Hi everybody, hope you elves are having fun. Santa's on his way.
For next year I will be taking fewer orders and building more banjos.
There will be new bamboo bluegrass rims , new Black Cherry pieces.
When I made ltjgcag's Black Cherry #001 it was one of the first tube banjos with Fresnel ledges inside the rim. They weigh 6.75 lbs.
The tubes have the most wood in a rim, I try to make things substantial, if anything, I'm leaving some extra material.
So kick in and give me some feedback please, I strive to do this better and often just like sex, the breakfast of champions.
Thanks for everything.
21 Comments |
mshipman says:
11/22/2014 7:08:30 PM
When I first got Big Sky #002, I thought holy cow, this thing's pretty solid. There's definitely heft in one of your banjos, but I like the solid feel of the construction. It just says craftsmanship. Personally, I wouldn't change a thing in how you build these, unless you start building your own resonators from scratch. I might try one of those.
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 | Helix says:
11/23/2014 5:18:15 AM
Thanks Matt, a resonator? There's a prototype made of foam core, weighs .5 oz. but I got too busy filling orders to work on it, next 212 months should see something inside out with magnet mount.
What is it you need the resonator to do?
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| Helix says:
11/23/2014 5:23:27 AM
The only way to get a Helix t-shirt is through ownership.
If there are any out there who were earlier in the game, but didn't get a game jersey, let me know, they are all American cotton, pre-shrunk and all XL, black or red with gold letters. Your early ownership helped pay for the T-shirts, so you qualify for some laundry, Helix is here to help.
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| Helix says:
11/23/2014 5:26:25 AM
By the way, Big Sky #002 is Larch Pine, Matt I've used as few as four spoons, your banjo would accept spoons because of the shoes. They are adjustable and weigh only 12 oz.
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mshipman says:
11/23/2014 6:54:06 AM
Hmmmm....I'll have to keep that in mind. I never really thought about the spoons when you built mine.
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mshipman says:
11/23/2014 6:55:16 AM
So we're clear, I actually don't mind the weight currently, i don't really notice it anymore.
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 | montanamike says:
11/23/2014 12:08:08 PM
Big Sky 001 booms... Viva la Larch!
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mshipman says:
11/23/2014 12:12:08 PM
002 does too! Love the larch, it's a little piece of home. It plays sooooo nicely.
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| montanamike says:
11/23/2014 12:16:07 PM
Its burn over from the 1910 fire in western MT. My brother and I drug it out of the woods around 1995 and sawed rough planks out it. Gorgeous stuff.
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mshipman says:
11/23/2014 2:30:11 PM
002 does too! Love the larch, it's a little piece of home. It plays sooooo nicely.
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mshipman says:
11/23/2014 2:33:13 PM
Larry mentioned that. It came out of Trout Creek area didn't it? I had him make my rim without any stain at all so I could enjoy the wood on its own.
Not sure why that last post came up twice, just noticed that.
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| montanamike says:
11/24/2014 7:29:42 AM
Yep... up near the top of the Vermillion river if you are familiar with the area.
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mshipman says:
11/24/2014 1:52:56 PM
I am actually, I'm from Montana
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| Helix says:
11/24/2014 2:46:11 PM
Well, we were all told we couldn't use Pine, I suppose, it was in the underdog nature to try, I have a Cedar Helix rim, why not Larch? you both have clear lacquer, golden, and apparently they are holding up fine, I hope.
Big Sky 001 and 002 together for the first time, I'm GIVING thanks THIS YEAR.
bIG sky rULES
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mshipman says:
11/24/2014 3:17:21 PM
Holding up just fine actually. Plays beautifully.
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| montanamike says:
11/24/2014 3:24:45 PM
It waited nearly 100 years but it was time... viva la larch. The Helix League is built to play on.
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mshipman says:
11/24/2014 5:46:46 PM
It's probably more than 100 years. That entire area was old growth during the fire. It's amazing when you think that it could have been around for years, decades even (or longer larch isn't very fast growing). Then it went through the Big Burn, hung around for 85 years or so, was picked up and later turned into a pair of banjos that play wonderfully.
Who says pine doesn't hold up?
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| Helix says:
11/25/2014 2:18:21 AM
MontanaMike, I completely forgot that wood was a century old. Dude..............
what a privilege.
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| Helix says:
11/26/2014 5:24:25 AM
How fun it is to call a customer the next day after he gets a Helix, they jammed all night, literally.
Can't talk, Larry, I'm late to work. That's the ticket.
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 | ltjgcag says:
11/26/2014 1:33:40 PM
OUTSTANDING Larry!!!!
Black Cherry Blossom #001 is alive, well and gets stronger everyday!
And I just rested on the stump of that Black Cherry tree last week while up hunting.
So she still continues to give!
Chris
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| Helix says:
11/26/2014 10:47:10 PM
Chris, I picked up some HO firebirds with headlights.
The Black Cherry tree was 80 years old, something like that?
Jim Fix's avatar is using his golf cart to transport his banjo, like a bag of golf clubs, he drove all around our neighborhood like a mobile banjo player, an occasional chimney sweep with Black Cherry Blossom #002
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