Frequently Asked Questions
I have no idea! This is the question that I'm most commonly asked, and one that I still can't answer. It just depends on the banjo and every banjo is different.
Our little homestead and the banjo shop are located at the base of Buckeye Mountain, so it just seemed natural to use it as a namesake for the business. Additionally, buckeyes were traditionally thought to bring good luck... my grandfather always carried a buckeye in his pocket for this reason, and I like to include a good luck buckeye from our property with every banjo I make.
Sure! I can make tenor bridges, gitjo bridges, bridges with a 5th string bump, radiused bridges, 6-string bridges, nylon string bridges, 7-string bridges, super short (3/8") bridges, super tall (7/8") bridges, bridges with custom string spacing etc... There is a Custom fee of $10 for these unusual bridges though.
As long as the bridge isn't damaged or modified you can exchange it for another one that will hopefully work better.
I prefer the look and feel of cast hardware because it has a much warmer, more organic look and feel than machined hardware. I outsource the casting, which is hand done in small batches, but the designs are original, although heavily inspired by older, late 19th century banjo hardware.
Bronze and brass are similar copper alloys, but bronze is typically stronger and and is a better choice for cast objects. The bronze tailpieces will differ just slightly in color from machined brass hardware, but the difference is negligible.
I originally created the logo as a pen and ink design based on an old Verve Records label and then my buddy Nancy Jurek digitized the design and came up with the great color combination also based on old Verve labels.
I know how hard it is to try and make a living through music, especially in our current times, so yes, I do like to offer special pricing to full time musicians - just let me know if you think you qualify and I'll see what we can do. Also, I love collecting vinyl records and like bartering, so if you have an LP out, I might be interested in trading for a bridge, or knocking some money off of a tailpiece order.
Choice of wood is probably one of the biggest factors in determining the final tone of an instrument. I generally use three local Appalachian hardwoods for my banjos: Black Walnut, Sugar Maple (also called Hard Maple), and Black Cherry. Basically the denser the wood the brighter the tone will be. Walnut is the softest of the three and will have a rich, round, mellow tone, Maple is the densest so will have a crisp, clear, bright tone and Cherry is somewhere in the middle on density and tone.
Acoustically a 12" head will vibrate at a lower frequency thus providing a deeper, mellower tone with more bass response, while an 11" head will vibrate at a higher frequency and have more clarity and focus to its tone. Rim size can also affect how a banjo feels when playing an instrument, so some smaller folks simply like an 11" rim because it fits them better.
Traditionally banjo heads have been some kind of animal skin - currently goat and calf are preferred, although groundhogs and cats were often used back in the day. I like to use goat, which provides a wonderful, warm tone. Unfortunately, all natural skins can soften when the humidity is high leading to a slight loss of tone and projection. I try to get as much "stretch" out of my skin heads as possible in order to reduce the amount of care and maintenance that they will need, and in general, I feel that skin heads aren't as much trouble as most people think they will be. Artificial plastic heads aren't subject to changes in humidity and provide a crisper, brighter tone.
In general the heavier the tone ring is, the brighter, and louder the sound will be...of course there are other subtle difference, but this is a nice, simple way to think about it.
I typically use one of four tone rings: a Wood tone ring is simply a separate piece of solid wood, usually cherry, glued to the top of the laminated rim, a Rolled Brass tone ring is a round 5/16" piece of brass that sits on top of the rim, sometime sitting in a small groove, a Dobson tone ring is a thin brass sleeve that hangs into the center of the rim, sitting on a small 1/4" rolled brass ring, and a Whyte Laydie tone ring is a heavier scalloped brass ring sitting on top of the rim which has a small 1/4" rolled brass ring on top of it as well as a thin brass sleeve.
Tone-wise a Wood tone ring provides a warm, plunky, less metallic tone than the others. The Rolled Brass tone ring and the Dobson tone ring provide a nice balanced tone with a good mix of highs and lows, with the Dobson having a slightly more sparkly tone. The Whyte Laydie tone ring is the heaviest of the four and creates a crisp, clear, punchy tone and is also a bit louder than the others.
In general I source all of my hardware, except the L-shoes and tailpieces, which are cast, from Rickard Banjos. I use Gotoh tuners for my solid peghead banjos, and Waverly tuners, for my slot-head banjos.
In general I source all of my wood from Southwest Virginia sawmills that get their trees locally in the southern Appalachian mountains. One of my favorite things is to go the these mills and carefully select the wood that will eventually be transformed into banjos.
I stopped using tropical hardwoods years ago, due to the issues caused by over harvesting. I have used various ebony substitutes over the years, and am currently using an engineered wood called Blackwoodtek. It is produced from fast growing, softwood trees which can be sustainably grown, and then their wood is compressed and dyed to mimic the density and color of ebony.
I designed my banjos specifically for clawhammer playing although they also work well for finger picking. The neck has been pushed up slightly on the rim so that the action over the frets remains low, but there is a fairly high action over the head and scoop to allow plenty of room for comfortable drop-thumbing. Typically the action over the 12th fret is about 1/8", and the action over the head and scoop is about 5/16".
I like a fairly tall bridge, which increases pressure on the head leading to more projection. Typically I set my banjos up with an 11/16" bridge, but always include a slightly shorter bridge with all banjos in case someone prefers a lower action.
I generally use a 25-1/2" scale length, which has basically become standard for open back banjos, but do occasionally use a 25" scale which creates a slightly looser feel to the strings.
I generally use Narrow EVO Gold fret wire. EVO Gold frets are much more durable than typical nickel-silver frets, so are less prone to wear. Their smaller size, compared to typical banjo frets, is closer to that found on older banjos, which make slides much smoother. Additionally, the slight gold color matches brass hardware nicely.
I feel a little weird not including a case with each banjo, but also know that a lot of banjo players already have several cases and might not need another one. For this reason, I've decided to simply offer cases separately, at a wholesale prices.
I carry Superior brown bump cases for $150. They are very high quality and super durable and have a cool green lining...you can check them out here: https://www.sagamusic.com/shop/cases-and-bags/superior/superior-cd-2536-deluxe-hardshell-12-openback-banjo-case/