This contraption, possibly a Farland banjo mute, just appeared on eBay.

I can't tell how it works or IF it works but I'm calling attention to it here just in case anyone is interested.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/332157923556?ul_noapp=true

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Hey Jody, You don't see one of those everyday!!

...and now, just like buses, two come along :-)

It seems a bit odd that mine was patented in 1897 and the one for sale in 1901 !!!

Looks like there were two different mechanisms. Both share the same lever from the '97 patent.

Is the one in your photo, the one you got from me 9 years ago? Is there a patent date stamped on that one?

Yes Jody, The one in my photo is the one I got from you. It has stayed in its box for 9 years... really 9 years???  Gosh!

It was in 2008 I think. 

thereallyniceman said:

Yes Jody, The one in my photo is the one I got from you. It has stayed in its box for 9 years... really 9 years???  Gosh!

I'm going to put a bid in on it. It requires a hole thru the dowelstick but I have a couple of banjos in the pile that an extra hole or two won't matter much.

I hope you win the auction and at a modest price. Glad to be of some small service (though you probably woulda found it on your own.)

Trapdoor2 said:

I'm going to put a bid in on it. It requires a hole thru the dowelstick but I have a couple of banjos in the pile that an extra hole or two won't matter much.

It is my understanding that these were always "on"-- meaning that the mute was pressed against the underside of the bridge in the default position.  One presses the banjo against the body and activates the lever to draw the mute away and allow the banjo to sound like one.  In other words, the opposite from all other "soft petal mutes" like the Bacon and Hartnett, etc..

That might explain why I couldn't make head nor tail of the thing. The one I had was installed on my Windsor Grand Solo which has a bevelled edge to the pot in a way similar but not identical to the bevel on a Farland banjo pot. It was in neither on nor off position. It was stuck. Attempts to engage or disengage it resulted in loss of blood to my fingers.

This might also explain why these never caught on in a big way. Pressing the banjo against the body is itself a muting mechanism. The closing off of the back of the pot mutes the sound. So when wanting to unmute the banjo the player had to move the banjo into a position that mutes it. And when the player actually wanted a muted sound the banjo had to be moved away from the body which opened the back of the banjo, causing an increase in volume and in banjo-like musical sound.


Joel Hooks said:

It is my understanding that these were always "on"-- meaning that the mute was pressed against the underside of the bridge in the default position.  One presses the banjo against the body and activates the lever to draw the mute away and allow the banjo to sound like one.  In other words, the opposite from all other "soft petal mutes" like the Bacon and Hartnett, etc..

Jody...good idea for muting but I guess that it would only work for players with the correctly shaped belly... like yours and mine?

;-))

I certainly have the necessary muting equipment below my rib cage. But don't forget that in the late 19th and early 20th century in both Britain and the USA, indoor conditions in the cold months tended to be not very warm. People, even banjoists, wore more layers of clothing then necessary these days. All those layers helped fill up the banjo pot.

thereallyniceman said:

Jody...good idea for muting but I guess that it would only work for players with the correctly shaped belly... like yours and mine?

;-))

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