Banjo uke's or banjole's 101 lesson please

Mxyzptik

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Ok folks, unlike many of you, I haven't suffered from UAS . I started a few years ago with a Fender Nohea tenor , upgraded to a Collings and then just played and played and played.

Recently watching the SOTU someone posted a link to a utube video of Tom Hartford playing a banjo uke and toe tapping to his song Gentle on my mind. I found it absolutely compelling, the guy had some serious talent.

I've been working hard on the song and have a good picking pattern going and now find myself thinking , gotta get me one of those banjo uke's. So............

A 101 type lesson please.

What is it a banjo uke or a banjolele, are they the same or different ?
Are there different sizes?
How are they tuned ?
How are they different from a regular 4 or 5 string banjo ?
If I decide I must have one then what, brands, styles, prices ? Where does one acquire a good intermediate banjo uke.

Enlighten me please.
 
The basics are....everything is the same as a Uke....just a different body and a different sound......apart from that just apply all you've learnt about the Uke and think heavier instrument..
 
Banjouke and banjolele and banjo ukulele are all the same as far as I know. I've only seen soprano and concert sizes. They are tuned just like a ukulele, the only difference is that they are built like a banjo.

I'm looking for one too, can't wait to see the results of this thread. Musicians friend has a Recording King soprano for less than $200, that's about the cheapest I've seen, except for the Flea Firefly.
 
If you're going to learn to drone ( I think that's what it's called) , is it better to have a low or high g or can you do either
 
If you're going to learn to drone ( I think that's what it's called) , is it better to have a low or high g or can you do either

You need a high G to drone correctly.

I have a Gold Tone tenor ($400ish), and I like it a lot. I bought it for Clawhammer which is a struggle for me because of the tabs. I also have a Lanikai concert that's also good, but, having a resonator, it's very heavy--also $400ish. I guess they would both be considered mid-range. I really like both of mine, and I'm considering a Luna soprano, but justifying it is very difficult--I dunno.

I really like Banjoleles, and I play them "open tuned" which I also enjoy. :eek:ld:
 
My 1920-era Varsity banjo-uke was US$35 shipped on eBay -- only slightly abused, and once I learned how to set it up, it's quite satisfactory. But it's an old short-scale 13-inch neck, a bit small for my big hands. I hope to find or make a concert-size neck to bolt onto a cheap tambourine with a tension rod so I can use steel strings. I even have a scheme for a multi-neck franken-banjo-uke -- could go up to three necks that way! [/me cackles maniacally] One path I *won't* take is a Cümbüş banjo-uke. I love my two Cümbüş axes but they're ungainly and not exactly fine examples of the luthier's art, more like the product of indifferent industrial Turkish tinkers. Of course, if I ever build a resonator 'uke, it'll likely be just as bad. ;)
 
I currently have two, a Deering GoodTime Banjo Uke (concert scale) and a SideKick banjo uke (tenor scale). They are both fun instruments, but radically different. The Deering is heavy and appears almost as a neck-shortened version of Deering's 17-fret tenor banjo ( have one of those, too). The SideKick is light (about 1.5 pounds), more to the weight of a standard ukulele. Both will require some minor setup work (head tightening, bridge placement and possibly some nut slot filing (depending on individual feel). Cost-wise, they go for about $400 and $220 respectively.

Have had a Gretsch which also required the same setup work. It's just part of the way things are with banjo-like instruments. I know the FireFly has a non-tunable head and a good reputation, so it shouldn't be ruled out as an option.
 
I know the FireFly has a non-tunable head and a good reputation, so it shouldn't be ruled out as an option.

I always recommend the Fireflys first to folk who have never played a banjo uke before. All one has to do is tune it, put a little bit of foam behind the bridge, and start playing. There are so many factors to address with traditional banjo ukes that it could be off putting.
 
I always recommend the Fireflys first to folk who have never played a banjo uke before. All one has to do is tune it, put a little bit of foam behind the bridge, and start playing. There are so many factors to address with traditional banjo ukes that it could be off putting.

I'm a pretty hands on guy who likes to look after his things and own/ use them for many years. What kind of factors are we talking ? It seems like a good set up is essential so far .
 
I'm a pretty hands on guy who likes to look after his things and own/ use them for many years. What kind of factors are we talking ? It seems like a good set up is essential so far .

Furst thing is to think of the banjo uke as a tenor banjo made to uke scale instead of as a uke that has a banjo-like appearance That means learning what a banjo is, what parts it has, why it works like it does, and how to adjust the parts for playability. I usually recommend folk over to www.deeringbanjos.com to view their "anatomy of a banjo" and tech videos (easy viewing) to understand all of the above. It takes the mystery of banjo-ing away, and it is indeed more banjo-ing than uke-ing.
 
Furst thing is to think of the banjo uke as a tenor banjo made to uke scale instead of as a uke that has a banjo-like appearance That means learning what a banjo is, what parts it has, why it works like it does, and how to adjust the parts for playability. I usually recommend folk over to www.deeringbanjos.com to view their "anatomy of a banjo" and tech videos (easy viewing) to understand all of the above. It takes the mystery of banjo-ing away, and it is indeed more banjo-ing than uke-ing.

Said it better than I ever could. It took me a couple of a blood pressure raising projects to get that concept through my head. If you decide to try and replace the skin this video was very helpful to me.

 
I have a Rally concert with a full resonator I bought on our Marketplace at a wonderful price. They are usually great buys on ebay. I had mine set up at Goldtone (most of the Asian banjo ukes are goldtone clones anyway.) I also had a calfskin head put on and a no knot tailpiece. I have a nice, semi-side Softee strap on it as it's heavy, and keep procrastinating on the armrest. I'm just getting and Goldtone one rather than trying to "adapt" something a little cheaper.
Aaron Keim has some good banjo uke stuff on his website as well and there are many tutorials on YouTube for those banjo techniques that translate well to the smaller instrument. Oh, I forgot to say my Rally sounds like a much more expensive one.

PS: That Firefly is about as user friendly as a banjo uke can get. I'll be getting rid of an extremely clean, Morgan Monroe open back soprano banjo uke soon if you go that route.
 
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