1900s S.S. Stewart "Amateur" Banjo
Added 2020-10-10 19:08:20 +0000 UTCSam Stewart died in 1898, but instruments bearing his name continued to be made until World War 1. The high serial number and a few other details suggest this banjo was made circa 1900-1910.
"S.S. STEWART. PHILA. PA. THE AMATEUR GRADE 2" serial # 71548
Tunes played:
00:00 "Cluck Old Hen" [gDGCD]
06:30 "Wild Bill Jones" / "Cuckoo"
09:43 "East Virginia"
Comments
“This banjo sounds dam good”. I was typing that when you said it, Holy smokes, that thing sounds great.
Nate Bowser
2020-10-11 22:56:13 +0000 UTCAwesome! I've never played a Cliff Essex, but here in the States they have a very good reputation. Since it's a "Popular" I wouldn't be surprised if they copied Stewart. English 5-string makers were a bit... notorious for copying US designs.
Clifton Hicks
2020-10-11 13:51:33 +0000 UTCSteve, nylon strings are notoriously stretchy and will take a couple days to settle in. If after a couple of days you're still having trouble, it's probably either you need to tighten up your tuners or put a more serious knot at the peg and/or tailpiece. This video covers how I tie my strings: https://youtu.be/irNUhTsoIR0
Clifton Hicks
2020-10-11 13:49:29 +0000 UTCFab video Clif! I've started using nylon strings, I find when tunning to another tuning for a while they tend to keep trying to creep back to the previous tunning, so constantly retuning until it stops (if that makes sense) do your strings do that? Or have I got crap nylon strings? Cheers Clif.
Steve Angell
2020-10-11 10:25:28 +0000 UTCI recently bought my first banjo, a 1910 Clifford Essex Popular here in the UK and the similarities with this are uncanny.
David Clapp
2020-10-11 08:48:44 +0000 UTCThanks Clifton! My 1894 S.S. Stewart also has a paper label inside that says THOROUGHBRED and has a picture of a horse's head.
Al Neale
2020-10-11 00:31:04 +0000 UTCThanks, Clifton! Ordered a couple of 'em to try out!
Ron King
2020-10-10 23:49:25 +0000 UTCO yeah. The no-knot is a nice looking, cheap tail piece, but they don't do any favors in the PUNCH department. The other thing that'll help that old banjo is a real one-piece maple bridge from www.BanjoThimble.com
Clifton Hicks
2020-10-10 22:46:36 +0000 UTCDang, that's a good lookin' banjo. You gave me a good idea with the Kershner tail piece. I have a turn of the century "2 dollar" no-name that I play that could use a bit more punch. Think I'll ditch the replacement "no knot" that I put on 'er.
Ron King
2020-10-10 22:09:30 +0000 UTCYeah, a good Stewart is hard to beat. Even his "GRADE 2" models, like this one, are a joy to play.
Clifton Hicks
2020-10-10 21:17:16 +0000 UTCDo they really make Fiberskyn 3? Never heard of 'er! Those bridges are OK, but anything on Joel Hooks' website www.BanjoThimble.com is superior. The bridge on this banjo is a Cole design erroneously listed as "Morris bridge" on Elderly's website.
Clifton Hicks
2020-10-10 21:11:38 +0000 UTCI would put a Kershner tail piece on it. I think those came out in the early 1900s, so it would be "historically correct" for this banjo. Kershners are simple, good-looking, and adjustable, so you can really tamp that pressure down behind the bridge--considerably improving tone.
Clifton Hicks
2020-10-10 21:09:47 +0000 UTCYou got her sounding pretty good considering the unusual items on it. What adjustable tailpiece would you look to put on that one?
Dean Schober
2020-10-10 20:32:26 +0000 UTCGreat sounding banjo.
John Gilby
2020-10-10 19:59:25 +0000 UTC2 questions: where’d you get that bridge, I want to get one for my Fairbanks? Have you tried a fiberskyn 3, yet?
Blaine Chappell
2020-10-10 19:42:29 +0000 UTCAwesome as usual brother! I’m partial to the Stewart’s. :p
William Riley
2020-10-10 19:32:38 +0000 UTC
