reubenstump - Posted - 01/28/2026:  09:35:19

I'm thinking about another openback. Nothing fancy, just an everyday player. I've backed down from my fretless thoughts for now, but I've been looking at what he has at his site (points to Reverb) and here (same banjos). I haven't seen what I'm looking for yet, but he seems to be a one man band like many other makers, so he doesn't have much available at any one time, and I haven't felt sufficiently motivated yet to make a custom order, even though my order would be pretty plain, run-of-the-mill.

Anywho - y'all got any experience with Nate?

calkinsbanjos.com/

Jon Borcherding - Posted - 01/28/2026:  13:43:59

quote:

---

Originally posted by reubenstump

Anywho - y'all got any experience with Nate?



calkinsbanjos.com/

---

Yep!  I have a fretless from Calkins.  I believe its an Ohioan.  It's my first fretless banjo so I can't really tell you much about how it compares to others.  What I can tell you is it is well made and Nate delivered exactly what he promised in a timely manner.  

My banjo has a 12" pot, cherry neck with Dobson style heel and slotted head.  I was surprised at how smoothly the slothead tunes.  I'm back and forth a lot between G, C, and a couple other tunings and it has been very forgiving, particularly considering that it wears nylgut strings.  I've learned the hard way that any burrs or sharp edges on the nut, bridge or tailpiece leads to very short string life.  I have not broken a string since I got the banjo in mid October and I play it every day.  My love for the playing of Fred Cockerham led me to choose a formica fingerboard which I also like. 

Another noteworthy item is the lightness of this instrument.  I have other banjos w/ a 12" pot and all of them are heavier than the Ohioan.  The pot is multiple plies of wood and the walls are rather thin.  I think this contributes to the lightness.  The banjo has a very unadorned aesthetic and this appeals to me.  I prefer an instrument without a lot of flash and the Ohioan fits the bill perfectly.

Like I mentioned above, I'm just getting started with fretless so I'm not the best judge of tone but I can tell you that the tone improved significantly when I swapped out the stock bridge with a 2-foot bridge.  I'm told this is common with nylgut strings.  My experience has made me a believer.

I usually do a lot of online "research" before making any significant online purchase.  My "research" indicates that I could have bought a better banjo if I was willing to spend quite a bit more money.  I also would have needed much more patience than I currently posses because it seems most builders have waiting lists.  My Ohioan shipped a couple days after I ordered it.

Overall I am delighted with my purchase and I heartily recommend Calkins Banjo without reservation.

I hope you find this helpful and wish you good luck in your shopping!

reubenstump - Posted - 01/28/2026:  15:54:20

Jon, thanks for your reply.

I'm a TFTL player.

I'm thinking 11 inch maple pot of some sort, 25.5" scale, unknown neck, Ren head, etc. Nothing fancy, hence something like the Caulkins Swift. I love the sound of Dobson tone rings, but this would be plain, no metal tone ring. Heel would likely be boat, not Dobson. Ren head.

The reason for at least some of this is that I've found that harmonics at the 7th fret tend to suck v harmonics at the 19th fret on the banjos I currently have, despite all sorts of adjustments. While the sound is generally better at 19 v 7, it does sound a LOT different, notably worse - dead. It could be that banjos are just that way, and I'm not sufficiently experienced or knowledgeable enough to know that this is the norm. Banjos, being the bizarre instruments that they are, don't make adjusting intonation up and down the neck either consistent or simple, at least in my limited experience. I'd be gambling as to whether Nate could make the 7th fret harmonics more resonant, rather than dead.

Bridges and other things also come into play in this realm.

I would call myself an oddball beginner who can play about 4 tunes, 3 at the intermediate level and one at the advanced level (harmonics).

Despite my multiyear on/off status, I've read about the risks of nylgut strings and less than smooth tailpieces. I'm not as knowledgeable regarding 2 v 2 foot bridges, but I'm not going the fretless route, at least not yet. I'd be putting steel strings on this to start, maybe nylgut later. The steel strings would be slightly heavier than normal, but not much.

The Ohioan looks to be Nate's fretless version of his fretted Swift.

I've not yet ventured into nylgut and similar strings, but they're on my horizon, along with fretless.

Noah Cline - Posted - 01/28/2026:  17:54:31

I bought one of Nate's early canteen gourd banjos directly from him (attached below). It had been completed for some time and I had been checking it out more and more and finally pulled the trigger. Nate was great to deal with good communication throughout the sale, and it was a nice banjo, well packed when I received it. I kept it for a few years, but got in to making my own gourd banjo and others, and parted with it. I don't have any experience with his open back banjos, but they look really nice from the ones I've checked out. I too like the simplistic aesthetic of Nate's, much why I was drawn to that gourd banjo. Some days I kinda wished I'd have kept it, but that's just the way the cookie crumbles sometimes. 

Nate Calkins gourd banjo #45

 

Jon Borcherding - Posted - 01/28/2026:  19:12:33

quote:

---

Originally posted by Noah Cline

I bought one of Nate's early canteen gourd banjos directly from him (attached below). It had been completed for some time and I had been checking it out more and more and finally pulled the trigger. Nate was great to deal with good communication throughout the sale, and it was a nice banjo, well packed when I received it. I kept it for a few years, but got in to making my own gourd banjo and others, and parted with it. I don't have any experience with his open back banjos, but they look really nice from the ones I've checked out. I too like the simplistic aesthetic of Nate's, much why I was drawn to that gourd banjo. Some days I kinda wished I'd have kept it, but that's just the way the cookie crumbles sometimes. 

---

Hah!  I've watched you play a ton of different banjos on your videos.  If you kept every one you liked, I bet you would have quite a pile of banjos! 

Not that there's anything wrong with piles of banjos.  :-)

banjooud - Posted - 01/28/2026:  23:29:54

I ordered a tackhead banjo from Nate Calkins in 2011. Everything went very well. The instrument is simple and high quality. The pegs are well made, and the goatskin hasn't moved.
I can't comment on his more modern open-back banjos.