Banjo Bridges by Bart

Archie High-Performance Banjo Bridge

Archie - the new standard for a high-performance banjo bridge

Archie-a next generation banjo bridge
I designed the Archie specifically for archtop banjos but word's gotten out that flat top banjos really like them, a lot as well as do the Reno vintage sound fans. The sound/tone these Archies can liberate from banjos is just incredible, you'll have a huge dynamic range to exploit up and down the neck as well as the voicing of the X and Y positions and whatever else in between. Archie passes the 'low force test' with flying colours. Low force? Yes, as in barely picking a note and still have it sound clear and distinct despite the low volume.

Archies can comfortably handle lower tail piece and/or head tensions should you want to tone down the brightness without sacrificing mid range or bass. The word brightness here of course, means brilliant clarity - nothing whatsoever to do with tinny or shrill. The side effect of lower tension is that the strings often feel less stiff near the bridge making playing more effortless.

Being as thin as Archies is where of part of the magic comes from - string vibrations have a more direct transmission path to the head and this thinness also makes them very forgiving when it comes to intonation issues. Most of the magic, however, comes from the selection of woods - it simply couldn't be an Archie with any other wood species.

To celebrate their uniqueness I identify them with the circle mark in the top near the middle. Turns out the little circle is unique just by itself - hold it near a light and you'll see it glow red, red hot and ready for action. Don't settle for imitations - if it doesn't have the red hot dot it isn't an Archie.

Archies are available from 9/16" to 11/16" tall but keep in mind: maximum Archieness is achieved at 5/8" height. How much do they weigh? Hmmm, Archie is kinda sensitive about that, kinda like a lady when being quized about her age.

*** Archies are straight bridges - sorry, due to the design and structural
properties radiused and compensation are not available as options ***

Oh, just in case, one thing Archie cannot do is to give you the clawhammer "plunk" sound, just not gonna happen. Sorry to my fellow clawhammer players but mellow is totally out of the question here. Of course that does not mean that you cannot use an Archie to play clawhammer style on your favourite banjo, it does wonders for that extra bit of volume you may need.

One thing to keep in mind: because of how thin Archies are you must reduce string pressure before mounting and positioning this bridge. It doesn't matter how experienced you are with bridge change-outs:

*** failure to reduce string tension first will result in string slot chipping! ***

Here's what Mike Stanger of Idaho, U.S.A. thinks about them:

"I use a couple of Bart's Archie bridges- one on a flathead, the other on an archtop.

Any thin bridge is going to be lighter- simply because it is thin. Sanding down a bridge usually just weakens it, and the Archie is specifically designed to be thin. It won't ever develop a sway back or break from string pressure. But Bart's bridges are much stiffer than the typical maple/ebony combination - he uses several alternative woods. If you are looking for maximum snap and crispness, I've never played a better bridge. They also can work wonders on a flathead with a looser head.

The Archie is a thin little razor blade of a bridge, but it's very hard wood. On both of my banjos, they deliver bigger bass and more uniform tone than any other I've ever tried in addition to the extra crispy qualities. Dr. Ralph would love 'em! Don't ask me how he does it, but his bridges simply deliver the goods big time. And they're quite beautiful... they look old-timey."

Thanks for the kind words Mike.

Here's a great Youtube clip showing an Archie

 taken through its paces and here's another one  

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Copyright © 2009 Bart Veerman
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