The Peghead of a gourd banjo gives the strings something to anchor to. It needs to be big enough and sturdy enough to accommodate the working of the tuning pegs. The Tuning Pegs I use with gourd banjos are friction pegs much like those found on the violin. The frictionContinue Reading
Banjo friction pegs were used to tune the instrument in its earlier days. As steel strings became more popular and machining techniques improved, friction pegs gave way to machine tuners. Today we still see friction pegs used on violins and cellos. The high tension of steel banjo strings make theContinue Reading
Gourd banjo heads are typically made from natural animal hides. Goat and calf hides are the most favored and easiest to come by. Mounting a natural hide head is fairly simple, but does require some time and hand strength. The head will be stretched as it is mounted. Then, asContinue Reading