The result of my musings about pot construction was the left exhibit above. I made a simple press to tension a sheet of Mylar. I cast two fiberglass rings, and sandwiched the tensioned Mylar between them with epoxy glue.
I then attached the neck to two sides of this sandwich. The result was a very awkward thing with no rim. I had to make some sort of enclosure. So I made the crude fiberglass rim/resonator you see above left, and attached it to the ring-and-Mylar sandwich. (I show the sandwich and enclosure separated, so you can get an idea of the construction.)
The banjo I put together from those parts sounded quite good. But the pot was uncomfortable (no room for an arm rest) and, let’s face it, looked thrown together because it was.
The solution was to turn the enclosure upside down. In a new pot I made one of the rings continuous with side walls, screwed on a back, and drilled holes in the sandwich to let the sound escape. You see the new pot at the right above. It weighs only 1 pound 10 ounces, and has a comfortable rounded edge, requiring no arm rest.
Capo-ble Banjo 