Ben Greco, how bout woodburning in the name Greco on that head there........just a thought. i would. be proud and slap it on there. Im fully impressed. Case usually is somebody can build but can't play, or play but can't cut a straight line if it killed them. Let alone be allowed even next to a band saw. You do both. Subscribed and will be sharing your work to others. Good job. Wish you lived down the road or something like that, lol, need more interesting creative people in my life. Especially if they play banjo! Hell, the whole world does. If u keep at it, i see you totally hitting triple digits one day. Ive made and sold a few instruments in my time, but nothing that special. .........Greco........even looks like a Gibson, or a Fender or Ibanez kinda name, you know?? lol. Fuck yea! Neat. Fucking super neat bro. ....dope. yes, totally dope!! love it live well, and rest easy my friend.

Hell yea brother

Such a beautiful sound.

Very cool build! Live the wooden Tuners and the handpinned hide!

Hi Ben, I really love your videos and your content really inspired me to build my own banjo. I've already commented on another one of your videos to ask about the size for the neck. Now im shellacking the gourd and i cant seem to get a really clean and smoth finish. It is shiny but ita not really super smooth and flat, it has all these tiny tiny "scratches" that dont go away. How do you do your shellack finish to get it like its really smooth and basically polished? Thank you so mich for your cool videos and awesome, inspiring content ☺️☀️

beut sound and the location looks the one , thanks for posting this .

im building my first Gourd banjo in New Zealamnd and your knowledge is a big help, first thing i notice is how thin skinned new zealand gourds are compared to yours , yours look 3 times thicker, so i guess im going to have to find some way of reinforcing mine, maybe make a internal rim or something. keep up the good work bro its inspiring , subbed.

What are you using for the interior epoxying? I love to watch a video on you doing this step.

Where'd you get a gourd that big? Awesome build

Algorithm works in a wonderous way sometimes...

What an interesting timbre. I've never described the sound of a banjo using words like "soft" or "warm" before. Very cool. Did you build it? If so, please put up a build video!

Wow that tone is surprisingly nice

Faith Hill's Mississippi Girl Video was also filmed here( I was rep for the company that owns the bridge she used)

MCSP is a beautiful place, used to work next door :) a fiiting place for the video :)

That looks and sounds awesome! Can't wait to see the build video!

god damn that's a beautiful instrument

I love how the notes sound like pebbles hitting the water at the bottom of a well. *bloop* *bloop* *bloop*

Dang, did you get that gourd at welburn?

It's always fun hanging out with you Ben. I really like the way a native drum sounds with an old time banjo. We should experiment with that more👍

that last note error + purple short made me fear you would turn into the Hulk, glad you didnt! :)

Beautiful!!

Love the deep resonance of this banjo.

The algorithm has done me well yet again. You guys are awesome!

Hey man, sent an email re commission if you get time 👍

Heeey, there's my banjo again! And electrified at the end there!

Very Nice! I see Phoebe’s videos. For Jesse, it would be cool if you learned to tie an Ulzii at the back of your drum.

They look great! What scale length do you use? Nylon or steel strings? Thanks William

your flat surface can be a piece of plate glass

This instrument is great. Will you make more?

Sing along, don't be shy

Why dont you make the pegs as 2 piece? It would be so much easier

I want.

No way, that's the banjo I played! It sounds so good!! It's really cool to watch the build process like this.

My partner bought that first banjo that he showed a glimpse of in this video. Beautiful instrument, beautiful sound.

Very beautiful banjo. Your fingerboard wood looks like Wenge. And the bottom white wood cedar or pine? Will you let me know. I built a gourd dotara with American Cedar and it sound plenty good.

Unique sound. WOW!

excellent

Wish he would do it with his shirt off

Excellent video style!

Gonna try to binge all your videos today. Got some gardening to do. I was watching Margo MacSweeney play banjo when I found your video on making banjos. I don’t play but I got it in my blood, maybe with your videos I’ll get inspired and make my own and learn.

A cherry burl wood burned neck might be super sick though. If you’re not allergic to gourds, then it sounds like spider mites. How and where they are dried or how clean they are might be important for reducing irritation to your skin and lungs. You saying that you used to dip them in water to get a water line, and that you used to have less irritation makes me think you should at least wash the gourds before you work with them. I like your plants. Using the moisture meter as a make shift slide made me laugh. If you’re watering enough then try some microbes like yogurt or keifer and kombucha to improve microbiome in the soil. Cover crop and keep the soil cool if you’re in so cal, black pots heat up a lot in the sun.

You look very much like one of my old friends I lost contact with, even sound like him. This is my second of your videos I’m watching, I really enjoy the work you do, your quality and pace, and the videos are great. Gonna sub now so when you blow up, I’ve Ben here for a while. Do you only make banjos and does that make you a banjier?

I like the sound of the beech one best.

Ur just such a vibe. Also! Looking forward to watching the in depth tuning peg video!

Absolutely incredible and entirely inspiring! Where do you learn to even do this !?! I will now be studying this video like a mad woman and attempting to make my own!

Hey, curious if I could get your opinion on something… Do you suppose there’s any value in a 3-stringed banjo? I typically make instruments that are inspired by morin khuur, erhu, rebab and lyras. Sometimes I only use two strings, which can be very cool for playing with a bow. But often I’ll use 3 and might look into doing some with 4. But 5 is a stretch for me. Some of my instruments already have a banjo-esque tone when plucked and I want to lean into that a bit. Anyway, the point of this was just to ask if you thought any banjo players would be happy with 3 strings. Thanks and keep up the awesome work!

I was gonna say a few things, but at some point it just became, oh, WOW!

very good, try use carnauba wax or beer wax after oil absorved on wood.

Tell me something. if I was to make my own custom banjo, are the frets on the finger board necessary?

its so chiill to listen, and watch you working. + super interesting to hear about a topic i dont know shit about