Hatfield Buck Creek
submitted 6/7/2005
|
Submitter |
timdesain |
Where Purchased |
Arthur Hatfield |
Year Purchased |
2005 |
Price Paid |
2500.00 ($US) |
Sound
|
Beautiful rich full tone. Not too sharp and not too much crack like you get on a maple or walnut banjo. I could not believe how loud it is. I attribute the rich tone and volume to Arthur's new Hatfield tone ring.
Rings like a bell up and down the neck, the up the neck clarity is the best I have ever heard. I received my Buck Creek model in April and the sound keeps getting better and better as I break it in. |
Sound Rating |
10 |
Setup
|
The banjo was set up well. I did lower the action a little and tightened the head to my liking. It was easy to make the set up changes as all of the parts Arthur uses are top notch, |
Setup Rating |
10 |
Appearance
|
I had Arthur use his standard medium brown finish which is beautiful combined with the mahogany grain. The binding used is a yellow type color which makes the banjo look vintage, much nicer than white binding, I was given this as a option. I had Arthur add Keith "D" tuners at positions 2 & 3 and Keith regular tuners at positions 1 & 4. In addition I had him add a engraved truss rod cover with my name on it. The finish on the custom neck (made by Arthur) and the resonator is a perfect match. The quality workmanship by Arthur and his beautiful snowflake neck inlay design makes this banjo a work of art. |
Appearance Rating |
10 |
Reliability
|
Top notch hardware, beautiful durable finish, quality wood components and Arthur's superb craftmanship make this a dependable professional quality banjo that should last a life time. |
Reliability Rating |
10 |
Customer Service
|
Arthur was a pleasure to deal with, he went so far as to offer me a customized neck which I was glad to accept. I had explained to Arthur that I have small hands, he installed a neck that is standard Gibson width at the nut but the fingerboard not including binding is 1/34 at the last fret which helps me on those tough to reach positions. With this custom neck (no extra charge), the 2 - Keith "D" tuners and 2 - Keith regular tuners, engraved truss rod cover I only paid an additional $300.00 over the $2200.00 standard price and Arthur threw in spike installation at 7, 9 & 10 and shipping and insurance at no extra charge. That is what I call customer service ! |
Customer Service |
10 |
Components
|
All parts are top notch. Cox resonator and rim, Hatfield tone ring, Hatfield bridge, Presto tail piece, Hatfield custom mahogany neck, Prucha hardware and Keith tuners requested. There are no cheap parts anywhere on this banjo. I have seen and played banjos out there thousands more that are not as good of quality and sound as this banjo. |
Components Rating |
10 |
Overall Comments
|
I give this banjo my highest recommendation to anyone that is looking for a professional great sounding banjo. I still cannot get over how reasonably priced this banjo is and I do not think anyone can find a new banjo with better sound or craftmanship anywhere on the market at this price. |
Overall Rating |
10 |
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