I am considering taking up playing a period banjo. I have seen period one and would like any advise on who makes a good one, and how hard are they to learn?
I am considering taking up playing a period banjo. I have seen period one and would like any advise on who makes a good one, and how hard are they to learn?
Go here. http://minstrel banjo.ning.com. More info than you probably want, but all you need is located there.
I've seen this fellow at reenactments. He makes and sells minstrel banjos, instruction books, etc.
http://www.gardnersdulcimer.com/Page.aspx?id=146
Thanks guys.
I'd pass on this one. Per his own webpage :Originally Posted by Quickstep
Laminated poplar doesn't scream authentic to me, but lamination did exist back then. However, plastic head and plastic strings do not pass muster. Go to Tim Twiss' Minstrel Banjo (ning) forum. Several manufacturers hang there because buyers can be found there.Our STANDARD MINSTREL BANJO comes with a laminated 12” poplar pot with your choice of Cherry or Black Walnut veneer on the outside. The neck is made of solid Cherry or Black Walnut. It comes with Remo 12” Fiberskyn head and Nylgut Minstrel strings.
Regarding poplar as a wood choice, I once spoke to a banjo manufacturer who once made a banjo entirely out of poplar because the wood was cheap and readily available. Took it to one event. He was so displeased with it, he burned it. The entirely poplar banjo was too soft and absorbed all the vibration from the strings.
- Silas Tackitt
"Civilian Camps are Resource Pigs. Let's do something about that. Hardly an original concept, nor are the solutions. Civilian Camps tend to suck up more of the wood resources of an event because each and every Canvas Palace has to have its very own fire in which to cook its very own Plumb Duff and Roast Beast." - - Terre Lawson, 27 April 2015.
Thanks guys for all the info. Cant wait to get one and start getting lessons
I bought a fife years ago and just cant play it.
1st Sergt 2nd USSS Co. C
"My plans are perfect, and when I start to carry them out, may God have mercy on Bobby Lee, for I shall have none."
General 'Fighting' Joe Hooker
Moderator note---a long 'first post' was here. Moderators read and approve posts without regard to our agreement with the content. It normally takes awhile to do a bit of research when one rings a bell.
This one did. And the message has been deleted with the exception of the signature. This is either the fourth or the fifth time this user has been removed since his original banning.
DJ_Artillery
Last edited by Provost-ADC; 03-27-2013 at 08:30 PM. Reason: Long Memory.
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