Tim Gardner - Cedar Mountain Banjos

Submitted by Billlloyd on 3/25/2021

Overall Comments

Tim Gardner of Cedar Mountain Banjos is an excellent Luthier. He guarantees the workmanship on his banjos and has made repairs for me on my Cedar Mountain Banjo,  no questions asked. 

I had a problem withe my Banjo Rim and contacted Tim. True to his word, I returned my Banjo and he replaced the rim and had me banjo back to me in 10 days after he received it. Tim provided good customer service and I was very pleased with his responsiveness to my issue and his quality and speed to get may banjo back up and running.

Check out Cedar Mountain Banjos. You won't be disappointed. 

https://www.cedarmtnbanjos.com/

Overall Rating: 8

Cedar Mountain: brainjo

Submitted by Billlloyd on 3/25/2021

Where Purchased: Clawhammerbanjo.net

Year Purchased: 2020
Price Paid: 1350 ($US) (bought USED)

Sound

I purchased the Tommy set up with my Brainjo. I play clawhammer style and working on two finger thumb lead.
The Brainjo is bright with the Nickle plated strings, VERY BRIGHT. I replaced them with GHS phosphor bronze light strings and now the sound is more full and rounded. Still with good sustain. More appealing to my ear.
Love the Banjo. I like the clean and simple look of the model, no frills, just a solid sounding and good looking Banjo. Solid workmanship.

Sound Rating: 9

Setup

Banjo was set up perfectly for me.
I would recommend replacing the nickel plated strings. In general they can be a bit tinny and overly bright.

Setup Rating: 9

Appearance

Clean look, solid craftsmanship. Very attractive.

Appearance Rating: 10

Reliability

3-piece cherry neck with matching dowel, rosewood fingerboard and peghead overlay
maple thin rim, 11?
25.5? neck scale
2-way adjustable truss rod
frailing scoop
high-quality nickel hardware and tuners
bone nut, 1 5/16? width
side dots at frets 1, 3, 5, 7, 10, 12, 15, and 17

Reliability Rating: 9

Customer Service

Tim at Cedar Mountain make a timely repair on my banjo rim. Actually he replaced it. Turn around was 10 days from the time he received the Banjo from me to when it was back in my hands. that included 2 days of shipping.

Customer Service: 9

Components

3-piece cherry neck with matching dowel, rosewood fingerboard and peghead overlay
maple thin rim, 11?
25.5? neck scale
2-way adjustable truss rod
frailing scoop
high-quality nickel hardware and tuners
bone nut, 1 5/16? width
side dots at frets 1, 3, 5, 7, 10, 12, 15, and 17

Components Rating: 9

Overall Comments

Great workmanship, good service, stands behind their warranty. Sound is excellent, looks are clean and simple, which I find very appealing as I do not like a lot of decoration. If you want a good sounding solid banjo at a great value, take a look at Cedar Mountain Banjos.  

For the complete line go to:

www.cedarmtnbanjos.com

To review the Brainjo check it out at: 

www.clawhammerbanjo.net/the-brainjo/

 

Overall Rating: 9