Appalachian mountain banjo

"Old Timer model"

This banjo has been built to look real old - left in the roof of a barn in the hills of Appalachia not been played since 1924 kind of old. Its made from reclaimed English elm (from an old table top) and had lots of aging techniques, including burning, scuffing, woodworm holes. The pegs are made from Iroku and the nut is ebony from an old piano and the handmade bridge is pine. This model also has a brass tone ring which adds to the overall projection and tone coming from the small pot.

 

All of my mountain banjos have been built using the Stanley Hicks instructions in Foxfire 3, but with some modifactions to geometry in order to improve playability and tone