I am a long-time banjo player and am thinking of plunging into the world of fretless banjo playing. Two questions come to mind. First - is there a "correct" distance from the nut to place your bridge? Since all is relative given that there are no frets, does it just depend on the sound you want to have on the banjo - more to the center = tubby-er? Second - can you capo a fretless, even if you knew where to put the capo? Since there are no frets, I would think the capoed strings might buzz on the fingerboard. And then, if you do capo, what do you do about the 5th string if you need to tune it higher than one full step and don't want to risk breaking the string? Can you use HO spikes like you do on fretted banjos? If so, how do you determine where to place them? So many questions. Thanks for any thought?
8 Comments |
 | TreyDBanjoKS says:
2/5/2023 3:14:34 AM
Peter,
Yes, you can place the bridge where you think sounds best. This changes scale length and overall resonance, it's fun to experiment with. However, If the banjo has fret markers it may be best to place the bridge according to the markers as to avoid confusion.
Re: capo you'll get mixed responses. I play steel strings and use a custom "movable nut" capo that I made for the lower strings and a railroad spike for the 5th string. The capo features a sliver of bone that I place under the strings, then a paige capo on top of them. I'll post a pic. Hope this helps!
hangoutstorage.com/banjohangou...12019.jpg
hangoutstorage.com/banjohangou...12019.jpg
-TD
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 | tucsonsean says:
2/5/2023 6:39:13 AM
Hi Peter,
Welcome to the madness. There’s no right way or wrong way to do fretless. Those are some good ideas from Trey D. I use Nylgut strings on my fretless and have never had a problem tuning up to A or D to match a fiddler or guitarist. As far as the 5th string, if you’re worried about breakage, do a search on the site. There are some clever ideas about fashioning a 5th string capo (and there are some members who actually produce them). As far as the bridge placement, all bets are off. Place it anywhere that suits. I have mine more to the middle of the head for a thumpier sound and a shorter scale. Hope that helps.
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 | Tom Berghan says:
2/5/2023 7:58:12 AM
Since you have played a fretted banjo for many years then you should set up your fretless to be the same scale as your fretted banjo. Your hand already has some muscle memory for that scale and it will help you find your way. As for the capo, it won’t be an issue. If you hold down a string with your finger on a fretless instrument the string doesn’t particularly buzz and it won’t with a capo either. BUT most fretless banjoists don’t use capos. The reason is that playing chords up high can be problematic on a fretless, so we play melody more than chords. For chords, we tend to stay in first and second position. Of course there are exceptions to everything.
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| Tom Berghan says:
2/5/2023 8:21:34 AM
Since you have played a fretted banjo for many years then you should set up your fretless to be the same scale as your fretted banjo. Your hand already has some muscle memory for that scale and it will help you find your way. As for the capo, it won’t be an issue. If you hold down a string with your finger on a fretless instrument the string doesn’t particularly buzz and it won’t with a capo either. BUT most fretless banjoists don’t use capos. The reason is that playing chords up high can be problematic on a fretless, so we play melody more than chords. For chords, we tend to stay in first and second position. Of course there are exceptions to everything.
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| tucsonsean says:
2/5/2023 8:33:08 AM
I'd like to add, re: the 5th string--if you do tune up to A or D, the four bottom strings won't experience too much stress, and the drone doesn't have to be tuned up to match. You can experiment and actually lower the 5th to any note in the key that sounds good to you. Fretless, because of its limitations, is a good platform to experiment with alternate tunings in those keys.
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 | phdm says:
2/5/2023 9:46:05 AM
Thank you, one and all, and especially Trey with his photos, for all your wisdom! It has all been very helpful.
I am thinking of entering your world on the lower end with a purchase of Deeringer fretless Goodtime. I have long had a Goodtime as my travel banjo and as such, it has met my needs well, plus, for the price, it is a very decent banjo.
I will be in San Diego later this month and have an appointment at the nearby Deeringer factory to try out their Goodtime fretless. Has anyone out there had any experience with them?
Thanks again,
Peter
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| phdm says:
2/7/2023 11:03:25 PM
Thank you, one and all, and especially Trey with his photos, for all your wisdom! It has all been very helpful.
I am thinking of entering your world on the lower end with a purchase of Deeringer fretless Goodtime. I have long had a Goodtime as my travel banjo and as such, it has met my needs well, plus, for the price, it is a very decent banjo.
I will be in San Diego later this month and have an appointment at the nearby Deeringer factory to try out their Goodtime fretless. Has anyone out there had any experience with them?
Thanks again,
Peter
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| phdm says:
2/25/2023 12:03:31 AM
Whoa - just discovered my autocorrect typo in my earlier post. Heading to the DEERING banjo factory in a week, not Deeringer, the last name of a friend! Geez!
If I do purchase one of their fretless banjos, I will likely have more follow up questions.
Thanks again.
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