Well my Gibson RB250 was getting lonely so I picked up a Gold Tone Whyte Lady plus to frail on. Then after becoming really enamored with the sound I picked up a Bob Carlin 350 plus. I replaced the Renaissance heads with remo Fiberskyn heads and put spillway dam bridges on both. Really nice open back sound.
5 Comments |
 | Scott Barnbilly56 says:
3/4/2015 5:24:04 AM
Yup sound like my next move . Got a gold tone orange blossom 250 resonator banjo for bluegrass picking . Got a gold tone Whyte lady open back with fiber skin head and would like to get the Bob Carlin open back as my next move up and want to use the Bob Carlin for alternate tuning's and the Whyte lady for just G tunes . Played it a lot in Elderly's and would keep going back to on playing all there banjo's . Will do the same with fiber skin on it also
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 | edpottenger says:
3/4/2015 7:12:49 AM
I think the Fiberskyn is the ticket Scott! I'm doing the same thing basically...the Whyte lady is in G tuning and BC 350 is for the alternate turnings. I may use "Bob" for finger picking stuff to. I really enjoy the sound of it bluegrass style.
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 | writerrad says:
7/12/2015 8:22:02 AM
I like the Carlins very much and they are what I recommend for people coming into the world of Old Time banjo who want a decent banjo, They tend to be oriented to the round-peake sound which I know Bob was aiming at when he designed the banjo. I don't think it is an either/or choice between the two banjos. The 250 which I have owned for about 12 years now fits much better the kind of banjo that is great for two and three finger old time picking as well as frailing, while the Carlin is pretty much a round peake style frailing machine. That banjo seems very dependent on set-up as most banjos are and seems all purpose. It can be loud enough to play bluegrass if it is set right, particularly if you give it sufficient head tension.
I have always felt that Gold Tone recommends strings that are too big especially for frailing on the 250. and though over the years I have experimented with the strings they recommend or the 55-61 sets many use on them, I find that the Gibson Earl Scruggs light mediums work best for my taste on my 250.
I have never owned a Carlin, though I have played other people's models including Bob's, but the strings on them seem a bit big, but that is a matter of personal taste.
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| writerrad says:
7/12/2015 8:25:01 AM
I am wondering if any of you have ever considered skin heads? When I bought my 250 in 2003or 4 I had Turtle Hill put a skin head on it. That can be scary living here in Florida with our humidity and storms and frequently venues you are working or jams you play at semi-outside or outside, but it makes a nice sound on that banjo. I havent seen a Carlin with a skin head, so I have no comment. Skin is a bit of trouble but the sound to me is great and the real thing is the feeling it gives your finger playing that the artificial covers do not. It is pure personal taste but I am a skin head man, LOL I bought an Enoch Tradesman about 7 years ago to have a plastic headed banjo but have since put a skin head on that!
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 | guywolff says:
10/22/2015 5:08:26 PM
I like all three of the GT top end openbacks .. The Tubaphone OT800 (and OT700 A neck ) and the WL250 both have their own voices as does the Bob Carlin with its nice wider neck and the brass tube ring .. I would need to live with all three for a year or more to choose what to keep .. I also want to put a skin head on each of these with Nylgut and hear what that did as well .. The Carlin has so much volume that sweetening it up with a skin head seems like a natural step ... So many great banjos so much fun trying things out ...
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