Old-Time, All the Time

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This is Doug's new Jason Romero fretless.

This is Paul's banjo.  Paul says:  "My banjo was made by Lo Gordon  of Cedar Mountain Banjos in 2001. It's a Dwight Diller model that came with a slightly wider fingerboard and a wooden tone rim.  A friend special ordered it in cherry wood and eventually sold it to me.   It weighs about seven lbs, plays like a dream and has a mellow tone somewhere between ringing and plunky.  Thanks to Lo, my Banjo Acquisition Syndrome is in full remission."

This is Rosemarie's newest banjo, put together from parts by Lew Stern.

Here are some shots of Bill's newest acquisition.  It's a beautiful Kevin Enoch banjo.  Bill says "Kevin finished this banjo for my birthday, May 29, and it went out for the first time to Barbara's Canal Potluck.  It's a custom design that Kevin and I
worked out together.  The 11" pot is of his design and is deeper than usual with a scalloped rim and half spun over ring. The neck is a shorter scale to allow more tunings. The inlay is of his design, with an Enoch Warthog on the Peg-head and a shooting star on the back strapping. This is, by far, the nicest instrument I have ever owned."

This is Russ's Fielding  Vermonter banjo.  Russ says: "It's built by Will Fielding of Fielding Banjos.  Will learned the art of guitar building from Augie LoPrinzi and pays careful attention to the grain and color of the wood and the way each piece of wood relates to each other and to the whole.  I'm a "wood junkie" and purchased his banjo by mail, trusting Will's reputation for building banjos with a pleasing sound and good looks that are easy to play. The "Vermonter" has:
11 inch pot of curly maple
Rimcap: cherry burl
Neck: Curly maple
Heelcap and Peghead: curly maple
Fingerboard: ironwood

This is Meir's Charlie Glenn mountain banjo, Meir says: "I bought it on a vacation to the North Carolina mountains. I had no  concrete plans to learn banjo, and in fact was considering fiddle. When I picked up this instrument, it played so beautifully even to a beginner that I was moved to buy it and learn clawhammer. "

Inspired by her stint as a mule-driving park ranger on the C&O Canal, Pat B., asked Verne Marr of Pendleton, Oregon to make her a custom A-scale fretless neck for an old Gold Tone pot with marquetry depicting a canal boat being pulled by two mules and her favorite mule's face on the peg head.   Some of the woods used in the inlay include: Oregon myrtle, cocobolo, Pacific madrone, Honduran mahogany, black walnut, box elder and a tropical hardwood.

Pat says "Thanks, Verne. Your work is beautiful and this is a plunky little banjo that's lots of fun to play."

This is Barbara's main banjo, an Ome Juniper.  Barbara played many, many banjos before she settled on the warm, woody tone of her Ome.  Barbara purchased it at Turtlehill Banjo Company and she says that when ever she plays any other banjo she always ends up loving the sound of her banjo the best.   Barbara also owns a mountain banjo that was built by her father, following the instructions in the Foxfire Books ~ picture coming soon.

Both of Jacalyn's no-name banjos have a  short scale neck.  Both are old but neither of them are marked.  The one pictured here has very fancy inlay and a carved heel. 

This is one of Phil's wonderful old banjos.  It is an Orpheum No. 2.  He looked for this banjo a long time and finally found it at Player's Vintage Instruments in CA

This year Rosemarie celebrated her 50th birthday by treating herself to a visit to Turtlehill Banjo Co.  She came home with her beautiful, new Ome Oldtime Jubilee

  This is Leslie's 1930's banjo, a no-name with a spun-over rim and an Elite no knot tailpiece.  She had the friction pegs replaced with geared tuners,  replaced the Remo Weather King head with a Renaissance.  There is a MOP strip attached to the fingerboard at the last fret before the head -- it is engraved with the name of the former owner -- `Bradford.'  The banjo  has a repair at the 2nd fret because of finger marks that were worn into the wood.  She guesses Bradford played it a lot to make those deep grooves.  Here are some of the simple inlays on the neck.

Leslie's main banjo is a Mike Ramsey Bacon model.   Leslie says: "I love my banjo.   had Steve Carmody lower the action for me and change the tailpiece.  It sounds sweet and rich, is beautiful and is easy to play.  One thing I like about our F~O~B practice sessions is that we often swap banjos.  That's a good way to learn the differences between banjos and develop preferences before going banjo-shopping.  And it points out another good reason to start a practice group." This is the pretty gryphon peghead inlay in Leslie's Mike Ramsey banjo.

This is Brooke's banjo, a Bacon Manufacturing Company Peerless.  It has beautiful inlay and a fancy carved heel.  It has a wonderful, warm, plunky, old-time sound that all of her students love.  She credits that, in part, to set-up guy, Steve Carmody.

This is Ruth's banjo, a Deering Goodtime.  Pictured next to it is a member of her fan club.


Here's Ruth and her Goodtime Beach Banjo...