| The frailing/clawhammer banjo has always been
the mainstay of Wildwood Banjos . Back in the mid 70’s, Art Rosenbaum
and John Burke (respected traditional clawhammer recording artists) were
passing through on their way to Kick’n Mule Records (in Berkeley, Ca.)
to record new albums. They each bought a Wildwood Banjo, used it in the
recording, the banjos appeared on their album cover, and well, you can
guess the rest of the story.
Wildwood clawhammer banjos feature a slightly
wider maple neck, their own version of the tubaphone-style tone ring, some
models with bracket shoe bands, and all with a sound and character unique
to Wildwood. All Wildwood banjos are also available in your choice of woods!
Wildwood banjo necks are 2 piece. laminated maple
with an ebony black veneer down the center line. Laminated necks are inherently
stronger and more stable than most 1 pc. necks. Each neck is reinforced
with a 2-way adjustable truss rod system. Binding and wood
purfling along the side of the neck is standard on all models except the
Minstrel. The intensity of the figure in the wood, as well as the complexity
of the inlays increase with each model.
Wildwood rims are completely different
from conventional rims. Where as conventional rims are "wrapped laminates",
our rims are machined from solid rock maple blocks. The effect is obvious
as soon as you play one of our banjos. The volume, the clarity, the character
of the sound are all due to the solid nature of these rims. Each
rim is machined to exacting spec’s, bound and purfled to match the neck
(on open back models only), and stained to match the color of the neck.
Wildwood resonators are 3-ply inner
core of hard maple, and veneered top and sides with either fancy curly/fiddleback
maple, or burl figure black walnut. They are bound with cream colored ivoroid
binding and purfled with wood marquetry to match the neck. These resonators
not only add volume and drive but elegance and beauty as well! |
