Bill Blaylock and his son make possibly the VERY best tone rings available, and when I installed mine, it was hard to fathom or accurately describe the incredibly rich and loud tone and volume. I could immediately tell that the ring  was not just any halfway-good ring; it is in all respects a professional ring that will not drop out in volume or leave you wanting more, because that is just plain IMPOSSIBLE with any ring from Blaylock. I challenge any skeptics to name another ring which instantly gives amazing raw power, without having to do setup after setup after setup....!

 The Blaylock is NOT one of the “fussy” rings which refuse to ring until just before the banjo owner throws up their hands in dismay. 

If you have been looking a LONG time for “the” tone ring for your special banjo, try a Blaylock! You don’t need to spend more than half the price of a used RK-35 on a Dannick! 

Investing $500 for the Blaylock ring will not leave you wondering “why didn’t I buy the Dannick on the basis that my favorite banjo player has one installed on his?”

There is only so much that bell bronze tone rings can offer, and you’ll get hundreds of dissenting opinions. But in my mind, a contest between a Blaylock and any other ring is no contest. I used to believe that only the $600+ rings could be any good. Not any more. 

The precision with which Bill machines the ring is second to none. His work speaks for itself. And as for a “bad” Blaylock tone ring; sorry, you will NEVER find one! 

Countless owners of prewar Gibson conversions can testify to the power of the one Ruling Ring.

I can proudly say, along with many other happy Blaylock customers, that Bill Blaylock truly is the “Lord of the Rings!”

Ordered a Mike's mute.   At first I didn't like it - the tone was different enough (most of the "twang" eliminated) that it threw my brain off.   But after about two days of playing with the mute on - I love it, and my wife LOVES it.  

Huge sound reduction, but clear notes.   Really fast on and off.   I can play while my wife is in the next room, with the door open, and she doesn't mind a bit.  It really is as good as all the reviews say in terms of quieting the banjo.

If you get one of these, just give it a couple of days to get used to the quieter tone and softer, less-twangy sound before thinking about returning it.   My guess is that you'll keep it.   Great practice aid, worth every penny.

Luckily, here in Banjo Hangout I found information about the SpikeTyke tool. The set includes the jig, two drills of different diameter (black for ebony fretboard, blue for all other woods) and 8 spikes. Hans Holzherr even gave me 4 more spikes. Detailed instructions are also provided, and the website even has a very good video about the installation. The spikes are shortened so you do not have to drill too deep, and the head is also flattened.

The order is made via PayPal and the set costs 30 CHF. I think the price is fair, finally you can equip several banjos with the spikes. The delivery lasted only two days because Hans lives here in Switzerland. Shipping overseas will probably take longer.

In addition to the SpikeTyke set you also need a drill, a hammer, a pair of needle nose pliers, a straw and a capo (Shubb goes very well, Paige is less suitable). With the SpykTyke set, I was not afraid to do the installation, the spikes are perfectly positioned by the jig and everything worked well thanks to the good instructions. If you want to or have to install the spikes yourself and prefer a safe way, I can highly recommend this tool.

to give a try,and I have to say these are the best and most comfortable picks I have ever used. I can play for a couple hours with no problems.they are very easy to work with as in shaping to your fit.They really bring the sound out on my RB-250 and I even seem to have smoother rolls.I would advise anybody to give them a try......Jim Slone

They both turn counterclockwise, which is different then Keith tuners, but it only took me a short time to become used to the change.

The neck dimensions on my Rickard are perfect for me and quite playable in my hands.  Thus I sent Zach those desired dimensions at the nut, 12th fret, and heal at the pot.  We traded a few email messages as I considered whether to have the fretless portion of the ebony fingerboard overlayed with either a brass plate or ebony.  Zach was quite willing to accommodate either choice despite never having built a semi-fretless neck.  Ebony overlay was my final decision and Zach's workmanship with respect to the transition zone between the 7th and 8th fret positions as well as the entire neck and fingerboard itself is excellent.

Aside from the actual workmanship involved in fabricating my special order, I want to emphasize Zach's exemplary customer service.  Owing to the fine details of the specific attributes I've mentioned above, this project required a lot of communication between Zach and myself.  We accomplished this via numerous email exchanges and one phone call early on.  Zach always replied promptly, looked at a variety of photos and video images of example necks I had found, and was unwavering in his acceptance of changes along the way to beginning the build.  He clearly communicated his timeline, started and completed the build exactly according to the position of my project in his work flow, and the finished neck, mated to the pot and hardware I sent him, arrived on schedule and well packed for shipping.

The execution of this project has enabled me to realize the goal of now having a semi-fretless banjo with a neck perfectly suited to my hands, as well as now putting back into commission a pot and hardware that had been sidelined largely because the original fully fretted neck was too narrow for my preference.  This would not have been possible as seamlessly and elegantly were it not for Zach's attention to details, willingness to take on a new challenge, craftsmanship, and dedication to communicating.  I would unquestionably commission Zach Hoyt again for any such project or a completed instrument and wish him great success as he continues developing his professional luthery career.

First off, dealing with Bart was a pleasure. He responded to emails in a timely manner and answered all my questions regarding what bridge would work best with my banjo.

After choosing my desired specs and sending payment via the Paypal link on the site, Bart emailed saying the bridge was en-route and it arrived from Canada to central IL in less than a week. The bridge was packed in a bubble wrap envelope including a small insert with some basic bridge info, installation instructions, and specs.

The bridge itself is quite nice and the attention to detail is obvious. It is hand signed by Bart and is marked on the bottom of the feet for proper orientation. There are no rough edges anywhere and the string slots are flawless. 

I have tried two other bridges on this banjo; the stock ebony topped maple, and a Gary Sosebee ebony topped select maple, both in 44mm spacing. Bart's bridge is significantly smaller in size compared to the two previous ones, but there is absolutely no shortage of tone or volume. The banjo sounded pretty damn good with the other bridges, but now it just has more "pop" and the note separation is more distinct throughout the handful of tunings I use, even when capoed and spiked. I would describe the overall sound as full and balanced.

I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Bart to anyone looking for a bridge. Everything about the experience was top notch. A fantastic product backed up by great communication/ advice and timely shipping/ delivery. 10s across the board. 

Bart's website is also a great resource for banjo information in general; worth checking out even if you're not in the market for a bridge.

Instrument went from normal banjo volume to the volume of an unplugged solidbody electric guitar.

Simple to install, solid construction, should last forever.

All I could ask for, 10 out of 10.

The sound is bright, it picks clean, smooth, and fast off of the string, the shape of the metal band is comfortable while holding tight without cutting off blood flow. It is a little hard to swallow $40 for a thumb pick (fortunately I can still get my mom to by ridiculous stuff for my birthday even at 37) but it seems well worth the price. I'm told the pick portion has some longevity as well. Find a friend that has one and try it out. 

The bridge itself (an uncapped mystery wood 3-foot 5 string) is flawless, the custom slotting was perfect, and the height and spacing are spot on. Compared to a hard maple ebony cap, the mystery wood bridge sounds mellow and full, without any muddy overtones on the low end. It doesn't sacrifice clarity, but is free from the aggressively bright growl that some hardwood capped bridges tend toward, and without losing the belltones on the high strings -- the sound of this bridge on my fretless Reiter is exactly what I was looking for. 

I'm quite happy both with my interaction with Bart as well as with the bridge, and will look to him in the future when searching for a bridge to complement my banjos. Highly recommended.