rkdjones - Posted - 02/27/2026:  11:41:24

I am mostly playing backup at OT jam sessions. There is a lot of singing so people are constantly changing keys. I am playing clawhammer style with my natural fingernails. I just assembled a 5-string open back banjo with a 20" scale and tuned D5 A3 D4 F#4 A4 (open D with the same chord shapes as the common open G on full scale banjos). I am using a very light gauge set of banjo strings 9 - 20.

I like being able to play the same chord shapes in G, A, and D, and E with two instruments and a capo. And I really like a 20" scale; it is a perfect fit for my hand. The first and second strings lack volume, though they sound fine finger picking. I'll play it for a while but know that it will be just too quiet for sessions. I'm wondering if the gauge of the string (0.09 on the first) is the reason it is so quiet. I"ve never played such a light set before.

There are other things to try but I don't want to start replacing strings till I understand the instrument a little better.

davidppp - Posted - 02/27/2026:  12:24:45

S.S. Stewart called it a banjeaurine.

If you want louder on the thin strings, you need a lighter bridge. A steeper break angle would complement the higher pitches.

It's probably worth experimenting with head tension, e.g., a bit tighter.

trapdoor2 - Posted - 02/27/2026:  12:31:56

There are lots of solutions to that problem (many key changes). Like most of us, I started with a single banjo and simply tuned or capoed (or both). Then for a long time, I took several banjos to each jam. Eventually, I pared that down to 2. I keep one full size banjo in G, usually that's for backing up singers as I know the full fretboard, all the standard chords (generally three-finger)...but I park a capo above the nut to play the OT stuff that's in A if needed (clawhammer).

Then, I have a short-scale for clawhammer that is kept in aDADE. It is a short twist to aEADE for the modal tunes. 

I try to get our local jam to play in blocks of a given key so I'm not jumping all over the place, swapping banjos, etc. Sometimes, it even works!

Mastertone Banjo - Posted - 02/27/2026:  13:19:33

I typically keep one banjo set up in open D tuning and I use the Deering Julia Belle strings which are heavier (or equivalent/similar gages). I really love that sound!!

Bill H - Posted - 02/27/2026:  14:07:26

For Jams where there is singing, I just stay in G tuning. I know the chords in open G much more readily than other tunings. Capo for B or E maybe.

rkdjones - Posted - 02/27/2026:  14:33:41

Easy enough to find a lighter bridge. The one I have on the banjo looks pretty chunky. Any suggestions how to shop or where to buy?

Fathand - Posted - 02/27/2026:  14:35:04

A 20 inch scale is about the equivalent of a typical 26.25" scale at the 5th fret, 19.67". You may find it best tuned to C, cGCEG, using G formation chords, especially if you are thinking of a heavier string set.

Another option is that baritone uke (nylon) strings will tune nicely to open G at a 20" scale.

Ultimately, it is most practical to learn all the chords in one tuning, with or without a capo and spike or capo your 5th to match the key being played. This saves a lot of transposing in your head and carrying multiple instruments and switching between them.

R.D. Lunceford - Posted - 02/27/2026:  17:06:44

I assume that by "playing back-up" you're referring to chordal accompaniment rather than the paired-down melody over a drone approach.

If so, learn your chords/fingerboard in gCGBD.  That and a capo should get you anywhere you need to go.  

rkdjones - Posted - 02/27/2026:  19:45:49

Yes, I am mostly just playing chords with some different right hand patterns since I just started jamming. I hope to be able to take some breaks and play melodies by ear even for songs I have never heard before.

davidppp - Posted - 02/27/2026:  20:29:26

quote:

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Originally posted by rkdjones

Easy enough to find a lighter bridge. The one I have on the banjo looks pretty chunky. Any suggestions how to shop or where to buy?

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Sandpaper?

rkdjones - Posted - 02/28/2026:  09:43:16

After messing with it a bit I don't think this high D tuning is going to work out. It is just too high, not really clawhammer compatible. Though it has a nice sound picking. Heavier strings and a different tuning is probably the answer.

R.D. Lunceford - Posted - 02/28/2026:  18:47:33

I've been in your same situation.  Positioning a capo high up makes the banjo sound more like windchimes than a banjo, and probably the same with the high D tuning you mention.

I suggested gCGBD because it can be used in place of either gDGBD or gCGBD, and  capo2 will give you keys A and D.

Not to discourage your Bluegrass jamming but OT jams (as I'm sure you realize) usually take banjo tuning issues into account.

Best wishes with your music.