Mike Keyes has 3 excellent videos on You Tube on making banjo bridges and YES ! we have all heard that banjo joke before and NO! its not funny and it wasn't funny the second time or the hundred and second time either.Thanks Mike for all the valuable knowledge you have so generously shared with us over the years http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWvTPgN4l5s
Not that the actual information he gives isn't good; but a couple of strong coffees, or an editor saying "Speed it it up a bit" might have been a bonus.
On the other hand, aren't we all supposed to be saving energy ?
But broadband isn't null cost either.
The main reason that I am trying to be thorough is safety. While it looks like a simple thing to do, the machines involved in making these small peices of wood are very dangerous. By imparting a sense of carefulness, I hope to save a few fingers.
In addition, the quality of bridges, i.e. the effect on the banjo, is determined by the little things when you make the bridges. If you just go out and make them willy-nilly, they will sound like crap.
The reason I make my own bridges is that you have to try a number of variables out before you can find a bridge that will give your banjo an optimal sound. (Sort of like whistles) The costs in materials and time is not that much and I have a lot of bridges left over that might benefit another banjo.
But if you don't make each bridge carefully, you will have to generate a lot more of them to find one that works well and then the costs go up.
Oh dear lord, I saw a friend's fingers come out the wrong side of a big joiner planer when I was making mandolins for Flatiron. Not a pleasant way to start the day.
Do be extremely careful. A banjo bridge isn't worth losing skin or bone over.
At least a banjo bridge can be fabricated using hand-saws and drills, and a small sander, not a heavy piece of shop machinery.
I've been making Red Henrys' patterns of bridge for my bouzouki, and did make a similar type thing to go on my old banjo, but with the holes and slots cut as Reds' pattern so that the string energy has to follow a convolluted path to the feet. I'm not sure I could tell any benefit, but a new set of strings might have helped too. Also, banjo bridges tend to be very light as a starter; Red Henrys' bridges were as a substitute for the two-piece-ebony-plus-brass-screws-type adjustable bridge, so they were lighter already.
Red's bridges are the primary influence on my bridge design. He sent me a few of his banjo bridges and it went on from there. He is a design genius, if you ask me.
Between 1985-1995 I once made and sold tuned banjo bridges made from standard Grover (and similar) inexpensive two and three legged bridges. They had enlarged string notches, razor saw cuts at angles on either side of each string notch and tuning cuts on the top next to each string notch. I don't sell them any more but include illustrated instructions in two entries on the Blog page of my web site: www.geigeracousticdevices.com. You tune each notch while the bridge is on the banjo and you can hear the improvement while you're tuning it. They work great and are fun and safe to make using only a triangular file, hand razor saw and an X-acto knife or single edged razor blade.
Banjo Bridges
Banjo Bridges
Mike Keyes has 3 excellent videos on You Tube on making banjo bridges and YES ! we have all heard that banjo joke before and NO! its not funny and it wasn't funny the second time or the hundred and second time either.Thanks Mike for all the valuable knowledge you have so generously shared with us over the years http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWvTPgN4l5s
# Posted on October 24th 2008 by Red Robin
Re: Banjo Bridges
is this another commercial?
# Posted on October 24th 2008 by millionyears_bc
Re: Banjo Bridges
Thanks a million for posting that one Red, I'll check it out in the morning properly.
# Posted on October 25th 2008 by banjoburger
Re: Banjo Bridges
Not that the actual information he gives isn't good; but a couple of strong coffees, or an editor saying "Speed it it up a bit" might have been a bonus.
On the other hand, aren't we all supposed to be saving energy ?
But broadband isn't null cost either.
# Posted on October 26th 2008 by Guernsey Pete
Re: Banjo Bridges
The main reason that I am trying to be thorough is safety. While it looks like a simple thing to do, the machines involved in making these small peices of wood are very dangerous. By imparting a sense of carefulness, I hope to save a few fingers.
In addition, the quality of bridges, i.e. the effect on the banjo, is determined by the little things when you make the bridges. If you just go out and make them willy-nilly, they will sound like crap.
The reason I make my own bridges is that you have to try a number of variables out before you can find a bridge that will give your banjo an optimal sound. (Sort of like whistles) The costs in materials and time is not that much and I have a lot of bridges left over that might benefit another banjo.
But if you don't make each bridge carefully, you will have to generate a lot more of them to find one that works well and then the costs go up.
Or you could get broadand :grin:
MIke Keyes
http://www.banjosesssions.com
# Posted on October 28th 2008 by mikeyes
Re: Banjo Bridges
Oh dear lord, I saw a friend's fingers come out the wrong side of a big joiner planer when I was making mandolins for Flatiron. Not a pleasant way to start the day.
Do be extremely careful. A banjo bridge isn't worth losing skin or bone over.
# Posted on October 28th 2008 by Will Harmon
Re: Banjo Bridges
At least a banjo bridge can be fabricated using hand-saws and drills, and a small sander, not a heavy piece of shop machinery.
I've been making Red Henrys' patterns of bridge for my bouzouki, and did make a similar type thing to go on my old banjo, but with the holes and slots cut as Reds' pattern so that the string energy has to follow a convolluted path to the feet. I'm not sure I could tell any benefit, but a new set of strings might have helped too. Also, banjo bridges tend to be very light as a starter; Red Henrys' bridges were as a substitute for the two-piece-ebony-plus-brass-screws-type adjustable bridge, so they were lighter already.
# Posted on October 28th 2008 by Guernsey Pete
Re: Banjo Bridges
Red's bridges are the primary influence on my bridge design. He sent me a few of his banjo bridges and it went on from there. He is a design genius, if you ask me.
Mike Keyes
http://www.mikekeyes.com
# Posted on October 28th 2008 by mikeyes
Re: Banjo Bridges
Between 1985-1995 I once made and sold tuned banjo bridges made from standard Grover (and similar) inexpensive two and three legged bridges. They had enlarged string notches, razor saw cuts at angles on either side of each string notch and tuning cuts on the top next to each string notch. I don't sell them any more but include illustrated instructions in two entries on the Blog page of my web site: www.geigeracousticdevices.com. You tune each notch while the bridge is on the banjo and you can hear the improvement while you're tuning it. They work great and are fun and safe to make using only a triangular file, hand razor saw and an X-acto knife or single edged razor blade.
# Posted on October 30th 2008 by Frank.Geiger