Just got my Rickard 12" Maple Ridge Dobson home from FedEx Office Print & Ship Center. What a beauty she is with aged-brass hardware and Dobson tone-ring, along with EVO frets--Simply Elegant! More to come ...
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He's come a long way. I remember him from the banjo forums back when he was first getting started. Really nice guy too. http://www.newspapers-online.com/aur...3-03-26-02.jpg Congratulations on your new banjo!! Shall we be expecting pics anytime soon? :) |
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But then, winter time was always a time to swap to hide heads for me. A good quality hide head sounds incredible - as long as the humidity stays low enough. Come summertime, I'd swap back to Remo heads ;) As for BAS getting out of hand, here's a pic of me that my wife took back in 2006 or so. This didn't even show all the banjos I had at the time. At one point, I had 35 of the things in my house. To be honest though, I was sniping bargains off Ebay and reselling them, so I had quite a stockpile. I probably only had a dozen "players" at any given time. https://www.hangoutstorage.com/banjo...5051772008.jpg |
I too am considering a new open back banjo. I already have two Recording Kings and a Mastertone, but I'd like something a little different. I play three finger style and right now I'm leaning heavily toward a Bart Reiter Regent without the scooped neck.
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Many of the replies here concentrate on new banjos, while I've spent over 50 years with the old timers and they are affordable to most people. My favorite open back was a Gibson TB-2 Pyramid, but a bluegrasser finally got it away from me.
If you want something different in the coordinator-rod banjo class, try a Gibson ball bearing. If you want something lighter, the Whyte Laydie has always been my favorite, but there are some great ones in the old Lange/Langstyle/Paramount/Rettberg lines. And there are also some fine old Maybells - my faves are the ones with the inner-flange tone ring. Completely different sound from all the rest. I have been missing mine ever since I was dumb enough or broke enough to let it go: https://i.imgur.com/WexkymH.jpg |
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The Dobson tone ring on the OP's new banjo is very similar to the Slingerland's inner flange tone ring like the one you show in the picture. The tone rings Bacon put into their ff internal resonator banjos are also very similar. |
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My reason for acquiring the five banjos I now have is that I wanted good examples of the different pots and the tone they can generate. With the addition of the in-shipment Vega Old Tyme Wonder, with its all-wood rim, I'll have that woody tone and with the other banjos with their tone rings, I have what they offer in tone. Now having a wood-rim, Tubaphone, Whyte Laydie, Dobson and a Flathead banjo I've got the most popular pot configurations. Can you or any of our AGFers make a good case for acquiring a Bacophone and a Silver Bell tone-ring banjo? I've read that the Bacophone tone-ring can add weird overtones and, to my knowledge, I've never heard a Silver Bell tone-ringed banjo. Thanks. |
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Ome makes some incredibly nice banjos. They're not big with the Old Timey set, at least they weren't when I was in my banjo phase, but they really make excellent quality instruments. I was doing much that same thing as you are. I tried a Vega Tubaphone.... liked the Vega Tubaphone ...I wonder how a 12" pot tubby will sound? I liked the Whyte Ladye...hmmm, there's a 12 inch pot WL conversion on Ebay!! Little Wonders - gotta try both. A scales? Hook me up. I liked pretty much all of them - but yeah, the Baco-phone ring banjos, especially with an internal resonator, all seemed to have some overtones that I didn't like too much, though they were BRILLIANT at clucking over the scoop. The Vega Old Tyme Wonder has an all wood rim? The original Vega Wonders had a rolled hoop under a spun over bit that extended about halfway down the outside of the pot. That was a great ring for clawhammer as well. I only had a few all wood-rimmed banjos, my favorite of which was a Huss & Dalton Singletree. Nice banjo, but I didn't keep it long. |
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I believe you're correct that the older Vega Old Tyme Wonder banjos had a rolled hoop under the head but I think the newer renditions of the last 10 years or so have just the beveled wooden rim. The specs from the Vega/Deering website have an erroneous weight of 8 lbs listed for this banjo which is actually in the 5 to 6 lbs range. An interesting aside is that my favorite local instrument dealer has a 2009 NOS Vega Old Tyme Wonder that doesn't have the Vega star inlay under the Vega logo on the peghead. Starting around 2014 or so Vega added the star inlay. At any rate, I wanted the latest rendition of the Old Tyme Wonder for its straight ahead woody tone and lightweight. I will install Pisgah Phosphor Bronze strings with their heavier 2nd, 3rd and 4th gauges on this banjo. Here are the Vega Old Tyme Wonder specs from the website: Neck: Deep Warm Brown Stained Maple Neck Slender Vega Neck Shape Scooped Ebony Fingerboard Adjustable Truss Rod Ebony Fingerboard and Nut Deering Planetary Tuners Deering Geared 5th String Tuner Durable and Elegant Satin Finish Pot: 3-ply Violin Grade Maple Rim - 11" or 12" Shoe & Screw Bracket Assembly Beveled Tension Hoop 24 Flat Hooks and 9/32″ Hex Nuts 11" Fiberskyn Medium Crown Head Coordinator Rod for Adjustments Nickel Plated Hardware Deering Knot-Less Tailpiece Vega Armrest Durable and Elegant Satin Finish Includes a Vega Hardshell Case Tone: The mellowest and most gentle banjo sound, a lovely full tone. The Old Tyme Wonder is reliable and exceptional in tone, playability, versatility and responsiveness, with a woody thunkiness that is perfect for old time string bands. Tuned: g,D,G,B,D in standard G tuning Can easily be tuned in other tunings as well. Strings Comes with Deering 5-String Light Gauge Banjo Strings tuned to in standard G tuning (G,D,G,B,D) Gauges: 10 11 13 21w 10 End Type: Loop Dimensions: Neck Width at the Nut 1 1/4″ Scale Length Nut to Bridge 26 1/4″ Rim Diameter 11″ or 12" Overall Instrument Length 37 1/2" Weight Approx. 8 lbs Warranty: The trust and pride we share in our product gives us the confidence to grant every owner of a Deering banjo a Lifetime Warranty ensuring the quality of our materials and workmanship. |
I've decided to return the 11" Vega Old Tyme Wonder I just got, and ordered the 12" Vega Old Tyme Wonder. Based on the really great tone of the 11" Vega, the 12" Vega Old Tyme Wonder should really be what I'm after. For a warm, resonant, woody tone with nice sustain, the Vega Old Tyme Wonder models really deliver! More to come ...
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New 12" Vega Old Tyme Wonder just arrived-- Nice! I have to go to work so more to come on it later on.
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