Capo question

[Barbara Shultz]

I think I'm ready to experiment with using a capo on my Petersen OM.... I came into playing the mandolin family instruments NOT having played guitar (or anything else stringed!)... so I'm clueless on capo's.... other than I see them used on guitars, banjo's, etc. So.... can someone give me the capo low-down... what kind/brand, etc. would I use on a 22.5 inch scale Petersen OM?

Thanks! Barbara

[Patrick Killeen]

I've got a Kyser Banjo/Mandolin Capo, just like this one which fits both my Irish bouzouki and my mandolin.

Patrick

[PCypert]

Wide range of options really as most guitar ones will fit Zouks and what not. Get something sturdy and easy to move on and off...I HATE those stupid ones you have to roll up to the nut. My quick release capo does just as good a job.

Paul

[otterly2k]

I find the Kysers hard to use,although handy b/c they can be clipped onto something when you're not using it. I prefer Shubb capos... they make one that's designed for banjo necks (narrower than guitar) and it works perfectly on my OM's.

[allenhopkins]

Just make sure that, if your OM has a flat fingerboard, you don't get a standard steel-string-guitar capo that's designed for a radiused fingerboard. I had to do a lot of searching to find a capo that would work on the thick neck of my Gibson K-1 mandocello, and then I had to get the bar straightened in a vise so that it would fret the "inside" strings.

Banjo capos, if the bar is long enough to reach across the fretboard, are made for flat fingerboards. Of course, if your Peterson has a radiused ("curved" or "arched") fingerboard, a capo made for steel-string guitar will work better. My Sobell has a (very slightly) radiused fingerboard, so a guitar capo's more appropriate.

[EdSherry]

I've used Shubb capos for years, and think they're the best capos out there. #They don't throw the instrument out of tune nearly as much as other capos.

I've used both the originals:

http://elderly.com/accessories/items/GA70.htm

And the "deluxe" ones:

http://elderly.com/accessories/items/GA70DLX.htm


Allen -- Rick Shubb makes a special "thick neck" capo for all of those "baseball bat" necks from the 20s. #

http://elderly.com/accessories/items/GA74DLX.htm


However, a lot of CBOM players playing Celtic sessions want a "one handed" capo that they can move on the fly to change keys within a tune set. #For that, most of the players I know use Kysers: #

http://elderly.com/accessories/items/KGC1-BLK.htm


I personally prefer the Dunlop.

http://elderly.com//accessories/items/TGC-NICKEL.htm

As Allen says, you have to determine whether you have a flat fingerboard or a radiused one.

On some of my OMs, a banjo capo works better, but generally I get better results with a guitar capo. #YMMV.

[steve V. johnson]

I've had Kysers around for years, and a friend recently gave me a Shubb, and I found that it didn't pull the instrument out of tune as much as the Kysers had, so now I use the Shubbs.

I did need to go out and get one radiused Shubb to fit the zouk.

My all-time favorite ones are the QuickDraw capos, but they are made to 'live' on the instruments, stored above the nut. #Both of my main instruments don't really allow the QD to -rest- above the nut with any stability, so I have put them aside for the moment. #Maybe one day I'll have the volutes sanded off my headstocks so I can go back to the QuickDraws ... '

stv

[zoukboy]

I used the Shubbs for years but discovered the Dunlop Trigger capos a couple of years ago and love that I don't have to stop playing to put it on or remove it [hard to do with a Shubb].

I tried the Quickdraw but it doesn't work with octave pairs - the material that contacts the strings is too dense to fret the lighter octave strings in a pair.

On bouzouki I use the Dunlop Trigger for mandolin - it works better on narrow 4 course necks because it is not as wide so it centers better. http://elderly.com/accessories/items/TMC-BLACK.htm

[allenhopkins]

Another technique that was told me, is to tighten the capo only the minimum amount that's needed to firmly "fret" the strings -- so they don't buzz or sound dead. Tightening the capo "to the max" can bend the strings out of tune. In this regard, a capo with a thumbscrew adjustment, like the Shubb, may be preferable to a spring-loaded one like the Dunlop or Kyser, since the clamping force on spring-loaded capos isn't adjustable.

[Martin Jonas]

Check your fretboard width: I have a Shubb banjo capo which work on my Troubadour zouk, but only barely: it only just reaches the bottommost string and therefore needs to be put on very carefully. That somewhat defeats the object of a quick-release capo, so I'd probably be better off with a guitar-width flat capo.

Martin

[morgan]

To clarify the posts above: Shubb makes both radius and flat banjo capos.

I use a Shubb radius banjo capo on my mandola and like it, but I haven't tried a lot of the other brands, and I don't try to change on the fly.

[Tom A]

The Petersens have a slight, shallow radius on the fretboard. I'm using a "flat" Shubb C5 banjo capo which works up to about the 5th fret before it's too narrow to accommodate the string spacing.

The main reason for using the capo is to accommodate the occasional "weird" key like B Major, E-flat Major, or whatnot and still be able to play familiar "open" chords. Capo-ing on one of the 1st three frets suffices to do this in every case I've encountered so far.

[EdSherry]

Tom -- I find that a lot of 'zouk players use a capo, not so much for "weird" keys, but because they like the ringing drone sounds of open strings. #I know some good players who use GDAD (or ADAD) tunings and regularly capo to the seventh (or fifth) fret to play in "normal" keys like D. #When I play in GDAD tuning, I routinely capo on the second fret to play in A.

[Unseen122]

I have a Kyser which I don't really like. It gets in the way of my hand and makes playing harder. I just don't use Capos a lot so I haven't felt the need to buy one.

[halfimpressive]

I also use a quick draw on my bouzouki. It has a zero fret so I don't have to store it behind the nut. However, I've had trouble with some rattling, especially on the first 4 frets. I'm tuned in octaves on the bottom strings and the smaller ones are ringing. I've tightened it as much as i can with no change. Any thoughts?

I think it's an awesome capo if it didn't do that.

Stv, care to defend you capo?

Also, has anybody used the kind that screws in from the back? I'd love to try one of those. It stays above the nut but when you adjust it, you screw down the back onto the back of the neck. Seems pretty smart to me.

cheers,

John

[Tom A]

Tom -- I find that a lot of 'zouk players use a capo, not so much for "weird" keys, but because they like the ringing drone sounds of open strings. #I know some good players who use GDAD (or ADAD) tunings and regularly capo to the seventh (or fifth) fret to play in "normal" keys like D. #When I play in GDAD tuning, I routinely capo on the second fret to play in A.

Now that you mention it, capoing at the 5th fret is a quick way to get a mandola isn't it? I recall a Teada performance where the guitarist used the capo a good bit at about the 5th fret, resulting in a more trebly sound. Puts the instrument into a different tonal range, with the aim of either making it more distinctive or blending better in a mix with other instruments.

Thanks for the good tip!

[Jacob]

I use and really like the wide Paige Banjo Capo.
Designed to fit up the banjo neck beyond the fifth string peg.
Works well on CBOMs.
Wider than the regular banjo model and narrower than a guitar capo.

[zoukboy]

I also use a quick draw on my bouzouki. It has a zero fret so I don't have to store it behind the nut. However, I've had trouble with some rattling, especially on the first 4 frets. I'm tuned in octaves on the bottom strings and the smaller ones are ringing. I've tightened it as much as i can with no change. Any thoughts?

John,

that's just the way the Quick Draw capos are. After having this trouble myself I contacted the maker and he said that he didn't recommend them for 12 string guitars or bouzoukis with octave strings for that reason.

[Danny Packer]

I use a Dunlop Trigger and I've been pretty happy. I usually capo to the second fret and play in E for the open strings Ed mentioned.

Has anyone used anything you liked for a single string capo? I also tried cutting
a Shub, but it wouldn't stay in place. I thought about trying to modify a Regan (sp?) banjo capo, but haven't gotten around to it. I'm not interested enough in this idea to use screws or anything like that, but I'm curious if anyone has done any such thing.

Danny

[allenhopkins]

Thinking about Danny P's question: there is a device called the Third Hand Capo, which has an elastic strap and a series of rubber cams, and can capo each individual string -- on a six-string guitar. Whether it could be used on a bouzouki or OM (the spacing would be a problem), or whether the company would consider a special order for a mando-family instrument, could be ascertainable by contacting the company directly.

A fascinating question...

[zoukboy]

check out the Pin Point Capo here:

http://www.luthiers.nu/

[halfimpressive]

alright, check this out. cool website with links to capo makers.

Capo museum

there is an interesting one built by Paige under the screw capo section. Its for a 12-string guitar that puts more pressure on the octave strings. I sent them an email asking if one could be modified for a bouzouki, but haven't heard back. Probably think i'm crazy. Lots of good capos on there for any kind of need.

cheers,

John

[halfimpressive]

edit:

a bouzouki with lower courses in octaves.

[halfimpressive]

I heard back from Paige and he said that ordering a wide banjo capo would work. He would put in some clear plastic rings which he uses on the 12 string guitar capo.

Seems like a pretty good system if you're bent on using octave strings.

Hope this helps anyone.

cheers,

john

[zoukboy]

I heard back from Paige and he said that ordering a wide banjo capo would work. He would put in some clear plastic rings which he uses on the 12 string guitar capo.

Seems like a pretty good system if you're bent on using octave strings.

I haven't had trouble finding a capo that will work on octave strings, the Dunlop Trigger works nicely for that. The problem was trying to find a capo that you can slide up and down while playing (like the QuickDraw) that will also accommodate the thinner octave strings. No seems to have solved that problem. The Trigger works fine going on and coming off - less well from one fret to another cleanly.