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Thread: New(old) Mandolin banjo

  1. #1
    Likes quaint instruments poul hansen's Avatar
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    Default New(old) Mandolin banjo

    Here is my new/old Mandolin banjo.

    I just loosened the tuners, adjusted the ring shape to get the action down(it's still too high at 3.5 mm) and freshened the chrome and the shellac, removed rust and installed new strings.
    Maybe I'll restore it later but I'm not very impressed with the sound just now.

    Click image for larger version. 

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    Kentucky KM-805..........2 Hora M1086 Portuguese II(1 in car)
    Hora M1088 Mandola.....
    Richmond RMA-110..... .Noname Bearclaw
    Pochette Franz Janisch...5 Pocket............Alfredo Privitera pocket
    Puglisi Pocket 1908........Puglisi 1912.......Puglisi 1917
    3 Mandolinetto ..............C.Garozzo
    1 Mandriola...................Cannelo G. Mandriola...Böhm Waldzither 1921
    Johs Møller 1945............Luigi Embergher Studio 1933
    Marma Seashell back......Luigi Embergher 5bis 1909

  2. #2
    Registered User Ranald's Avatar
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    Default Re: New(old) Mandolin banjo

    Looks good anyway, Poul. Perhaps it's a poor instrument, but if you search old discussions on the Cafe, you'll find that many, perhaps most, of the people here don't like the sound of banjo mandolins (also called banjolins and mandolin-banjos). They tend to have an aggressive, unsubtle sound. I use mine for some 19th Century American poplar songs, and for ragtime and early blues. You could experiment with those types of music, or else sell the banjo mandolin to someone who likes it. If I took mine to a Celtic or bluegrass session, I'd sit near the door, and be ready for a quick exit.
    Last edited by Ranald; Nov-06-2021 at 10:33am.
    Robert Johnson's mother, describing blues musicians:
    "I never did have no trouble with him until he got big enough to be round with bigger boys and off from home. Then he used to follow all these harp blowers, mandoleen (sic) and guitar players."
    Lomax, Alan, The Land where The Blues Began, NY: Pantheon, 1993, p.14.

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  4. #3
    Orrig Onion HonketyHank's Avatar
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    Default Re: New(old) Mandolin banjo

    My mandolin journey started with a mandolin-banjo - an unbranded one. I still have a Vega Little Wonder. I last played it this past summer when our Newbies group did Diving Duck Blues for its Tune of the Month. I think of it as being the musical washboard of the mandolin family.
    New to mando? Click this link -->Newbies to join us at the Newbies Social Group.

    Just send an email to rob.meldrum@gmail.com with "mandolin setup" in the subject line and he will email you a copy of his ebook for free (free to all mandolincafe members).

    My website and blog: honketyhank.com

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  6. #4
    Likes quaint instruments poul hansen's Avatar
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    Default Re: New(old) Mandolin banjo

    I bought it to emulate the banjo sounds in irsh music so that sound in itself is there but I think the tones are very dull as if they are dampened. Maybe by the skin/head. Well I'll see. It's a day since new strings, so I'm still tuning.

    BUT banjos are constructed strangely
    If the wooden ring distorts, the action changes and it also changes when the skin flexes which it does when tuning or at humidity change!!

    If I lean a bit too much on my 5 string on a strap, it goes out of tuning.

    And tools used on it are the same as on your car ;-)
    Kentucky KM-805..........2 Hora M1086 Portuguese II(1 in car)
    Hora M1088 Mandola.....
    Richmond RMA-110..... .Noname Bearclaw
    Pochette Franz Janisch...5 Pocket............Alfredo Privitera pocket
    Puglisi Pocket 1908........Puglisi 1912.......Puglisi 1917
    3 Mandolinetto ..............C.Garozzo
    1 Mandriola...................Cannelo G. Mandriola...Böhm Waldzither 1921
    Johs Møller 1945............Luigi Embergher Studio 1933
    Marma Seashell back......Luigi Embergher 5bis 1909

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    Ranald 

  8. #5

    Default Re: New(old) Mandolin banjo

    I like mine, but it’s tuned down a full fifth. Search this site under the alternative names, like banjolin, and you’ll see quite a bit of advice for the taming of the shrill. On mine, the action is a function of some hardware at the end of the stick, not the head tension. Have you taken that resonator off yet - looks like a chore, and your auto tools won’t help! The manufacturer’s name may also be stamped inside.
    There are many tonal possibilities with this thing - it may be that the ‘factory’ setup with mandolin tuning and mandolin strings is not the best.

  9. #6
    Likes quaint instruments poul hansen's Avatar
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    Default Re: New(old) Mandolin banjo

    Quote Originally Posted by Richard500 View Post
    I like mine, but it’s tuned down a full fifth. Search this site under the alternative names, like banjolin, and you’ll see quite a bit of advice for the taming of the shrill. On mine, the action is a function of some hardware at the end of the stick, not the head tension. Have you taken that resonator off yet - looks like a chore, and your auto tools won’t help! The manufacturer’s name may also be stamped inside.
    There are many tonal possibilities with this thing - it may be that the ‘factory’ setup with mandolin tuning and mandolin strings is not the best.
    The action does change with the head tension and the shape of the wooden ring. There is no stick inside, but two adjustable screws in the aluminium ring, to keep the wooden ring from deforming when tightening the strings or in effect adjust the action.

    I did take the aluminium ring out, using my car screwdriver and adjustable wrench
    Kentucky KM-805..........2 Hora M1086 Portuguese II(1 in car)
    Hora M1088 Mandola.....
    Richmond RMA-110..... .Noname Bearclaw
    Pochette Franz Janisch...5 Pocket............Alfredo Privitera pocket
    Puglisi Pocket 1908........Puglisi 1912.......Puglisi 1917
    3 Mandolinetto ..............C.Garozzo
    1 Mandriola...................Cannelo G. Mandriola...Böhm Waldzither 1921
    Johs Møller 1945............Luigi Embergher Studio 1933
    Marma Seashell back......Luigi Embergher 5bis 1909

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