Banjo mandolins

**katpiercemusic** · Jun-21-2012, 12:55pm

Don't yell. I like the sound. I've been thinking of getting one for a while, and then I had some unexpected expenses and couldn't justify it. I got to try out someone's banjo mandolin at clearwater and it was amazing (1920s, maker started with a W, smaller head like a banjolele...anyone know this one?). I'm starting to look again. I might like to get one this summer if I can find a reasonable one (reasonable being under $500 for me). Who has played some and has an opinion? I've been checking out Elderly, Mandolin Bros. here and ebay, so I'm getting some ideas, but I could use your feedback.

**Jim Garber** · Jun-21-2012, 1:10pm

My favorite and the only one I own is a Weymann with a 7 inch head. It is the only mandolin banjo that seems to have some sort of tone. My friend John has a 4 string version of mine and was at Clearwater. Perhaps you played that one?

This one is exactly the same as mine.

**katpiercemusic** · Jun-21-2012, 4:06pm

Was he at the Circle of Song stage? I think perhaps it was his, but it was 8 string, and Weymann... that's the one. Beautiful!

**Jim Garber** · Jun-21-2012, 10:03pm

They are very nice. I am not sure but as of a 1/2 dozen years or so ago you would have to put a skin head on it -- a little more complicated than a plastic one. it is possible that now there are 7 inch plastic heads available but i am not sure about that. The original bridge that came with mine warped a bit so I have to figure out what i can do about it.

Actually there is one for sale here:

Weymann 7" Banjo Mandolin, rare, orig hsc, heavy wood-rim model, with patent Weymann metal neck adjuster, exc cond. $650.

It has been for sale by that site owner for some time. I imagine you could make him an offer if you are interested. That one is nice also because it has the original case (as does mine). I would think those cases are hard to come by.

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Oh funny... I just looked further down and Mike Holmes is selling plastic 7 inch heads as well.

7" Remo Banjo Heads, perfect for Stewart Piccolo banjos or Weymann banjo ukes or other exactly 7" diameter heads. $50 plus $5 s/h/i. Shipping combined for multiples. I have no other sizes. Email Mike Holmes, or call (774) 207-0284.

**katpiercemusic** · Jun-22-2012, 5:44am

Thanks!

**8ch(pl)** · Jun-22-2012, 5:49am

Actually, putting a pre-formed head on a banjo that was designed for a calfskin one can be tricky. It can involve carving the end of the neck to accomodate the larger ring on the new head. Also the new style head can go down slightly farther on the pot.

Generally, the calfskin will sound better than the mylar. The Remo Fyberskin is supposed to sound closer to the tone of the calfskin.

**ourgang** · Jun-22-2012, 6:29am

This is my grandfather's 1920's Style K Vega MB. The tone is harsh and LOUD but probably fit in well with the banjo bands of the day. I keep a hand towel folded up and stuck in between the head and the dowel stick on the inside. Still in it's original case with the original bracket key for tightening the head. I think it is either a 10 or 11" head. When it is passed down from me it will have been in the family for five generations.

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**SHORTY** · Jun-22-2012, 7:00am

There is a Mando Banjo in the trade section.

**katpiercemusic** · Jun-22-2012, 8:00am

I don't have a resonator to trade, so no such luck. There are a few at Eldery. The Bacon Orchestra one has my attention, but I think that it's the unfair invocation of bacon that's doing it. I'm seriously considering making an offer on the Weymann. I told myself I wasn't going to travel this summer because I'm trying to save money and then I get this into my head. I don't get me sometimes.

**Jim Garber** · Jun-22-2012, 8:59am

You might ask Shorty if he would accept cash. I have a feeling he would consider.

**Marcelyn** · Jun-22-2012, 9:15am

If you're not set on that brand in particular, I've really liked the Vegas. I searched around a lot and found a White Lady and Tube-A-Phone. The latter was in your range and it is my favorite of the two. The other I let go, because--while I really liked it--two mandobanjos seemed a littel excessive, haha. Anyway. comparing the two...
White Lady: warm, sweet, loud tone. Woodier sounding and less sustain than the style S.
Tube-A-Phone: warm and sweet, but more banjolike in the sustain and plunkiness. Can be loud if desired but not at all obnoxious.
To get an idea of their tone, listen to the five string banjo versions of these and imagine them an octave higher. I'm a big fan of the mando banjos, and while I don't play mine as much as my mandolin, I really love it.

**Jim Garber** · Jun-22-2012, 9:59am

I like mandolin banjos primarily for ragtime where that percussiveness adds something. They work in funky blues as well. I should get mine back in playing condition so I can really annoy people at this party tomorrow.

**katpiercemusic** · Jun-22-2012, 3:22pm

I put in an offer for the Weymann, but if that doesn't work out it looks like Ive got options. It's funny... the last few times I've looked there hadn't been many options. Timing is everything!

**bmac** · Jun-22-2012, 6:24pm

You can certainly get a functioning mandolin banjo for under $400 on ebay. The important thing is look for one with a straight neck and dowel stick so that the action is low... (most have bent dowel sticks from being left strung up in an atic for 70 years.).... It doesn't take much of a bend to creat problems with playing. I got one in almost perfect condition on ebay for $60.. Only thing I had to do was replace the old celluloid tuner knobs which crumbled.. So I'd guess that you could get a good one for roughly $200 with a little luck. But even at respected used instrument stores they are often not expensive.

Good luck in your search.

**Bob DeVellis** · Jun-22-2012, 7:17pm

I had a Whyte Laydie (skin head) and a Tu-ba-phone (plastic head), both 1921. They were really cool looking instruments and very well made. I loved looking at them. I also had a 20's Bacon but it was a lesser model and clearly inferior to the two Vega-Fairbanks mando-banjos.

As for sound, I just couldn't take it. I tried a variety of bridges, different amounts of head tension, nothing made them other than ear-piercingly obnoxious. I think for a strummer who's in a jug band or something like that, they could have a legitimate role. But as a melody instrument, I found nothing to recommend them.

I thought that they might have a role in Irish traditional music. They have a history in that genre and tenor banjos are well established. I won't say that no one could make this work but I sure couldn't.

It was hard to part with them because they were such well crafted, vintage instruments and in great shape. I finally traded them as part of a deal that netted me a great teens F-4, which is as pretty as the mandolin banjos and sounds a heck of a lot better.

Sorry to throw a wet blanket on the enthusiasm for these instruments but my experience with three of them was not great.

**Jim Garber** · Jun-24-2012, 9:00am

I bought my Weymann a few decades ago and, for some reason -- prob the small size head + the relatively thick shell of the pot -- it has a pretty pleasing tone. I have played others with larger heads and they have too much of that coffee percolator sound and little tone -- too sharp for some ears in general.