restoring a banjo head

With the high cost of banjo heads, doesn't it seem there should be a way to re-coat an old banjo head? It's something I have never succeeded at, so join me through the experimental process of finding something that works. You might save a few bucks!

[@Portrayalpress]

Nice work....Pony Express! One of my favs!

[@thebanjooutlaw]

Man, I love this channel! Keep up the great work!👍

[@adamzocchi]

Lovely experimentation sir, as always. RIP to that other head! Lol

[@RandySchartiger]

fingernail polish remover will take off the factory frosting... usually lol

[@davidmmccardle4131]

Hi Dave, l would like to ask who were your influences when you learned to play the banjo.

[@beyondguitars9631]

Early on, started with Eric Weissberg in '73 when Dueling hit the pop radio play rotation it hooked me at 12 years old. I got a teacher who introduced me to Earl and his book, I eventually learned all I could from the Deliverance album.. I learned to work out my own by ear and found Vic Jordan- became my favorite player for a long while. Great player. Also Bill Monroe's Love please come home.. Still not sure who recorded it but I worked that one out for a long while in high school. Don Stover, later on Ron Block, and Dennis Caplinger who I got to know personally before he passed a few years ago. I still play his banjo! He's the best player I've ever heard but I say a very tough one to emulate.

[@TedHouk]

Expensive? 40 frozen cats for thrown over the hill at least a couple weeks before the media pointed out that the PETA people had to get rid of a lot of their animals [sorry no reference]. I was running to work and I saw them so I only collected four cat skins used by the Appalachians along with raccoon skins. I made a two octive six string, classical guitar neck banjo with a 🐈 skin just to irritate both ends of music... I don’t leave strings up tense: bridge removed from the skin. An ash ring, wheel wires for roadside, open back could be altered…

[@gordonbrackett7220]

Could you not spray the inside of the head?

[@beyondguitars9631]

Sure could. Part of my goal was to cover up the smooth worn through part, as it's more visible if you don't but for a head without any frosting it would work fine.