Post by David KilpatrickPost by Mike EdieThis confirms what I thought. I see from a photo on the Internet Jim
Royle playing a banjo with a 5-stringer neck but I can't see the peg.
This suggests,a s you say, a 5-string with 4 strings which technically
makes it a plectrum banjo I think (tuned the same DGBD). This explains
his strumming style too. A plectrum banjo, I think, has the same neck
length as a 5-string.
Ricky Tomlinson released a record called "Music My Arse" with a
picture of himself in the buff with a banjo superimposed on his
precious bits. 4 strings but no lumpy bit for the 5th.
British zither banjos don't have a tuner on the side of the neck, so you
must be able to see the peghead to be sure. The 5th string nips down
into a tunnel buried in the neck, and goes to a tuner machine on the
main head. Plenty of good old zither banjos are still in use doing
service using modern 5-string wires. Originally they had one gut string
and one silver wound on silk, plus three wires. Mine dates from the
1890s and has a much softer, brighter sound than a modern bluegrass
banjo - much better suited to song accompaniment or quiet playing.
I suspect not in this case:
Loading Image...Looks most likely a conventional 5-string neck.
You can still get new zither banjos. It seems a much better idea than
having that side peg in the way. The cost is a thicker neck for the
first 5 frets but you can also use your thumb. I'm surprised nobody has
considered putting the tuning peg down at the tail-piece.
I've just spent the weekend with 20 bluegrass banjo players and I can
confirm that it was a bit of a din. Most had to put blu-tak on the
bridge to quieten them down.
I'm rather glad I bought an open backed one. If anything I'm considering
getting a velum headed old-time sort for that even softer "plunk" rather
than "prlang".
That said if I buy another instrument my wife will be using MY guts for
strings.
Mike