. likewise getting the same presence of quality(loudness) on all the strings. many folks get more quiet as they travel up from the 1st to 4th string. don't get aggravated, every one of us had this to deal with. don't be concerned with the fretting hand until you are very acquainted with a clean, tension free throw, and keeping it going in good time(yes-use a metronome) without thinking. when that has happened then start working the fretting hand. some folks take a few days, some of us take longer.



    my suggestion for an Americana Deering is because they tend to have excellent fretwork, note cleanly up the neck(not so with many banjos-even in higher $ range) light in weight(between 4 to 5 lbs), will take you far in your learning if you can resist BAS, can be a wonderful backpack/vacation banjo(grab a boulder alpine gigbag) to go hiking thru the woods and finding that neat little waterfall or hilltop, and chilling out till dusk playing some modal tunes. you don't have to worry about it getting dinged or knocked, let the grandkids have time with it. the tuners are not the best-but easily replaced if you desire, and they tend to come with too low action, so grabbing an extra bridge or two that is higher helps with raising the action quickly. the neck relief is typically very good-use light gauge strings only(per deering)-correct me, but i don't think the Goodtime line has adjustable truss rods, but, i've never had one thru for any work that needed such. I don't care for the RR spike that is used for the PIP, but that is easily changed to a bone or synthetic PIP is you desire. I have no experience with the other entry level banjos so no comment. I have heard good reports on the Recording King models.

    coming from a fingerstyle guitar background, i "felt" i needed a wide nut width,shortscale(25"), heavy tone ring, and 12" pot at the start of my journey. over time i migrated to less wide nut widths(1 3/32 to 1 1/4" now preferred)11" pots, longer 26+ scale length, no tonering or a simple rolled brass, and a preferred weight range of 5-6 lbs.

    So for me, its been like anything else, lots to explore and find what works best for my body shape, what feels best in my hands, and what ignites my brain when i hear it. The good thing is that banjos are relatively cheap when compared to other instruments, buying used you usually will not lose any $ upon a trade or resale, and they are relatively easy to tinker with and make adjustments that make a large difference to you. changing a bridge height or weight, string set, head, is relatively cheap, and can make a huge difference in a banjos sound. sticking a piece of minicell or towel inside the pot likewise. don't forget a small strip of masking tape across the top of the strings right at the bridge, and or, just behind the bridge(can make a huge difference if you are hearing too many overtones). many of us carry a small strip of masking tape inside the pot just in case we are out and want to change our tone in seconds.

    lots of fun and adventure awaits you.

    my first teacher was Dwight Diller. He lives in the Pochahontas woodlands of W Va. i was wading thru youtube one morn around 2am looking for a particular celtic guitar video i had previously seen. off to the sidebar i noticed this video and clicked. i sat there amazed and dazed. ended up staying up the rest of the morn until daybreak watching Dwight Diller. Sent an email to an obscure address i found, no response for weeks, then suddenly his son Caleb replied and said Dwight was doing a summer week camp and had 5 students already but would take one more. I jumped at the chance. Was an amazing week, with a lot of strange happenings that are best left undiscussed-lol

    I was well used to WVa people, culture, and the territory, having been deeply involved in running whitewater on the New, Gauley, and creeks, for a couple years, but nothing could have prepared me for spending time with Dwight. He is one of a kind. Check out the Hammons family. This is a group of folks who came to WVa at some point and lived deep in the woods-Dwight spent time with them and thats where he picked up what is now considered WVa clawhammer style. The Library of Congress did some extensive recording of the Hammons and there is a very interesting set that contains a book and CD's of music, stories, tunes, all told by the Hammons family. Extremely interesting stuff, things you rarely get to be involved in these days. Below is the video i first saw of clawhammer banjo that early morning.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ioh0XRO80Q


    In that video above Dwight had been playing a Lo Gordon Dwight Diller signature model. Lo no longer builds but i think its his grandson that does(Cedar Mountain banjos in NC). I think it was 2011 when i met Dwight, he had by then went to a 12" pot and shortscale(like 23") that a man was making per his design. He used all tunings with these shortscale tanks(they weighed a lot due to the style of tonerings that had been developed by Dwight and the builder). I'll have to dig to remember the name of the builder-he has since sold the name/business years ago due to health issues and some new owners are still carrying on the name.
    Here is a Hammons tune, Calloway(there were a couple different versions of Calloway with regards to which Hammons was playing)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1sn3U26bzI
    Last edited by darylcrisp; Mar-13-2021 at 6:21pm.

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  30. #20
    Registered User darylcrisp's Avatar
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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    i know you didn't ask for a lot of the above info, but, i had a few minutes and wanted to offer some info on the WVa style and the living link of Dwight(i haven't checked in on him since probably 2019) to an old frontier family that brought forth some long ago history of living in this world. Some of the stories, told by the Hammons, are spooky. They have a dialect that can be hard to understand at times. Dwight told me there had been a time that the Hammons lived so far back in the woods that there had been no visitor for 13 yrs. At times one of the men would head to town for some basic supplies, but they survived mostly from the land. The amazon listing has the CD group and there is a book that goes with it, not sure if that listing contains the book. that book is amazing with pics and info. Banjo can be pretty cool, it doesn't have to be blinding fast and crowded with notes. It can have a zen like aura surrounding it, or a haunting feel of aloneness and privacy.

    enjoy your journey


    Hammons family info


    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000005YVS...t_mus_ep_dpi_1

    http://wvmusichalloffame.com/hof_ham...mance%20styles.
    https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q...tail&FORM=VIRE

    a nice read by Scott Ainslie about clawhammer, his introduction to it, and more
    https://cattailmusic.com/music-instr...whammer-banjo/
    Last edited by darylcrisp; Mar-13-2021 at 6:32pm.

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  32. #21
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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    Thanks Daryl C that's some great music video you attached for us. Makes me think that no one instrument can give all the tones you want. Love what that banjo sounds like in that tune. Can't get that old time sound from a newer type instrument. Can't get that modern sound from a old time instrument. And everything in between keeps us searching for that sweet spot we individually crave.
    Ratliff R5 2007, Capek A5 2003, Washburn M5S-SB Jethro Burns 1982, Mid-Mo M-2, Epiphone MM 30 Bk mandolins, Harmony Batwing 1970's, George Bauer bowlback early 1900's Philadelphia.


    "Don't cloud the issue with facts!" Groucho Marx

  33. #22
    harvester of clams Bill McCall's Avatar
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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    Quote Originally Posted by Michael Romkey View Post
    I've been thinking a lot lately about getting a banjo. (Feel free to tease me. I have it coming.).....
    I know it’s been a bad winter. Running out of firewood?

    Full disclosure: my grandmother was a claw hammer player
    Not all the clams are at the beach

    Arrow Manouche
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  35. #23
    Registered User darylcrisp's Avatar
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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    around mid 2000's, Dwight was playing Cloverlick banjos made by Jeff Kramer(Jeff retired and sold the business some yrs ago).
    https://www.cloverlickbanjoshop.com/about-us
    scroll down and there's a 5 min video in the link above with Jeff talking about some designs of his banjos. He and Dwight designed some very different type of tone ring structures and i also remember Dwight had him place the 5th string tuner at the 6th fret(rather than 5th fret) to facilitate slides better and getting that tuner out of the way of the fretting hand thumb(you can see that in the Calloway video a couple posts above). Dwights models by Jeff were shortscale(some folks would call them A scale-23" or thereabouts, Dwight and others tuned them to whatever tuning they wanted-i do not remember string gauges they used).


    this book of West Virginia tunes is a collaboration between Dwight Diller and three of
    his students: Andrew Diamond from London, David Dry from Barnard Castle, Co. Durham, UK,
    and Stewart Seidel from Vancouver, BC .
    For a long time it was extremely hard to get a copy. If you attended a camp you could get access for a download version. they were long out of print and folks who owned a copy was not selling. in looking up Jeff Kramers info, a free link popped up with the full songbook. Its an interesting item as it contains pictures of the Hammons family that i think Dwight took during his years with them, and some neat info of that time.

    http://dwightdiller.com/wp-content/u...rs-correct.pdf
    Last edited by darylcrisp; Mar-13-2021 at 11:39pm.

  36. #24
    Registered User darylcrisp's Avatar
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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    some neat open back moments, Meredith Moon has taken her Goodtime all over the earth

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5H6IUQqG_U4


    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBkhAg8S_Gs


    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOiBSrcs-AU

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  38. #25
    Registered User darylcrisp's Avatar
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    Default Re: Open-back banjo recommendation for a mandolin player?

    and i've over spent my stay on your thread so i'll leave now. i apologize.
    i enjoy folks "finding" the open back banjo.

    one last adventure
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GuT5c0_ncQ

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