Drawing - Paddlebox Banjo

Developing plans to build a full size 5-string "banjo" based on a modified paddlebox design I've been using for over the past year. I plan to use with a 5" brass or aluminum resonator cone and maybe a rod piezo pickup. Any constructive comments are welcome. To view drawing in more detail, click on the "View Full Size" button (below,right).
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  • Thanks, guys. This is good info. I'll have to give it a try.

    -Rand.

  • There's thin softish shielding... not too much. I think if it was thicker it would deaden the sound. It all seems very precise.

  • Yeah lowe has drilled a hole through the disc piezo already...as a pickup for one of his cones. I just perfer to do the disc sandwitched between 2 pieces of wood for the biscuit. But i have been talking with Lowe about making a piezo pickup for on the rim of the cone. It`s still in the production stages...lol.

  • Also, does the Fishmen pickup have something like silicon seal (or the like) to dampen and isolate the pickup in the way CGB builder need to do to keep from picking up too much extraneous noise from handling the instrument, and to avoid feedback, etc?

     

    Here's a couple of links to the Fishman pickup:

    Link-1: Product Description

    Link-2: Installation Guide

     

    -Rand.

  • Several people on this site have just gone ahead and drilled right through the center of the disk. If you can trim a rod piezo, why not modify a disk? >;-)

  • Thanks Clock.

    That's one elegant solution, but very expensive. Wonder if you can cut a standard round piezo, punch a hole thru the middle and have the equivalent for just a few bucks. Anyone try it before. How to do?

    -Rand.

  • Fishman reso pickup:

    305852979?profile=original

  • Also "pressty sure" should have been "pretty sure".

  • Whoops!  I meant "that metal resonators and piezo pickups do not mix so well".

  • Thanks guys.

    I was looking at resonator cones again, and it seems the standard size is 6", not 5". But, two sources make sub-6" resonator cones: Roosterman's Candy Cones (5.25") and Klangbox (4.7"). I'm pressty sure these two cones would work, but I'm wondering if I can soak the slats and spread them further apart with a longer tail block to have enough space in the soundbox to do a full 6" cone.

    I also understand from some additional reading on CBN that metal resonators and piezo pickups do mix to well. I'm wondering how best to install one. I understand they usually go in the center of the cone between the bridge cone's biscuit. So, maybe I'll hold off on the piezo pickup on my first build.

    -Rand.

     

     

     

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