Gut strings, no frets.
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Some folks say the Big Bill Blues ain't bad. Musn't have been the Big Bill Blues I had - Big Bill Broonzy, Big Bill Blues
0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic. Gut strings, no frets. Now you're talking. What's your budget? You can get a fantastically inexpensive instrument from Eric Prust in Sequim, WA for a little more than $200... if your budget is higher, there are a few makers that do minstrel reproductions (Flesher, Wunderlich) and a few that make minstrel-inspired instruments (Menzies comes to mind) - and then there are gourd banjos (Hyatt, Ross, Thornburg)... if you're handy with tools, building your own gourd banjo might be a worthy project. dj
Quote We should probably start with your definition of that phrase Frankie, realistically my banjo budget would top out at around $800 and hopefully remain quite a ways below that. Frets are a necessity. And having played a gut stringed viola da gamba in my youth, I'm staying far away from those - I want to spend more time playing than tuning. dj
Yeah, something like that! Thanks for pointing that out, Chris. Coincidentally, I'll be in Rochester in a week and a half. Time to start negotiations with my wife!
That's a cool banjo - dj, you should note that it's set up currently for synthetic strings and might need a slightly different setup for steel. You might like the synthetic strings, though. They have a warmer tone than steel, not nearly as nice sounding as gut, but hold their tune much better and last practically forever.
Gut strings, no frets. Gut frets, no strings??? ( ) Sorry - but it's all Blueshome's fault for setting me up.... I agree Richard...Let's keep this tread going! Anyway I got my banjo the other day Nice open back with a maple neck and 11 inch pot..I will post pics soon so you guys can tell me what you think....it's got a fat neck on it for one thing which is great for me, I have fat hands.... ( The neck was custom built by the previous owner )
Dobro33H
ealistically my banjo budget would top out at around $800 and hopefully remain quite a ways below that. Old banjos don't always make good starter instruments. Most of the cheap banjos built between the 1890's and the 1920's are going to have issues - and the good ones will be pretty expensive. Years ago the old catalog banjos (Kay, Harmony, Silvertone) made good starter instruments - but it is hard to find good ones in playable condition nowadays. The modern imported banjos usually feature an aluminum rim and a resonator. They will get you playing - but price and quality are all over the board. The best imported started banjo I have found is the Tyler Mountain TM5-35. It's a simple open back banjo that plays well enough to get started. We sell the TM5-35 with a complete set of instructional stuff for $269.95 so there is a lot of bang for the buck. Savanna (http://www.savannahacoustic.com/Open-Back-Banjo.1809.0.html) and Rover (http://www.sagamusic.com/catalog/details.asp?ProductID=RB-20) are also offering some nice starter banjos. I have also gotten word that Poppas Boxes (http://www.papasboxes.com/photos.html) is going to start making cigar box banjos again. I wound up the their prototype instrument last year (yes, it is cool to be me) and I am still head over heels in love with this little instrument. A few months ago we started building an American-made affordable banjo. the The Somerset S-5 Minuteman starts at $649.00. The banjo is built by Chris Via on his farm in Virginia and I'm really proud of the way the project turned out. http://somersetbanjo.com/s-5.html There are a lot of options within your budget. Have some fun shopping around. -Patrick
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