Rambles...really thin strings?

[Trapdoor2]

I had a very nice phone call from Howard Weilmunster, Sunday afternoon. Howard is the current “honorary” President of the American Banjo Fraternity (ABF) and lives in the St. Louis area. His son lives in Nashville and he called just to make sure I wasn’t flooded out…and to talk a bit about banjos, of course.  Howard is in his early 80’s and was one of Fred Van Eps’ last students (in the late 1950’s). He’s been trying to get me interested in attending one of the ABF rallies (not hard to do). We’re hoping to meet there and maybe play a few duets. If I had any vacation time left, I’d just drive up to St. Louis and pay a visit…but not this year.

Anyway, we had a very funny conversation centered around his Van Eps “flush fret” banjo. Van Eps’ created about 25 of these instruments where the frets are imbedded into the fret-board and then the board is carefully scooped out in between each fret. This gives the absolute minimal string-stretch when fretting and is supposed to be the ‘perfect’ fretboard.  Everyone I’ve talked to who has played one says they are amazingly smooth and crazily comfortable to play. Howard got his from the man himself, of course.

So, Howard is thinking about changing strings on it and has a set of Chris Sands’ ‘lights’. The problem he has is that the string set that are currently on the instrument are a good bit ‘lighter’ than the new ones. I asked Howard what set he has on it and he casually replied, “the set Fred put on it in 1959 when he mounted a new head…”

Yikes! These strings are only 2 yrs younger than I am! They are nylon (which wasn’t used for guitar strings until 1946) with a silk/monel-wound bass (Black Diamond brand). IIRC, his gauges are .017”(.43mm), .019”(48mm) and .021”(53mm) for the solids. Anyone know where he can get nylon or nylgut in those sizes?

Howard is a font of information, of course. We were discussing "Footlight Favorite" and I asked him if he knew anything of Shirley Spaulding (who cut the best, IMNSHO, recording of it for Edison back in the 20's), someone I've been trying, unsuccessfully, to research. His response: "Oh, yes, I corresponded with her quite a bit back in the 50's and early 60's...nice lady, etc." I'm hoping with his help we can fill in a bit of a biography on her.

[marc dalmasso]

you mean a "scalloped fingerboard " like on the guitars for playing blues or jazz ? is there a real fret or a flush fret ? here 's the savarez strings guide ; ; nylon & nylon KF

[Trapdoor2]

Yes, a scalloped fingerboard. There is a bar-fret inlet into the board and the wood in between is 'scalloped' out. The frets do not protrude so much as they merely form a "peak" in between each scallop. AFAIK, the van Eps' board is scalloped much less than a modern jazz or electric guitar (like Yngwie Malmsteen's, for example). The idea then was to provide only the minimum vertical distance (when pressing the string) to get a good note.

Thanks for the lists of Saverez strings. www.stringsbymail.com has singles, I'll order a set for him.!

[Jody Stecher]

Van Eps five string banjos typically had a scale length of well over 28 inches so thin strings would have similar tension to heavier gauges at a shorter scale.

[Joel Hooks]

As close as I've got is .018, .023, and .024. I'd be happy to send him a few yards of each gratis to try out.

[Trapdoor2]

Thanks Joel but I found a source ( http://www.stringsbymail.com ) for the Savarez KF strings that Marc D. posted. If I can get Howard to tell me the diameter of his bass (4th), I'll order a set for him.