048 – B’rer Rabbit Trickster Banjo
This banjo features some of my favorite inlay and engraving work yet. The unique folklore trickster theme led us to make some very fun decisions that tied everything together very nicely in a personal and cohesive way. We started with B’rer Rabbit on the peghead and the Japanese Kitsunev, a nine tailed fox, in the scoop with fox prints traveling up the fingerboard. We later added a raven to the back of the peghead and lastly a butterfly to the heel. The connection of the two is as follows, “in the Canadian Pacific northwest, the Haida depict Butterfly as the companion of Raven the Creator-Trickster, perhaps acknowledging the unpredictable and unreliable nature of “flights of fancy” and dreaming”. The copper of the half fretless overlay with brass screws led to the use of copper and brass side location dots as well as the raw brass hardware. Overall a very fun and playful but elegant design resulted.
- 12″ Curly Walnut Rim
- 25.5″ Scale Length
- Wenge Tone Ring
- Copper and Brass Half Fretless Overlay with Engraved Fret Markers
- Copper with Brass Eye Side Location Dots
- Ebony Peghead Binding
- Engraved White, Black and Gold Mother of Pearl and Abalone Inlays
- Figured Maple Details with Golden Brown Stained Finish
- Backstrap
- Raw Brass Hardware
- Brooks Banjos Hooks and Nuts
- Scalloped Ebony Nut
- Seeders Violin Bridge
- Fielding Tailpiece
- Aquila Nylgut Strings
- Published in Banjos
047 – 12″ Birdseye Maple Tubaphone No. 9
This custom banjo is designed around the classic Vega Tubaphone No. 9. The engraved mother of pearl inlays, found on the original model, were simplified and replaced with tightly figured Birdseye Maple for a simplified but elegant look. The Ivoroid binding was replaced using Curly Maple. Unlike the original maple rim this rim was built using Mahogany to match the neck and extra rim depth was added.
- 12″ Mahogany Rim
- 22.25″ Scale Length
- Tubaphone Tone Ring
- 26 Hook Bracket Band
- Three Piece Mahogany Neck
- Ebony Peghead, Rim Cap and Rear Peghead Overlay
- Birdseye Maple Inlays
- Raw Brass Hardware
- Curly Maple Binding
- Published in Banjos
046 – 12″ Style 3 Dobson Special Banjo
This is a 12″ Walnut Style 3 variation. This banjo has a powerful well rounded tone unique to the Dobson Special with a comfortable neck profile ideal for all hand sizes and comfort while playing all over the neck. The Dobson Special utilizes a Dobson tone ring mounted on a rolled brass ring to isolate the tone ring from the wooden rim giving it a unique and powerful Dobson sound with more balanced and a crisp overall tone. The low end range is enhanced slightly with the larger 12″ rim. It’s simple but elegant inlays and overall design has a vintage inspired look while adding modern play ability and durability.
- 25.5″ Scale Length
- 12″ Walnut Rim
- Dobson Special Tone Ring
- Hand Engraved Mother of Pearl Inlays
- Nickel Hardware
- Unplated Brass Tone Ring
- Striped Ebony Fingerboard
- EVO Fretwire
- 1-5/16″ Bone Nut
- Gotoh Tuners
- Red Brown Stain
- Ebony Heel Cap
- Hard Oil Finish
- Published in Banjos
045 – Moon and Sun Clover Banjo
This banjo was a custom order that featured some very unique inlays. An abalone crown tops the peghead with a bell hanging from the lower peghead like a necklace. The rear of the peghead has a moon and sun inlay that was a fun challenge to create with Mother of Pearl and Recon Stone. The side peghead snake inlays created a unique challenge and were done with a bronze powder. The green clovers on the fingerboard matched the deep green finish on the neck and rim. The puzzle piece as well as the other inlays have a special meaning to the owner of the banjo who it was designed for.
- 26.1875″ Scale Length
- 1-1/4″ Bone Nut
- Custom Engraved Inlays
- Kavanjo Banjo Pickup
- Nickel Hardware
- Ebony Fingerboard, Rim Cap and Peghead
- Custom Green Finish
- Nitrocellulose Satin Finish
- Rolled Brass Tone Ring
- Rounded Volute
- Published in Banjos
044 – Curly Maple Style 3 Dobson Special Banjo
This is a variation of the Seeders Style 3 Dobson Special made with Curly Maple. This banjo has a powerful well rounded tone unique to the Dobson Special with a comfortable neck profile ideal for all hand sizes and comfort while playing all over the neck. The Dobson Special utilizes a Dobson tone ring mounted on a rolled brass ring to isolate the tone ring from the wooden rim giving it a unique and powerful Dobson sound with more balanced and a crisp overall tone. It’s simple but elegant inlays and overall design has a vintage inspired look while adding modern play ability and durability.
- 25.5″ Scale Length
- 11″ Curly Maple Rim
- Dobson Special Tone Ring
- Hand Engraved Mother of Pearl Inlays
- Antiqued Brass Hardware
- Striped Ebony Fingerboard
- EVO Fretwire
- 1-5/16″ Bone Nut
- Gotoh Tuners
- Warm Amber Stain
- Cole Boat Heel
- Hard Oil Finish
- Published in Banjos
043 – Engraved Curly Maple Piccolo Banjo
An elegant but simply adorned Curly Maple piccolo banjo. Stained with a golden brown finish with hand engraved Mother of Pearl inlays.
- 8″ Piccolo Rim
- 18″ Scale Length
- 1-1/4″ Nut
- Engraved Mother of Pearl Inlays
- Richlite Fingerboard
- Stained Curly Maple Neck and Rim
- Walnut Rim and Heel Cap
- Ebony Peghead Overlay
- Aquila Nylgut Strings
- Rickard Nickel Plated Hardware
- Published in Banjos
042 – Vine Inlay Piccolo
A Walnut Piccolo banjo with a custom vine inlay. The inlay is made from Rosewood with engraved recon stone leaves. Red veneer details match the recon stone dot inlays.
- 8″ Piccolo Rim
- 18″ Scale Length
- 1-1/4″ Nut
- Richlite Fingerboard
- Walnut Neck and Rim
- Red Veneer Accents
- Ebony Peghead Overlay
- Aquila Nylon Strings
- Antiqued Raw Brass Hardware
- Published in Banjos
041 – Style 5 Dobson Special Banjo
This banjo is the first of my Style 5 Dobson Specials. It has Style 5 inlay details with a Dobson tone ring sitting atop a rolled brass tone ring to isolate it from the wooden rim. This creates the unique Dobson tone but adds an even deeper more balanced low end while keeping a nice crisp well rounded sound. This banjo is owned by the talented Carling Berkhout and can be heard on her Instagram feed as well as on our albums with our duo Carling and Will.
- 25.5″ Scale Length
- 5/16″ Bone Nut
- 12″ Walnut Rim with Black Lacquer
- Dobson Special Tone Ring
- Engraved Fairbanks Mother of Pearl Peghead Inlay
- Striped Ebony Fingerboard and Peghead
- Walnut Neck
- Ivoroid Rim Binding
- Cole Boat Heel
- Antiqued Brass Hardware
- Published in Banjos
040 – Gibson Pyramid Tone Ring Conversion Banjo
This banjo started its life as a 1926 Gibson TB-1 tenor banjo. I converted it to a TB-2 Style Pyramid Tone Ring banjo with a very unique custom inlay theme. The Pyramid Tone Ring is a reproduction ring made by Arnold Clayton fitted to the original rim. The flange has been upgraded from the TB-1 Diamond Flange to an original TB-2 hex flange.
- 26.375″ Scale Length
- 1-1/4″ Nut
- Aztec Themed Engraved Mother of Pearl Inlays
- Curly Maple Neck
- Ebony Fingerboard and Peghead
- Ivoroid Binding
- Radiused Fingerboard
- Published in Banjos
039 – Ladybug Pony Banjo
A piccolo/pony banjo made from Curly Maple with a Ladybug inlay.
- 18″ Scale Length
- 8″ Curly Maple Rim
- 1-1/4″ Bone Nut
- Ironwood Fingerboard
- Curly Maple Neck
- Walnut Rim Cap and Peghead
- Red Veneer Details
- Amber Tuner Knobs
- Rolled Brass Tone Ring
- Published in Banjos