Here you go Alan feast your eyes on this candy.
Discuss the Banjo lesson: Pro Picker Case Study: Banjo with Russ Carson
Archie,
Thank-you, thank-you for supplying the Prucha banjo link.
I like the Legend Standard Models; they simply are beautiful.
I bookmarked the website.
Thanks again,
Alan
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You should check for a dealership in your country
Hey Alan if you want to look at Russās Prucha you can find the pictures here
Ben expertly dissects Russā technique as only a banjo master could
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Hi Evan,
Thank-you for the link to the Banjo Hangout. I never heard of that website.
I suspected that Russā Prucha was a custom made model. It is gorgeous! It looks like he has a āspeed neckā sanding on the back of the neck. That is a sweet option to have on a banjo neck.
I am an amateur bluegrass player, so I could not justify spending that much money on a banjo. If I could, it would be more of an investment instrument that would remain my closet picker model rather than taking it to a jam session.
I think I could go up to a $3,000 Prucha like the Legend Standard Models, perhaps the Standard Wreath Walnut with gold plating is my favorite.
I wonder if this could be purchased through the Banjo Ben store and have Jake do the setup. That would be a dream purchase.
A few years ago, I sold my Deering Golden Era through the store to finance one of my masterās degree semesters. If you look at one of Benās You Tube videos featuring higher end used banjos for sale, my Golden Era banjo is there with a Neckville arm rest. A few months later, I sold my Deering Golden Wreath on eBay. I dearly miss having the wreath design inlay. I think that is the ultimate classic look.
Thanks again Evan for showing me the Banjo Hangout website. I do not know anything about it. Can you tell me more?
The last few years I have been locked into school work and teaching inmates at a prison to earn their GED credentials.
I have been out of the online forum scene for a while, and I am slowly trying to make some time to get online to relieve the stress of work and school.
Alan
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Yeah his banjo is second to none when it comes to fit and finish. I actually got to play it a couple months back and it was one of the best sounding Iāve ever played. I definitely love the speed neck option.
I donāt think you can go wrong with a Prucha. If you check the banjo hangout classifieds regularly you could find a good used one. Actually Jim Britton has a good little Prucha Inspiration for sale right now. Iāll post the link if you want to check it out.
https://www.banjohangout.org/classified/97374
Oh yeah, Iād love to have one of those too!
I donāt believe the general store is a Prucha dealer. But they may get one in from time to time. You could call Jake and ask Jake if theyāll get anything soon on consignment. Or if you found one and were in the area you could have them set it up.
I may have actually played that very one in the store! It was a great banjo although I didnāt know what I was doing 
. I agree that the wreath is the classic design. They actually have a golden era in right now I think if you wanted to check it out.
So pretty much itās the worlds largest online banjo community. Where lots of guys who know much more about banjos than I do discuss pretty much everything Banjo. Thereās also a huge archive of tabs and other instruction. As well as the classifieds where people sell anything related to the banjo. If Iām not wrong it has the most banjos available for sale than any other website. But I highly recommend anyone check it out!
Thatās awesome!
Welcome back to it then . Iāve not been very active on this site but if you ever have any questions thereās plenty of people here who will give you top notch advice.
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That is nice to know about the Banjo Hangout. Thanks for the tip Evan.
When I get a little time, I will navigate through the site as a visitor. Meanwhile, I like Benās site here for learning to practice. I do not get on often right now, but I have looked and saved a few videos to come back after graduation and practice with guitar, mandolin, and banjo as I have all of these instruments. In 2019, I purchased a life membership here.
I also have an additional 6 month membership that can be transferable to someone else as I bought my Recording King Madison RK-R36 banjo during Black Friday 2022. I am extremely pleased with that banjo.
By the way, if you are wondering who the baseball player is in my icon, it is San Diego Padres Hall of Famer, Tony Gwynn. I lived in San Diego for 20 years, worked for Glendale Federal Bank, a major sponsor of the Padres, and I am an alumni of San Diego State University where Tony Gwynn graduated from and has a stadium named after him at the school.
Currently, I am a graduate student doing an online program through the University of Central Florida for my masterās degree in Applied Learning and Instruction with an emphasis in program evaluation while working for the Florida Department of Corrections as an Academic Teacher in a reentry center.
Alan
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I am new to the banjo community (about 2 years now). Russ has been the inspiration for me and fortunately, I was able to meet him at the Huber shop a few months ago. He gave me an hour of his time just to talk banjos. Awesome guy with stellar skills! I couldnāt make the live show because of work but loved these lessons. Thanks, Ben & Russ!
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Hi Daryl,
What banjo do you own? Do you play any other bluegrass instruments?
That is awesome that you met Russ in person. One day after my graduation, I would love to catch him playing Florida and get to meet him in person after a show.
Years ago in San Diego at the Del Mar Fair, I met Ricky after a show. He was wonderful to talk with. Two years after that, I spoke with him on the radio when he promoted his Loveās Gonna Get Ya! album. They had a call-in program, and I got to tell Ricky I found an old LP called āThatās It!ā that featured him playing clawhammer banjo. He jokingly claimed he was not a banjo player. He plays clawhammer mostly for his own enjoyment.
I was supposed to get a mailed copy of the LP signed by Ricky, but it never came in the mail. Years ago, I managed to find a used CD that was available on eBAY. It is a generic autograph, which is nice. My favorite song on the CD is with Sharon co-singing āLove Canāt Ever Get Better Than This.ā
Have a wonderful day,
Alan
āMiss directionā. Iāve followed both of you for a long time now, and I really appreciate your contributions to our endeavor. I play so many of Benās breaks since Iāve literally learned the banjo on the web at BBC.com. I last saw Russ live in Felton, CA just as COVID was breaking out. My wife and I asked each other so many times whether we should go to that concert, but our final decision was we had to go. IMO Russ has a really cool sense of timing, and that opinion comes from listening to, and trying to reproduce what heās doing. If you go to the 81CROWE Old Home town video, there are all kinds of little slide delays and other nuances in there that I canāt reproduce without literally singing the melody in my head.
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Heās a master at misdirection in the best way. He doesnāt even really know what heās doing, though.