"Do you think renaissance and nylgut ought to do the trick with a mix of down- and up-picking???"Ken, it should be GREAT to play it like that. Do you know that those 60's Kay banjos (and basses too) are much sought after and beloved by appreciators of 'down-home' vintage banjos? They have a great sound unless they have been messed up or poorly set up in some way along the line. Lucky you!


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Site Owner

Those irritated by grain of sand best avoid beach.
-Strumelia proverb c.1990

Great discussion.Just bought a 60s Kay open-back. Pot looks like pressed-wood composite, not bakelite. It's not here yet. Neck's straight, guitar-type tuners, pretty basic. Has a steel tensioner, not a dowel rod.Do you think renaissance and nylgut ought to do the trick with a mix of down- and up-picking???Was intending to get a Bill Miller skin head, but reading what Lisa wrote makes me think I got enough trouble already. We live in humidity heaven here.

What kind of tailpiece do you have? If it's an adjustable one that hangs out over the head, like a Kirschner, Presto, or clamshell, you might first want to try adjusting the angle. Lower/tighter (closer to the head) will give a brighter tone, and looser should make for a softer sound. I can do that on one banjo (clamshell tailpiece), not the other (old Elite tailpiece ca. 1910).Have you stuffed anything behind the head, inside the banjo? I get rid of overtones and dampen the sound by packing material (lately a fleece sunglasses bag, rolled up) between the dowel stick and the head.Splitting heads (skin) was too much of a hassle for me. Now I only use synthetic.I'd always go for the simplest possible solution first.

Hunter, am I correct in thinking this is an antique banjo?If so, then the pot may be slightly out of true and not a perfect circle, which can complicate matters if you are changing types of heads. It can be done, but sometimes there are issues that need to be solved.Pot slightly warped out of true, brackets that wont fit over modern flesh hoops, odd non-standard sized pot, etc. What kind of head is on there now? Is there anything wrong with it, like holes or splitting?If the head is ok on an antique banjo, I would leave it alone. A LOT can be done to change tone by tweaking instead: your setup, string material and gauges, the tailpiece type and tension, head tension, the bridge used... I would fiddle with all those things before I changed a perfectly good functional head on an antique banjo. Even a plastic frosted 'bluegrass head' can sound old and plunky if you tweak all the other stuff just right. If it's a modern banjo, then changing the head is 'usually' less tricky.Personally, I've done it all- frosted plastic head, Fiberskin, calfskin, Renaissance, you name it, I've spent time installing them and playing on them on various +/- 18 banjos that I've owned, set up, fixed and/or tweaked. I play a lot at outside camping festivals and I did find it to be very tedious dealing with the humidity and real calfskin heads. It got old fast. Real gut strings had the same problem absorbing humidity and literally getting soft like al dente pasta (!) on rainy warm humid summer days while camping. Nylon strings had no such issue and sounded almost like gut.After much experimentation, I found that Renaissance heads gave me a sound very close to real calfskin but without any of the inherent problems. Better sound than even the Fiberskin heads. That's now what I use on all 7 of my banjos. (except the delicate 1800's antique one, which still retains its old calfskin head).


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Site Owner

Those irritated by grain of sand best avoid beach.
-Strumelia proverb c.1990

http://savethebanjos.com/Skin%20Head%20How-To.htm Here's instructions for installing the head. Another thing you might try first is a lower tuning, especially with nylon or Nylgut strings. Aquilla makes the Nylgut strings in two variations, one is tuned to a lower key, I think it's open E. The relationship is the same as G tuning, so all the fingerings are the same, but it plays in a lower key. You can also still retune for the equivalent of the double C and modal tunings, but they will be lower also. Double C would work out to A, the G modal would be E modal. I tried Nylguts on my banjo, and liked them a lot, but I really didn't try a lot of re tuning , as I mostly play in Double C. You may find nylon stretches a lot when you change tunings, and may take a bit to stabilize in each new tuning. We have Nylguts on both of our uke'sand they sound good also.Paul

What kind of head is on it now? And how much plunk is too much? The ultimate in plunk is a natural head on a gourd. If you were looking to buy a banjo, I would suggest buying a larger than normal pot, say 12" or 13 ". The standard these days seems to be 11", but partly because a brighter sound is in vogue, especially for bluegrass players. As you already have a banjo, a new head makes more financial sense.Be aware that natural heads are affected by humidity. You may find the head needs to be tightened on rainy days, and loosened in dry weather. If left too tight during dry weather it may shrink enough to split. The synthetic heads don't have this problem as they don't absorb or release moisture. This isn't a major consideration, just something to be aware of.Last time I looked, natural heads were about $50, but they usually need to be mounted to a metal ring. I think the ring is sold separate from the hide. Somewhere on the web I saw a set of instructions for doing all this. I'll see if I bookmarked it & post it if I find it.

The reason I ask what brand Hunter is that I have used cheaper Bella brand nylon banjo strings- for me they stretch and break way too easily. I've also used nylon fishing line in various cool thickness. That too stretched way to much and was forever bouncy- like playing on a trampoline.Switching to Nylagut nylon banjo strings....really good stiffer tension, broke way less often great sound and great response. For the price of a pack you can check it out. It makes a HUGE difference in giving a really old sounding plunky tone instantly. If you like them and want to keep them, then you might be smart to widen your nut and bridge slots for the two thickest strings at least- they are thicker than steel strings and ought to be seated properly in the slots for long term playing. Personally I find that switching to nylon strings will make a much bigger change to 'plunky' than changing to calfskin heads. I have tried every combination possible for many years on many banjos. I've played for years on both steel and nylon strings, and all kinds of heads, skin, renaissance, fiberskin....


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Site Owner

Those irritated by grain of sand best avoid beach.
-Strumelia proverb c.1990

First you can try loosening the head just a bit- and don't forget the tailpiece bracket.What kind of nylon strings did you play on previously? Some kinds are not so good.


--
Site Owner

Those irritated by grain of sand best avoid beach.
-Strumelia proverb c.1990

The best, cheapest, quickest, and most dramatic way to achieve an instant plunkier sound is to put nylon strings on your banjo. I recommend Nylagut brand.


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Site Owner

Those irritated by grain of sand best avoid beach.
-Strumelia proverb c.1990

Everything else being equal, a skin head will have a mellower, plunkier sound than a plastic head. In between the frosted, plastic head (brightest sound) and skin head (mellowest sound), you will find the Fyberskin head and the Renassaince head.Within limits you can also adjust the tension on the head by tightening or loosening the hook/nuts on the side of the banjo pot. A tighter head will have a brighter sound. A looser head will have a plunkier sound.Greg
updated by @greg-gunner: 02/12/16 06:10:29PM