OK-4 - Posted - 07/21/2011:  12:38:52

It has been sweltering in Chicago for a while now and still my 11.5" skin head is just fine, no need to adjust the tension relative to the dry Chicago winter (when I bought this banjo). No seasonality in head tension! At least not yet. I am not complaining.

But why is this not happening? I have read that skin heads can be treated to resist humidity, but have not seen an explanation of how one does this.

Viper - Posted - 07/21/2011:  13:01:53

I've got the same situation in Akron, Ohio. Put my skin head on last fall and have so far barely touched it. I think the effects of humidity have been greatly exaggerated. I did have to tighten one hook, but that's it.

I've heard some people using leather waterproofing spray, but I just let my banjo sit outside (well, near an open window) for a few nights when I initially installed it to acclimate it (following some advice from Brooks Masten).  

Mark Johnson - Posted - 07/21/2011:  13:11:06

could be a number of explanations, but I'm betting that it's due to the relatively stable environment the banjo is directly exposed to.  It can be freezing and dry out all winter, and hot and muggy all summer outside, but if the banjo stays inside where it's heated/air conditioned/insulated the seasonal changes might never be felt.

The only instances where I've seen the seasonality issue really impact folks is at festivals where people are out in the humidity for hours and days.  You'll see some seriously saggy heads then.

Mark

Edited by - Mark Johnson on 07/21/2011 13:12:57

OK-4 - Posted - 07/21/2011:  13:31:48

quote:

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Originally posted by Mark Johnson

could be a number of explanations, but I'm betting that it's due to the relatively stable environment the banjo is directly exposed to.  It can be freezing and dry out all winter, and hot and muggy all summer outside, but if the banjo stays inside where it's heated/air conditioned/insulated the seasonal changes might never be felt.

The only instances where I've seen the seasonality issue really impact folks is at festivals where people are out in the humidity for hours and days.  You'll see some seriously saggy heads then.

Mark

 

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My money is on some kind of weatherproofing. I don't have central air conditioning.

Viper - Posted - 07/22/2011:  11:48:51

quote:

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Originally posted by OK-4

 

My money is on some kind of weatherproofing. I don't have central air conditioning.

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I don't have AC either. 

Bass Lady - Posted - 07/22/2011:  13:42:53

It's 106 in the DC area. Couldn't live without the AC!

How old is the head? I had a Little Wonder conversion with the original skin head and really never had to mess with it. I also kept my banjos in either a case or a gig bag, so they're insulated from these changes in environment.

leemysliwiec - Posted - 07/22/2011:  15:26:18

  Consider the variables.  What type head is it?  How thick is it?   Is the thickness consistent?   How tight was it to begin with?   Is the tightness consistent?  What IS the humidity?   What are the temperature variables?    It is amazing how many things affect a banjo head.  I live  in a constant state of amazement regarding the variables on a banjo.  (Frankly, Everything amazes me....I am easily amazed).

SWCooper - Posted - 07/22/2011:  16:26:39

On a completely unrelated note, have you ever wondered how many bad FBI lists the Banjo Hangout ends up on because of all the comments about skinheads?

jbalch - Posted - 07/22/2011:  17:17:27

Some hides are really very stable.  I also think that most of them tend to move less over time.  An aged...well stretched...and sturdy head is less subject to seasonal variation.

Enjoy it!

(I'm linking this to the Hide Heads Group).

OK-4 - Posted - 07/22/2011:  22:35:43

The head says "AMRAWCO" and "BUCK" with a company name that is partially obscured (Something like GEORGE GABEL & CO, or maybe CABEL or GAREL or other). It seems to be a replacement head on a nice old instrument. It is bright in color, and uniform with a few light specks of what a bibliophile would call foxing. It may have stretched a bit more than expected in the set-up process, judging by how far the tension hoop has been pulled.

I haven't paid much attention to the official humidity stats. It is 75% right now (it is thundering with a welcome drop in temperature), but it has been generally hot and muggy for a while in the Chicago area.

There's a Hide Heads Group! I am new around here and maybe I shouldn't be surprised. I would be appreciative if someone could tell me when AMRAWCO heads were made.

jbalch - Posted - 07/23/2011:  06:48:05

AMRAWCO was the American Rawhide Company of Chicago.  They made drum and banjo heads well into the 1950s.  Below is an ad said to be from 1955:

BTW - an interesting side note:  Most of the original hide-head companies closed long ago.  I read somewhere that AMRAWCO suffered a fire at some point which damaged a lot of the business (don't know for sure).  A competitor of AMRAWCO was United Tanning also in Chicago.  The original equipment and business of United Tanning was purchased a few years ago by Jeff Stern.  Stern Tanning continues making heads in the old way today.  He is the only US source I know of for new machine-sanded hides of the same quality as the vintage makers. sterntanning.com/percussion.htm

Also:  here is the hide heads group - banjohangout.org/group/hideheads