hello everyone. I'm new to the Stelling group and have always wanted one made by Geoff. I spoke with Geoff and Sherry this past week and they were great. I ordered a Masters Cross Gold engraved deluxe. And was reading about the Ludwig heads and was concerned about that particular head, I've always used Remo not sure why but that's what I've always played with. I'll for sure get Geoff's input as it gets closer to the build being finished. I like it loud and was reading about the Ludwig taming the beast. I've always been drawn to this particular model it's just absolutely amazing looking forward to how it will sound.. Anyway any input would be greatly appreciated, this will be most likely the last banjo I will purchase I just want it to be amazing!
6 Comments |
 | pjfolino says:
9/10/2016 7:35:29 PM
Congratulations on your purchase and welcome to the family!
IMO stick with the Ludwig - there's a good reason Geoff uses them. I feel they bring out the best in these machines. No quieter that a Remo but much prettier tone.
My 20 cents. Enjoy!
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 | breck says:
9/10/2016 7:40:48 PM
Thank you for the input, I've chased that Gibson prewar sound for years and I'm just not interested anymore of the theory or myth. Stelling has always seemed to be in the back of my mind, it's an expensive investment but I'm really looking forward to Geoff's craftmanship
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 | CAPT Steve says:
9/10/2016 8:44:52 PM
Breck--I think you've made a great choice. I've had a Master's Cross for a number of years and really enjoy playing it. It's a work of art, and I like the statement of faith it makes. It's also an incredibly easy instrument to play; the neck is very comfortable and you can develop a full range of tone. Yeah, you can play it loud, but you can generate a great spectrum. I don't know about one head from the other, but trust Geoff's judgment in what he specs for his instruments. I would recommend your considering talking to Geoff about using stainless frets in the construction. I had the Stelling crew put them on a few years ago; no difference in the sound that I can tell, but the wear is indiscernible, I really have no idea when I'll need further fretwork.
You really should consider making the trip to Virginia to pick up your banjo. It's fun to go over the mountain, meet Geoff, see the shop, and he's a set-up wizard who should be able to get your banjo where you want it for tone and playability (granted, things will stretch and settle, so you'll have to do some tweaking after a bit, but shouldn't take much).
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| breck says:
9/10/2016 8:56:38 PM
Steve yeah I'm for sure gonna take Geoff's advice he is the expert. I to was drawn to the masters cross, I will be playing it in church when songs are selected that can use a banjo. It's nice to hear of someone who owns and plays that certain banjo and knows the playability of this particular model. I play at least a couple of hours a day, and was wondering about the durability of the gold finish, I'll take great care of it but I will also play it a lot. Thank you for the advice of the frets, I do tend to wear frets alittle quicker than most I guess I just press down to hard so I'll for sure mention that to Geoff. I would love to to drive to pick it up it will be ready in late November early December so I'll see how the weather in his area will be, I don't like shipping instruments and it would be nice to get him to help set it up
God bless
Breck
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| CAPT Steve says:
9/11/2016 2:36:39 PM
I play in church, too. Sometimes the Stelling sometimes the Nechville, depending on what it is I'm doing. Couple Sundays ago I did the old Mark Heard song He Will Listen To You that Nickel Creek has covered. Nice song, easy to play on the banjo, but doesn't use a lot of Scruggs-type rolls. Played it more like slide guitar with lots of slides. Geoff's serious about his faith, and his line has always had one or more instruments that attest to it. I've never had a gold finish, so don't know about the durability, although I suspect it has something to do with body chemistry. Mine acts up enough that with the nickel plating, I can clean it with
Simichrome. Can't do that with gold (but it sure is pretty).
We went right before Christmas; I planned it to go to Virginia while we were visiting one of the kids in North Carolina. We overnighted in Charlottesville and if I remember correctly, it was just over 20 miles south from there. Beautiful country. Weather was fine for us, a bit cool for us Floridians, but otherwise OK. I know that isn't always the case that time of year. However, if you can make it, I'd highly recommend it. You don't get the opportunity to visit with a master craftsman too often. I was blessed to see wooden boat builders in North Carolina when I was inspecting them as part of my Coast Guard work. And the 86 year old Alabama luthier who worked on my Martin and fixed its intonation problems. And, of course, Geoff. I so appreciate meeting folks that are able to do such things beyond the expected or norm.
Grace,
Steve
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 | Geoff Stelling says:
9/13/2016 9:56:12 AM
Hi Steve, Breck, and PJ,
I enjoyed reading your various comments and have some important news for you all about Ludwig heads. The company has stopped production for all banjo heads and says they want nothing to do with banjo heads anymore. I don't know why that is, but it means that there will be no more Ludwig or Stewart-MacDonald 5 Star heads. Therefore I have gone to Remo to see what is available and have two samples to try. One is a crimped style similar to the Ludwig that I seem to favor. Both samples are lighter than a Ludwig but the crimped one is about .010 lbs. heavier than the standard Remo and only .005 lbs lighter than the Ludwig. I imagine the weight differences are due to the crimping construction and the material used. The frosting may be thinner on a Remo also. Anyway, that's my only option as I see it at this point. I had to remove the Ludwig heads from my website. Once I have the new Remos, I'll list them. They will have my logo on them. It's reguired by Remo.
Best, Geoff
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