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A Sampling of Traditional & Progressive Banjo Designs:

Boucher Early Minstrel Banjo
Frank Profitt Mountain Banjo
Bluestem Mountain Banjo Nouveau
Bluestem Artisan Mountain Banjo
Bluestem Open Back Banjo Nouveau
Bluestem Wine Box / Hand Drum Banjo

Banjo Design & Construction Information:

Open Back Banjo Design Primer
General Banjo Construction Information
Open Back Banjo Setup Guide
“Why can’t I get this thing to play in tune?” (More than you wanted to know about equal temperament)
Bluestem Open Back Banjo Construction Guide on CD with full size plan
Bluestem Workingpersons 11 Slot Head Open Back Banjo Construction Guide on CD with full size plan
Bluestem Wood Top Banjo Construction Guide on CD with full size plan

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Bluestem Artisan mountain banjo

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A quick Youtube demo:

Bluestem Artisan mountain banjo features:

• 1/2” block rim with additional 1/16" outer layer of spalted maple and 1/16" inner layer of cherry
• Ebony top and rear rim caps
• Internal head tensioning system to eliminate uncomfortable external hardware
• 10" Renaissance head is held within the 12" diameter 2-7/8" deep rim
• Internally mounted patina finished raw brass shoes are used to hold the tensioning screws
• Solid brass 1/2" by 3/16" tension/tone ring
• 24-1/2" scale 17 fret board with mother of pearl position markers
• Ogee fret board scoop with partial 16th and 17th frets
• Small side position markers
• Seventeen inlaid maple flush frets
• 1-3/8" neck width at nut for playing comfort
• Pegheds violin style 4:1 planetary tuners
• Hand cut and polished stainless steel string anchor to tie Nylgut strings
• Single neck attachment bolt housed within dowel rod for solid neck to pot connection
• Easy string height adjustment by loosening the single attachment bolt and sliding neck heel up or down
• Comfortable total weight of approximately 5 pounds

I really like the feel and vibe of the minimalist style of the mountain banjo, so this iteration was done as a way of incorporating an internal bracket shoe into the design. This opens the back completely and the internally mounted brass shoes are both handsome and functional.

Pot assembly:

The pot assembly departs radically from the standard traditional design. The protruding hardware has been eliminated and the pot in tensioned by means of internally mounted brass shoes and tensioning screws. The head can be replaced by slacking the head tension and removing the internal brass shoes. Although the pot is a little larger diameter than the specified head size, it is quite comfortable to play without the protruding tension band, hooks, shoes, or nuts as found on a conventional open back banjo.
The design is very much like the open back Nouveau, so the open back Nouveau plan and the additional photos shown below should be all that is needed if you wish to duplicate the instrument. There are many more photos, construction drawings, and a raw brass bracket fabrication guide for this banjo on my photos page at BanjoHangout.org. My home page is accessable if you search for my member name, "Rudy".

Neck:

The neck is somewhat traditional in feel, while the Pegheds 4:1 planetary violin style tuners provide ease of tuning. A high tensile strength 2024-T4 aluminum tapered reinforcement bar ensures that the neck will retain excellent playing action without the need for periodic or seasonal adjustment.

Armrest:

The rounded ebony overlay at the top edge of the pot does double duty as a comfortable arm rest since there is no sharp edged tension band to cut into your arm.

Tailpiece:

The tailpiece is hand cut and polished stainless steel. Synthetic strings are tied to the open loop protruding over the head.

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Please visit my other website designed to provide information on musical instrument construction. There are free plans as well as construction tips and techniques available at the present time.

Rudy's Sketchbook of Musical Instrument Plans, Ideas, and Inspiration

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If you desire to contact me about Bluestem Strings products:

Due to scoundrelous spammers actively mining sites for e-mail addresses, I'm forced to include the following text version of my e-mail address meant to confuse the automated robo-search of websites for e-mail addresses. Please e-mail me at:
rcordle (substitute the at symbol here) fastmail (substitute the dot here) fm
Please include "Bluestem Info Request" in the subject line, Thanks!