Heads & Humidity

[Steve Jeter]

 Ive been looking at old post trying to gather the info I need. But I still cant get a complete grasp on it,, So I will ask

Being new at this ,, I was thinking that if you have a tensoning head ,, if it was humid ,, you could just tighten it . And all would be fine.

Then I see post where folks had tension heads & the humidity , still put them out of the game.

So  as far as humidity , are  tensioners  vastly superior to tackheads. Or is it still a problem , that can only be totally solved by a  Fiberskin head?

 It will almost be summer weather here in 1 1/2 months, and our humidity is bad, just thinking in advance.

The re-enactments I go to start in spring & then go to mid summer.

thanks

 Steve

 

[Tim Twiss]

I think it has to do with a combination of how the head was installed, and properties of that particular head. You can't tension away a humidity problem. The best banjo I've had for damp weather was a tackhead by Jay Moschella. He is able to do this really well. That banjo was playable when the others fell. I play on a  Renassiance head now. It sounds really good and is always stable. To my ears and feel, it is like a good skin head, with no headaches. I'm not saying do that, but it suits me just fine.   

[Steve Jeter]

" you cant tension away a humidity problem "

 

thanks Tim , that answers my question

 

[Moschella Banjos]

To follow up what Tim said, it is true, you can't really tension the problem away. Yes, you can tighten the head somewhat, and it will make a difference, but it will also continue to wilt, especially with some of the intensely humid summer days our friends below the Mason/Dixon experience.  If it's fairly humid, or you're indoors while its raining, a few tweaks to the tension band will get you back in business. But it'll always feel a little different. Plus you don't want to tension it up for 90% humidity, then forget it there, which might bring problems when winter comes. Also, minstrel banjos tend to have thinner (read: more flexible) tension hoops and fewer brackets (and what brackets are there, especially on a Boucher-style, won't be as hardy as their modern equivalents) when compared to modern banjos. This means that, unless the head was installed with absolute, 100% precision, it'll be difficult to fully crank it down without pulling the skin a little looser, and even if it is perfectly installed, the flexing tension band might sometimes bend, allowing it to slip past the flesh hoop ever so slightly.

I use a slightly different installation process than most other makers of tackheads that I know of. And, having installed so many tackheads, I am able to get the maximum tension I can on every head that I can get without tearing it while it's still wet. Thus I have been able to play my tackheads in outrageous humidity, though again, it'll always be different. I haven't played too many other makers tackheads, but I assume there are others who have similar results.

 

In general, a banjo with adjustable hardware will have a tighter head to start with than a tackhead. I know mine do. And with little adjustments, it'll hold up a little better in humidity. But with both, an extra, taller bridge will help.

 

Steve Jeter said:

" you cant tension away a humidity problem "

 

thanks Tim , that answers my question