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Aluminum Rim Outcasts

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So you can come out of the closet and admit that you own and pick one of these indestructable banjos!

100 Members, Created 1/30/2011 -

Administrators: vintagewells (owner)

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From LWC on 11/13/2013 7:16:33 AM

Hi All, I just came across this group the other day, I don't normally look through the groups. I've been around the hangout for a few years mostly in the clawhammer stuff and I almost liked putting banjos together out of collected parts and tinkering with them as playing. I guess last fall I decided I was going to switch over to piano so I sold everything but one banjo a strum stick a dulcijo and a dulcimer. Well I've taken piano lessons for about 6 - 8 months now and I can play piano better then banjo but it's not as much fun. I've stayed connected to BHO and a couple months ago started messing with my banjo but I wanted something with a resonator and not a lot of money invested so I thought Aluminum Rim, I had a saga I built and it sounded good so I began looking. I came up with a used Rover RB 45 at a good price so thats what got. It's got a good sound plenty of volume (BUT) here comes that timkering bug, now don't think me a bad person or a killer and please don't kick me out yet but I'm thinking about putting a wood rim inside. I'll stop with that for now so you can chew on it a bit and we'll talk later. Larry

6 Comments
	darwinyarwin says: 11/13/2013 8:38:34 AM So the question is ... why? You say your RB45 has "a good sound plenty of volume". Is it "too bright"? Is there too much sustain? or like BHO veteran beegee says: "These aluminum banjos tend to be loud and sometimes harsh-toned and often hollow-sounding." Why do you want to stuff some deadwood inside your aluminum rim? ... Just to make it look all pretty inside? We'll let you answer before we kick you out. :-) Meantime, I am working on a long blog post about how to make your aluminum rims sound like Mastertones. It starts by releasing the tension on the brackets until your Remo head starts to sound all mushy. Then you take a diaper and ....
	LWC says: 11/13/2013 9:35:28 AM It does have a whole lot of sustain and it is bright but the bright isn't all bad. I backed off on head tension but I don't want to go to loose. Coming over from the other side my banjo's were set up for a mellow kind of tubby sound thick wood rims heavy bridges and some spun over rims. Now in my defense let me point out the key words in my introduction. Thinking about not this is what I'm doing even though I have a rim and tinkering bug, it's like a desease you think you can improve anything anyone else made and it fills in some empty time slots instead of TV. Also I'm not discriminating against Aluminum rims, when I made my dulcijo I stuffed a steel rim inside the wooden one. Larry
	darwinyarwin says: 11/13/2013 9:37:05 AM PS Actually I was teasing you a bit, Larry. Welcome to the group! There is a fine long thread in the group's blog about "tinkering" with mostly bottlecap rims by adding a wooden insert, just as you suggest. banjohangout.org/archive/205165 I sometimes think that BHO is totally infected with the virus of trying to achieve a Scruggs bluegrass sound on every banjo. People tend to overlook that banjos have a longer tradition of several other "sounds": Classic, Minstrel, Folk, Jazz, etc. And there are other banjo masters than Earl to emulate: Peabody, Seeger and Guard, Johnny St. Cyr .... Aluminum rims, with their purer banjo tone and bell-like "ring", and their superior volume are diverse enough to be better suited to a variety of those styles -- without a wood liner. I always recommend that folks research this a bit before tinkering. Musicianship makes all the difference.
	hamishpink says: 11/13/2013 11:38:48 PM Slackenng the head will create other problems with action and tuning. Instead of a wood liner change the head for a Renaissance or Fiberskyn. One of the best rims I ever acquired I bought in 1969 - half inch thick alloy and really bright and responsive. With a Ren head it became a completely different instrument, richer and mellower. Trebles rang like a bell with great bass notes. Also got great results with a Fiberskyn but different sound again. I found best results with these heads if they were set really tight.
	darwinyarwin says: 11/14/2013 3:11:50 AM I'm sorry the slack head comment was taken seriously. I forgot to set up the sarcasm font ....
	hamishpink says: 11/14/2013 2:17:49 PM I recognised your sarcasm Tom and didn't take it seriously. My comments were directed to Larry who says he already backed the head tension off. This solves one problem and often opens up a whole load of new ones.
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