How to Adapt a Goodtime Banjo for Children

So your son or daughter says to you, “Mom/Dad, I want to play the banjo!” You maintain that “parental calm”,smile encouragingly, and then when they aren’t looking you begin the frantic search for information about banjos so you can satisfy this wonderful desire from your budding offspring!! If they are very young, you try to find them a smaller instrument, knowing full well that at some point or another, they will outgrow it! As parents, we are used to having our children “out grow” things--- shoes, clothes, toys, etc.  But they DON’T have to outgrow their banjo just because their body is getting bigger!! Here at Deering banjos our sales manager Barry Hunn has figured out a way to make our Goodtime openback model adaptable for those little arms to play.  With a few very minor alterations and at a very minimal cost, your child can play the SAME banjo from age 6 to 60 (or beyond)!

Even though your little one can give you the biggest, strongest bear hug in this universe, they are really not well equipped to handle the 12 pounds and the 13 inch circumference that is routinely part of an upper line instrument. Deering’s bright sounding, rock maple Goodtime openback model is an ideal instrument for very young children because it is very light in weight. At only 4 pounds and with a circumferenceof only 11 inches in the pot area, most little ones can tolerate both the weight and get their arms around the banjo. Even though you could swear that a child’s reach is far greater than it should be (that is why we put all those“breakables” in locked cases!!), their arms are just a tad bit too short to reach the top of a standard banjo neck to chord! Unlike most guitar necks, the neck profile of the Deering Goodtime banjo is very slender and ideal for smaller hands as well as larger. By simply utilizing time tested tools calledspikes and a capo, you can make the necessary alterations to the banjo that will easily overcome the barrier to playing caused by the short reach of their little arms.

Capos are relatively inexpensive and can be purchased from most music stores—honest! They are not like the latest action hero that you found yourself searching for on Christmas Eve at every store in the known universe! There are many to choose from and they are modestly priced from $10 to $25 at most music stores. Place the capo just a little behind the fret and tighten it just enough to allow the strings to sound clearly. Over tightening can cause the string to go sharp and not enough will cause the strings not to ring fully. I have given you a chart at the end of this article to help you with the tuning of each string.

Have a luthier install the model HO railroad spikes for you. This service is usually less than $20 and truly well worth the price! Remember the time you put the bike together and ended up with“extra” parts? Save yourself the headache--- please have a professional do this for you! The combined cost of these items is considerably less than purchasing another instrument for your youngster as he quickly outgrows the first one.

Once all of these simple alterations and tools are in hand, you are ready to have your son or daughter play the banjo. If your child already has a teacher to go to, you are very much ahead of the game. If not, just get a basic banjo book or video. There are many available and we have some excellent choices here at the factory as well. Now,get started!  Have no fear---you have done your homework! The rest really is fun!

            By placing the capo at the 5th fret, or 4th fret, or 2ndfret, you will shorten the fingerboard “musically” so that little arms can reach the proper positions on the fingerboard. They will be playing in the keys of C, B, or A but the fingering of the chords will be the same as for those of us who play in the ever-popular key of G on a full scale banjo neck tuned to open G.  The beauty of this is that by starting them out with a capo over the 5th fret, you can continue“lengthening” the fingerboard for them as they grow, by moving the capo to the4th and 2nd frets, and they will still be using the same chord positions they have already learned.

The fifth string will need to be slipped under the railroad spikes. The spikes themselves will be installed at frets 7 (A), 9 (B), and 10 (C). These along with the placement of the capo at the appropriate position as explained above, will make it possible for even a 6year old to begin. 

Here is a simple chart for checking the proper tuning of each string after you put the capo on and spike the 5thstring. (The 5th string is the shortest one on your banjo.):

Capo Place          Key   1st string   2nd string   3rd string    4th string    5th string Spike

2nd fret                    A             E             C#               A               E                  A         7th fret

4th fret                     B             F#            E flat          B               F#                B         9th fret

5th fret                     C             G             E                 C               G                 C          10th fret

Now the REAL ADVENTURE begins!! Exploring their heart’s desire for music will make the banjo a joy for your youngster. Having a banjo they can actually play will make the joy even greater!! Who knows, you may even want to share the adventure with your young person!! We have shown you how you can easily “alter”one instrument for everyone to use!!

After all, it’s not like the time you tried to ride little Jimmy’s bike to show him how easy it was. Let’s face it our legs are just not meant to be contorted like pretzels!!

 Share the joy of music with one another – in this case, one size really does fit all!!But most of all, play the banjo!!