13 Comments |
 | Gumbograss says:
3/13/2011 8:44:14 PM
Janet Davis Music is a good source for finger picks and thumb picks. Around Baton Rouge, it's hard to find anyplace selling decent thumb picks. I like Nationals and Dunlop (Large, plastic).
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 | chickenwing says:
3/13/2011 9:15:27 PM
i figured that
i just thought i would ask
yall have been at this a lot longer than me
hey look we got a new member
hello jack
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 | Fritz says:
3/14/2011 4:46:38 AM
I usually buy my strings and picks from First Quality Music out of Louisville, Ky. [fqms.com]. The thumb picks I use are Dunlop Ivoriod Medium. I use medium, which is tight on my thumb, because during the majority of the year it is hot enough for you to sweat and the thumb pick will spin around on my thumb. I can not have that happen on stage so I use the medium which is a tight fit. The other side to that is I go through thumb picks about two\three a month because they break from being so tight. But that's ok as I buy them by the dozen. I change strings about every week or just before a gig and buy them by the dozen [usually four dozen at a time]. Because I buy somewhat in bulk, I find that FQMS has the best prices.
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| chickenwing says:
3/14/2011 8:07:34 PM
im going to order some stuff soon
why do you change your strings so often
what guage do you prefer and why
just trying to learn from your experience
vince do you change you strings so often?
thinking to get a new bridge too was figuring on a scorpion 11/16
would draw a line on head with a pencil and try to put the new one in the same place
if i mess it up would either of you be willing to help me. ill pay you for you time
i havent ordered the bridge yet i am sill gathering information
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| Gumbograss says:
3/14/2011 8:55:08 PM
Good questions! I think Fritz changes strings more often than a lot of us do for a few reasons. 1. He plays more gigs...his band is top notch, and when you gig a lot, you've got to have those bright, fresh sounding strings. 2. He teaches banjo. Again, if you're gonna teach, you have to sound good! 3. He's just kind of weird that way! :-)
I, on the other hand, will leave a set of stings on my banjo (or my guitars) for a couple or 3 months if I'm not playing gigs. (My mandolin has had the same strings for over a year, and I cringe to even try to guess how long my dulcimer has had the same strings! I do tend to put new ones on the banjo or the guitars for upcoming gigs, but the bluegrass band I play with does little besides playing at 3 nursing homes per month these days. So, I tend to leave my strings on until they start sounding dull to me.
As far as helping with the bridge goes, I'd be willing to try, but I'm no set up pro. The marking method you describe is what I would do if I were changing bridges. Fritz, or someone else on here, may know more about that sort of thing.
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| Fritz says:
3/15/2011 11:22:30 AM
Hey Chicken, I change my strings because they go dead. Once a string goes dead, it is very hard to tune and keep it in tune. I can't stand dead strings. I also change them before every gig because I don't want any strings breaking during a show. I'm just funny that way :-). HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
The height of your bridge should be determined by a couple of things. First the angle cut of the heel on your neck determines the bridge height or it could be that you want a higher string height from the fret board which gives you more tension on the bridge pressing down on the head which gives you more volume and a different tone but could cause the string to be out of tune when you fret it up the neck because of the distance the string must stretch to be fretted and also it is hard to fret.
As far as marking the spot on the head, yes it is a good idea but it is only a starting point. Each bridge is different and especially when you go to a different bridge height. It is good to start there but you will have to tweek it. I use a tuner and check the chime at the 12th fret and also the fretted note at the twelth fret. You adjust it accordingly. Just remember each bridge is different even if they are the same. Each one give your banjo a different tone......maybe good maybe worse.....maybe not so much either way. Every change you make, nut you tighten or loosen, every part you touch makes a difference. It all is part of the whole and one little thing will make a difference.
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| Fritz says:
3/15/2011 7:15:42 PM
I also forgot the question about which strings. To me the banjo and the player dictates which strings to use. However, I will say this, remember it is all subjective. What I think is good tone you may not think is good tone. What I think is dead you may find is very good. Be that as it may, I usually use one of two strings sizes, either 10.5, 11.5, 12.5, 20, 10.5 or 10, 11, 12, 20 10 with the later being my favorite. I like the tone better with the 10,11,12,20,10 strings that any other. But on a couple of my banjos I use the 10.5, 11.5, 12.5, 20, 10.5 because they take some of the brightness out of the banjo and give it a more even, woody sound. Also on these banjos the fifth string tends to ping using the 10 size string. Just my thoughts on it and what I do and why I do it. Not right, not wrong, just the way I do it.
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| Gumbograss says:
3/15/2011 9:32:40 PM
See what I mean? He's just weird that way! Actually, in case you hadn't picked up on it already, Fritz is a guy I respect in a HUGE way when it comes to the banjo. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on bridges and strings, Fritz! By contrast, I string my archtop Stew-Mac with Gibson Pure, Earl Scruggs, Banjo Light Gauge, Signature Gauge (9.5, 10, 13, 20, 9.5).
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| Gumbograss says:
3/15/2011 9:34:04 PM
Oh, and my fretless is strung with nylgut strings. This is still very new to me, but I'm digging it.
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| chickenwing says:
3/16/2011 5:33:19 PM
thanks for the answers
i under stand that one person opinion is just that
i hope i am not imposing by asking these questions
i am just a banjo player impersonator i know next to nothing by experience just what i read
my first banjo i bought in september on 2009 still has the original strings.. it came with some extra strings but i never replaced them
however the new banjo i just got
when it came the strings were loosened
in a haste to tune it, one of the strings broke
i was looking to make sure the strings were in the groove in
the bridge and nut but didnt notice it was caught on the edge of a fret
when i tightened it broke
it so happened the spare strings i had were the exact brand as the ones that came on the banjo(it had a tag) so i replaced that string it seems to be ok but the piece of wire sticking out sure could take out a eye
it look nothing like the others
i was not wanting to mess anything up because i dont know anyone that could show how to do it properly
i know one thing i bet fritz is a pro at it lol
i was just trying to gain from your knowledge
i hear you teach (FRITZ) i may be interested maybe just to tell me what bad habits i have , and what i may need to work on
i have a never ending amount of material to learn
have been doing lessons on david cavage blogspot(videoS)
sorry to go on and on
let me know about the lessons
I am going to order some stuff soon that was the reason for the question because quite frankly i dont know what i need
i do need some strings, thumb picks, and was considering maybe a good quality bridge (the one on it is a cheep asian made one) but the banjo sounds fine to me...............but then again those year and 1/2 old strings on my other banjo sounded ok to me they just made you fingers black on you freting hand and kinda gritty lol
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| Gumbograss says:
3/16/2011 8:54:55 PM
We're here to share knowledge, encouragement, and even technical skills. You're never imposing by asking questions!
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| Fritz says:
3/17/2011 7:00:39 AM
Hey Chicken, remember all banjo players [including Earl Scruggs] picked up the banjo for the first time and had never played the banjo before. We all start at the same place.......picked it up for the first time and never played it before. Evedrything I know about the banjo I either gleened off of another player and used the old trial and error method.....or sometimes called wood sheddin'......in other words going out behind the wood shed and putting in countless, countless.....[did I mention countless] hours of practice, foolin with the banjo, holding the banjo, listening to music with banjos [very, very important]......well you get the picture. For me it is not about the end destination but about the journey. I will never reach the end......it will always be a journey for me. I will never reach a point where I can say that I have arrived. I will always be traveling the road to banjodom. I will always be learning, practicing, expanding my music knowledge, etc. That's just the way it is for me.
As far as lessons go, yes I do give lessons. Email me at hmyers34@yahoo.com and we'll set something up.
Fritz
P.S. Me, I cut the string that is hanging past the post of the tuner right at the post, as close as possible with a pair of small wire cutters. I do this to keep from poking my eye out. But be forwarned, cut it so close that nothing is sticking out because let me tell you from experience......OOOOOUUUUUCCCCHHHHH!!!!!!!
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 | thehurricane says:
3/27/2011 9:13:42 PM
On the pencil mark bridge thing, I read somewhere that the bridge should be the same distance from the 12th fret as the nut. If I am wrong somebody tell me please! As for height and type, still learning myself.
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