Fifth string capo

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Long Neck Banjo

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... for those of us who prefer the tuning and singing differences the LN provides. All questions & help welcome!

273 Members, Created 1/30/2011 -

Administrators: TonyS (owner) , Gary Blanchard , pastorharry , vega long neck

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From Jock Elliott on 10/10/2018 2:22:51 AM

Lately I've been messing with this tunez;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DE4SZGXO5kU&index=230&list=WL&t=0s

It's in the key of Fm, but played in a double C tuning capoed up. I have a Banjo highway 5th string capo. It works okay at the 2nd fret, but makes a weird sound higher up (I've tried adjusting it, but even at its best still doesn't make a "pure" sound.)

I've talked to a luthier. He has never installed spikes and is afraid to mess with my 1910 Whyte Laydie. Thinking of another banjo . . . maybe long neck, maybe not . . . but the 5th string capo problem still exists. So . . . spikes? Shubb slider capo . . . something else?

Advice cheerfully accepted. I want something reliable that delivers clear sound.

Additional thought: on a long neck, I would think that the long version Shubb slider would offer the most versatility.

Cheers, Jock

2 Comments
	John Gribble says: 10/10/2018 3:10:34 AM Unless your 1910 banjo has had extensive modifications already, I wouldn't spike it. Especially if it is for only one song. The fingerboard may be too dry to hold the spikes. Some people like the Shubb, others like spikes. I don't care for either and will either re-tune to a note which doesn't offend or use a suspender capo. But that's just me.
	Jock Elliott says: 10/10/2018 3:38:27 AM John, Thanks. The Whyte Laydie does have planetary gearpegs from the 1920s (which look "right") . . . and a variable-tension tailpiece (which doesn't look right but can be easily replaced.) The fifth string is controlled by a friction peg, which requires a safecracker's deftness to adjust. So the drill is: get it right, then tighten the little screw at the end of the peg, and then never touch it again for the rest of your life. Cheers, Jock
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