Great seeing you posting again, Matthew. Awesome breakdown, and the banjo sounds wonderful. It’s obvious that you are very happy with the banjo now. I’m curious about which ring you went with?
Hi Teak! Thanks for the information. I was too anxious watching your video and hearing the great tone coming out of that new rim to wait for the end and the $$ involved. I've noticed that the original tone ring was fitted very tightly on the rim and sounds like that is standard on the Blackjack. Your instrument sounds great and it was money well spent.
Money well spent David, for anyone. Having played on one particular rim for almost 11 years in this banjo, then suddenly doing the switch, there is no doubt in my mind that the wood is the most important element in the sound. All 75 style banjos had very tight fitting rings, cast with a very high proportion of lead. Mine tested at 18%. This was done for machining purposes and ruins the tone. Any cursory study into bell-making will reveal what ingredients make a good vs a poor bell. Lead is one of those poor ingredients. Gibson used these rings and fit them tight in order to achieve the tone Crowe had in the 70s: a very dry, staccato sound. Crowe, however, didn't need to use parts and fitment techniques to get that tone; that's just how he played. Thus, to me, the best way forward is to build a banjo properly, then learn how to pick it. Don't trust gimmicks. I love Gibson, but what they did on many of those 75s was gimmicky as hell.
Sounds great! I have a 05 Blackjack and I love it as it is. I also have two Osborne Chief banjos, one with a Blaylock rim ,one with a Huber they both sound great. I have a 88 Granada that I had A Huber ring installed. Trying to improve the sound. I think you are right about the wood being more important!!
Mathew . I like the crack effect and tonality .. was wondering what type of "head are you using"... BTW. I've ordered a Sullivan Rim as well .. Looking forward
Hi David, I paid a few hundred for the rim+machining service. I had some custom specs done which cost a bit more, so make sure to call Eric Sullivan to get a quote for your particular banjo.
Gibson fit the 75-style tone-ring very tight from the factory. Joe Vest once told me if a new banjo was sent in for one of the 75 rings, they would actually shim the rim out for a super tight fit. Gibson also used a Cooperman rim--not the greatest, mine was 22oz, wood had way too high a moisture content. The block rim is substantially lighter in weight and the wood is bone dry.
The rim was not pre-cut in the sense you're probably meaning. It was a blank, oversized for an 11 inch pot. Things like final fitting, drilling for the rods etc all takes place when you send your parts in.
Hi Jones. Remember in the later part of the video how I said I'd tried 5 rings in this banjo, varying from a few hundred to well over a thousand dollars, and not a single one had made much of a difference? That's why I've not specified what tone-ring is in this banjo. It's irrelevant, because they don't really change the tone. The rim clearly is the main sound-producing element of the banjo, and constitutes the best upgrade you can install.
I TOTALLY agree..tone rings are WAY OVERRATED, its the rim that contributes about 60-70% of the total tone. Now, that being said, I would never own a banjo that does not have both its original rim and tone ring.
