What are the best strings to use on my banjo?
This is another of those questions to which the only real answer is “whatever suits you best”. There are an almost infinite number of combinations of gauges and materials and the best method is to try out quite a few to see what you like. Here is some general guidance. Material: Most plain (i.e. unwound) strings are made of stainless steel. It is available in steps of .001″ from .008″ to .020″ though you can sometimes get strings graded as close as .0005″ (i.e. .0095″). I prefer loop ended strings for banjos as they fit most types of tailpieces. There is no problem in using ball ended guitar strings if they happen to fit easily onto your banjo. Always buy good quality as cheap strings may not be very even (i.e. they tend to have “thick spots”) which makes them hard to tune. Wound strings have a stainless steel core with fine wire (either nickel, bronze, phosphor bronze or some other alloy) wound round it. These are available in .002″ steps from .016″ up to .060″ though you can sometime
