I visited Mike Chew at his workshop in Minneapolis the other day and picked up my new banjo. Mike put the finishing touches on the banjo while I was there, chatting with him about banjos and everything else. I love my new banjo!
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All posts tagged “banjos”
Salad bowl banjo
The salad bowl banjo is complete (finally). It has taken me a very long time. You might say there has been an international conspiracy to prevent me from finishing. Others might say I’m a great procrastinator. In my defense, there was a broken and dislocated… Read More
Bridge to better sound
Banjos are about the most adjustable musical instruments I’ve ever seen. You can replace the head with a different one, or you can adjust the tension of the head. You can even change pots or change necks. You can try a different style of tailpiece… Read More
What would you use it for?
I was in a hardware store the other day, one of the old school small ones, not one of the giant warehouse stores that dominate the retail landscape today. We were standing at the cash when I noticed a bin full of these oddball metal… Read More
Mountain banjo – work continues
The core components of the mountain banjo I’m making are now assembled. Fitting and stretching the goatskin was a bit of a challenge. I wanted a snug fit and my hole was a smidge tight, causing me some grief. Also, I used a piece of… Read More
Mountain banjo progress
I got a good start making a mountain banjo back in spring, but I mostly stayed out of the workshop through the summer and and fall. Time to finish it off. All the major components are now ready to go. The neck is carved and… Read More
Working on a new mountain banjo
This design is much different than that of the oil cans. With the oil can banjos, as with gourd banjos, the neck has a dowel stick, typically one piece that goes through the pot. The mountain banjo has a pot made from three rings of… Read More
It was called Old Time….
….even when it was new. Check out this fantastic bit of history… It’s called Folkways: Music of Surry County hosted by David Holt. It’s all about the home of the Round Peak style of Old Time. I don’t know much about the program…there it was… Read More
That’s my rabbit
My dog caught it. Here’s the Walter Family. It says on the info with the video it was recorded in 1933. I’ve read elsewhere it was recorded in 27. It’s a really good tune regardless of when the recording was made. Here’s a hot version… Read More
New Oil Can Banjo – ‘The Industrial’
I’ve completed a new oil can banjo. For obvious reasons I call this one The Industrial. Check out the video I made about it. By the way, the hat I’m wearing on this video is a Vollmar hat. It was given to me many years… Read More
27th Street 