Ladies & gentlemen... The Canjo!

[garrett]

Visited my parents over the weekend and they had a gift for me: an electric canjo. They bought it from a guy at a crafts market. This thing is great; the antithesis of a PRS.

It's a blast to play. The frets are set at intervals for the major scale, so it's impossible to play a wrong note. It's a major melody machine! It works pretty well for slide too, if you want to go off the grid. I watched some canjo vids on YouTube, and I have to say this one sounds far better than those do. It especially rocks with some delay feeding into the amp's overdrive.

Specs:
1x2 piece of hardwood (maybe ash)
bamboo skewer nut
staple frets, placed at major scale intervals
screw bridge
piezo pickup under bridge
Full Throttle 16 oz energy drink can body
Currently tuned to a high D

 

[Shawn@PRS]

That's cool. I'd love to see a detailed shot of the bridge.

 

[WEDGE]

Want one!

 

[rugerpc]

I bet it plays a mean can can!

 

[alantig]

I bet it plays a mean can can!

It can. Especially in Cannes.

Its biggest fan?

 

[garrett]

That's cool. I'd love to see a detailed shot of the bridge.

I may take it apart in the next couple days, so I'll get a few more pics. I, too, would like a good look at the bridge. I think it's a bolt without a head taped on top of the pickup. The sustain is very respectable.

Had some good fun jamming on it today. I tuned it from D to C and B. I guess it's pretty adaptable to key. I think it sounds best in B so far, but the string that came on it is too light to play slide in that key. I may try a heavier string and tune it to G.

Oh, it also makes a cool percussion instrument!

 

[garrett]

It can. Especially in Cannes.

Its biggest fan?

Who can play a can-can with a can in Cannes? I can!

 

[jfb]

Nice axe.

 

[RedGuitars]

I saw the North Mississippi All Stars on South Congress at SXSW this year. Guitar player played a 'can' guitar for a couple of songs. It looked like a soup can, not a pop can, but same general idea. I think it had three strings.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=7WEZI3_7iXI

 

[alantig]

Who can play a can-can with a can in Cannes? I can!

Maybe you can, but Kant can't. He's not a musician.