What I've found set-up wise

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For Love of the Burlile

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A group for the owners and advocators of Burlile and his product, and for those curious as to the Right Honorable Mr. Burlile

42 Members, Created 9/27/2011 -

Administrators: Pickin furry paws (owner)

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From Pickin furry paws on 6/30/2012 11:49:13 AM

Basically, I have been squirreling around with the set-up on my banjo for a while, and have found out a few interesting things about the Burlile ring as far as what it likes.

So far, around 8 months into owning one of these, I have found that it likes a tighter head the older it gets. Also, when using pre-EPA heads, it prefers those a little looser than a new REMO. My old REMO head could be kept between G and G# tap-tuned and it sounded open and great; with my 5-year-old newer REMO, it likes between G# and A.

The moment you touch A with these, the banjo sounds very odd. Not pinched or bright, but lacking in power and ring. While the bass remains at much higher tensions, the banjo begins to lack character. Notes lose the complex tone they have at slightly looser tensions.

Tailpieces? Well, since I have a Prucha 2-hump, I can't say about a Presto, but from having owned one before, I can hypothesize that the Burlile likes it pointing upwards. As far as my Prucha tailpiece, I found that removing the adjustment screw and allowing it to float wide-open opened the banjo considerably as well as delivering a more powerful sound. I got this idea from Jim Mills, who told me that his Mack Crow lacks an adjustment bolt on its tailpiece, too. So any of you who have one of these replica tailpieces, try taking the screw out and see what happens. The tone does not get mushy at all, especially if the head is tight.

The strings it likes the best are:

.0095 - .010

.011 - no greater

.012 - .0125

.020 - no greater

Anything lighter or heavier will absolutely kill the complex tone the Burlile offers. The strings need to be light so that the ring is allowed to function properly; anything thicker often keeps the ring from vibrating the way it likes to.

Any neck angle will work. I have seen a Burlile fitted banjo with a totally flat neck that sounded great. Mine has about .024 bow under the strings at the middle, and it sounds great, too. So the ring is not picky with what neck bow it likes.

Coordinator rods can be kept with a little pressure on the pot, but not much. Jim sent the banjo to me with both rods turned around 1/2 a turn, but I have since backed off the top rod and bottom rod. Currently, the top rod lies tightened with as much pressure as my fingers can muster, while the bottom rod lies at a 1/4 turn. This keeps the pot round, while allowing some of the string energy to pass along the rods into the far end of the body. It has really stabilized my tuning.

So that is what I currently know about set-up. Things will probably change in the next 8 months, but for now, this is what it likes.

6 Comments
	The Pope says: 7/1/2012 3:34:20 PM I have standardized on strings, using the Bill Evans set from AMB. They are 10, 11, 13, 20JD, 10 so they are the same as Will uses on the KI. My tailpiece is a Presto w/o the adjusting screw, set about 3/8" above the head. It floats above the tension hoop about 1/8". My coordinator rods are just past finger-tight on both. Maybe by a tenth of a turn... As far as head tightness goes, it seems to be a G but I can't really tell by the tap/scratch method altho it does seem to be a G. I had it down to Jim's a while ago and he listened to me play, took it from me and tightened the nuts about 1/8 turn, then did it again for another 1/8 turn. I haven't messed with it. On my Neary Drum-Torque, it is about 15-16 but it seem to me that each one is different. I haven't tried a Drum Dial on it yet. I am in inveterate tinkerer but I haven't messed with this banjo at all. It is KI #9 and I got it in October '07 so it is coming up on 5 years old. (Has it been that long?) It needs frets pretty badly and my plan so far it to bring it to Chris Cioffi for a stainless steel re-fret & a tune-up. I want to make two minor changes to it: a MOP nut & pip, with the pip slot cut down so the string sits on the 5th fret. One of my other banjos is like that and I've had continual struggles with the tuning on my Keith tuners. It seems that a MOP nut has less friction in the string slots. I'm sort of intrigued with the zero-fret nut that has been discussed on the Hangout but I'm reluctant to make that change on the KI. Anyone want to comment on my comment? Erik The Pope
	Pickin furry paws says: 7/1/2012 5:32:03 PM All very interesting. My pre-EPA head likes between G and G#. I'll be interested to hear how a pearl nut sounds on that banjo. All I've ever heard is Sonny's Granada that way. My clamshell sits around 3/8" up, as well.
	The Pope says: 7/1/2012 10:07:59 PM I also have a "pre EPA" Remo. I checked it again & it is right on G. My other banjo, The Pope, has a MOP nut & cam tuners. I'm not satisfied with the sound on that one at all right now. I've got to try my H-4 (USB connection with outboard mic) & then start experimenting with that one. One thing I'm anxious to try is replacing the present Granada tension hoop with a pot metal one that I got from AMB. Erik The Pope
	Pickin furry paws says: 7/1/2012 10:40:44 PM Well, I would add about the tension hoop: many later prewars have the brass hoops. pot metal ones tend to fail over time moreso than their brass counterparts. Personally, for tone, I have preferred brass. Just a thought. Is the pre-EPA on the Williams? If so, that sounds like a pretty standard tension. I have found that everything comes down to set-up. At some point, you'll never get better parts. It all comes down to how their fitted. Sometimes, a banjo's rim will swell a little, but that is rare. Most of the time they just need some love. Would be interested to hear recordings from your H-4.
	The Pope says: 7/2/2012 6:57:42 PM Yes, the pre EPA is on the Williams & has been since Will built it. I got it from (I think) Cliff Fitch & sent it to Will. I haven't adjusted the head since Jim did it. I have seen one pot metal TH that just came apart on an old prewar. I'm just curious to see if there is any difference between PM & brass. I don't think I will ever get a banjo with better parts that the KI unless I win the lottery & can get an old Gibson. I will try to send you a recording of the KI that I will make with the H-4. It sounds really good. But what I want to do is use it as a USB interface to the good sound card I have in my computer. Give me a few days to get well (stomach flu, I guess)... Erik The Pope
	The Pope says: 7/2/2012 7:00:38 PM BTW,The Pope is a banjo that I put together myself but a lot of the parts are the same as the KI: Sullivan rim, Blaylock JD TR, Robin Smith mahogany neck, Gill prewar reso.
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