blindsniper - Posted - 11/09/2011:  02:28:25

I recently got hold of a piece of goat skin.  It has the parchment look, translucent and thin.  It was sold to me as vellum, but I have never read of goat skin banjo heads.  Have any of you ever tried this on a banjo?  Your thoughts? 

Thanks

Ian

Bart McNeil - Posted - 11/09/2011:  02:39:12

Goat skin is used and will work fine... also calf, sheep, and probably a whole lot of other animals which are now in hiding.

CommGuy107 - Posted - 11/09/2011:  02:51:34

Goat skin is what I use when making gourd banjos. Drums, too for that matter. There are some tricks to getting a thin, tight installation. If you're seriously thinking about it, I may have some generic instructions tucked away somewhere close.

CommGuy107 - Posted - 11/09/2011:  03:10:26

Here are a couple of banjo-specific goat skin prep and installation guides:

stewmac.com/freeinfo/I-0522.html

savethebanjos.com/Skin%20Head%20How-To.htm

Edited by - CommGuy107 on 11/09/2011 03:12:10

Hawgfiddle65 - Posted - 11/09/2011:  05:47:31

Speaking of other skins

My colleagues favorite  toast is ' May the skin of your a**se never cover a banjo!

Cheers, must get back to work and stop grazing in BanjoHangoutland

Jim (hawgfiddle65)

Jason Wilkerson - Posted - 11/09/2011:  05:56:20

quote:

---

Originally posted by Hawgfiddle65

Speaking of other skins

My colleagues favorite  toast is ' May the skin of your a**se never cover a banjo!

---

I wonder how that would sound

carlb - Posted - 11/09/2011:  06:27:45

quote:

---

Originally posted by blindsniper

I recently got hold of a piece of goat skin.  It has the parchment look, translucent and thin.  It was sold to me as vellum, but I have never read of goat skin banjo heads.  Have any of you ever tried this on a banjo?  Your thoughts? Ian

---

 Ian, Sounds like a good choice for a head. Hope it's really as thin as it looks. Me, I go for skins about 0.1 - .2 mm thick. Carl

tdennis - Posted - 11/09/2011:  07:50:31

Goatskin gives a very nice banjo voice. 

arnie fleischer - Posted - 11/09/2011:  08:07:02

quote:

---

Originally posted by blindsniper

 

  It was sold to me as vellum, but I have never read of goat skin banjo heads.  

 

Ian

---

Isn't there a song about this . . . "Deep Vellum Blues"?

Seriously, I used to use a goat skin head on my 1891 Cole's Eclipse and it looked and sounded great.

Arnie

staronjeff - Posted - 11/09/2011:  12:19:10

quote:

---

Originally posted by Jason Wilkerson

quote:

---

Originally posted by Hawgfiddle65

Speaking of other skins

My colleagues favorite  toast is ' May the skin of your a**se never cover a banjo!

---

 

I wonder how that would sound

 

---

 provably crappy

Gymbal31 - Posted - 11/09/2011:  17:48:26

quote:

---

Originally posted by Jason Wilkerson

quote:

---

Originally posted by Hawgfiddle65

Speaking of other skins

My colleagues favorite  toast is ' May the skin of your a**se never cover a banjo!

---

 

I wonder how that would sound

 

---

I tried it once but it threw my timing off.  I was always a little behind.

pastorharry - Posted - 11/09/2011:  18:26:19

quote:

---

Originally posted by Gymbal31

quote:

---

Originally posted by Jason Wilkerson

quote:

---

Originally posted by Hawgfiddle65

Speaking of other skins

My colleagues favorite  toast is ' May the skin of your a**se never cover a banjo!

---

 

I wonder how that would sound

 

---

 

I tried it once but it threw my timing off.  I was always a little behind.

---

 The "Set up" alone is a bear...hard to get seated on the rim.....as it were.

blindsniper - Posted - 11/10/2011:  02:29:53

Thanks everyone,  My question answered.  And I also now know what to use for the hollow sound.

Hawgfiddle65 - Posted - 11/10/2011:  02:53:50

 I also apologize for setting off a chain of dreadful puns!

Jim

pastorharry - Posted - 11/10/2011:  11:25:44

I have a Bill Miller goat skin head on my Bart Reiter Regent and it sounds great and appears to be much stronger than the bleached calf skin heads I've had from him.
The local Filipino's quite often cook goat...you can always tell from the smell of burning hair, (I think they cook the whole animal), maybe I should volunteer to skin it for them.... ;^)

jbalch - Posted - 11/10/2011:  15:33:17

I'm linking this thread to the Hide Heads group. banjohangout.org/group/hideheads