Here are some pictures that I now have of a project a few years ago. I show these now because I held off publicizing until now.
The tailpiece is OME, The neck is more Maple than Walnut, the rim is Grapefruit, the resonator is standard Recording King. the fingerboard is Rosewood, the inlays are from Mr. DePaul
I used standard cut inlays and customer initials. The Yellow Rose Vine Inlay was specified with the headstock rose which is smaller substituting the 7th fret rosebud. Thus there is a similar Maple vine, not pearl inserted where you can see it.
One can clearly see the sterling silver spoons, the Fresnel ledges and the Grapefruit
The armrest is Grapefruit with a diamond in it.
That's correct, I didn't add a side view. And yes, those are some flaws.
This is representative of my level of skill are a certain point. Thanks for taking a look.
Edited by - Helix on 05/29/2023 17:56:33
Very nice. How do the spoons affect the sound?
They move sound around in the rim. You can roll the headstock in a clockwise or counter at the end of a phrase or verse and give a little shape to the sound whenever you want. Unlike a B or G bender, they spoons warp all the playing strings at the same time.
I got timed out, I want to clarify, the spoons do not warp the strings.
The spoons warp the sound being produced by the whole strings/bridge/head/tone ring/rim/hardware continuum.
Edited by - Helix on 05/31/2023 11:54:54
She's a beaut!
Very nice, Larry. Keep on building!
Very cool Helix! I’m trying to wrap my head around the spoon concept… is it — by twisting the neck slightly, you flex the rim… which pushes the spoons against the head and “warps” the pitch/tone?
TimFoster Hi Tim, The banjo isn't twisted, nor the rim flexed. The spoons are not moving parts like a gizmo.
I refrained from telling about this for many years. The sound is reflected from the cup of one spoon to the bottom of the next spoon, so both sides of each spoon are used at all times and the spoons are adjustable to suit the taste of each player. I have used 4,6, 8 and 12 spoons. Sterling silver rings like little bells but needs to be cleaned. I use gold plated stainless for my 8 at the present time. I play on stage what I build.
It shows that there is air moving around in the rim without assistance, but that the movement can be diverted like a train whistle which is higher in pitch approaching and lower in pitch as it departs. Somebody I know is working on some cool thing changing the turbine into something else, but not showing that yet.
I personally refer to attack, sustain and decay as snap, crackle and pop.
The sound from the inside the rim under the head can be "bent" at the end of a phrase or anywhere you want in the continuum (word) and effects all of the banjo's tonal production at the same time just by wiggling or circling the peghead, no bending of parts necessary.
Note guitarists and other banjoists use "shake" on individual notes during leads. A flat pick or plectrum can also produce the high chime harmonic with great results in my view whether electric or acoustic. I had to learn to do it.
I know I should just publish a video, but because of the nature of the rim construction and resistance to hearing any "tone" from rims, I didn't want my personal playing to interfere with listening. That's why I let customers play on my website, they are the ones who matter.
It's time consuming and hype to jack my truck up on banjo rims and stand in the bed playing, but it's possible like supporting a brick with folded paper. Somebody will now go out and jack up a perfectly innocent vehicle to debunk this, but I'm busy playing.
Thanks for asking, time to build the banjos.
Edited by - Helix on 06/07/2023 06:53:37
