I've also realised that the whole banjo head frame, which sits inside the bowl, extends down into the bowl almost an inch. The bowl is 8 inches across, and I haven't found a pre-made coordinator rod that would suit. My next, related question, is the best method for straightening the neck if a CF rod is being added? I thought perhaps heating and clamping rather than planing, to retain as much original material as possible.įor the bowl I had thought to insert an improvised coordinator rod like you would find in a banjo bowl. A carbon fibre rod through the neck seems a sensible idea, but I'm unsure what size rod would be suitable and how far through the neck it needs to go? The neck thickness directly under the nut is only 1 inch and the neck from bowl to nut is 8.5 inches. To begin with I would like to straighten the neck and reinforce the bowl somehow to prevent further warping. Still, I do have a few questions which I hope other forum members may be able to help with. I'd like to do as much as I can by myself, but my brother is on hand to help. I've spent some time now reading through the forum posts, and my brother is a violin luthier, so I feel confident that I can perform the work required. The nut is very heavily worn and needs replacing, and the frets likewise are heavily worn and need replacing. The tension on the posts has brought them all forward into the space where a bushing should be. You can also see that the tuners have no bushings, and actually have been crammed into the original holes, bending them slightly out from square. Above the tuner on the left you can see the holes for the original tuners. The tuners are not original, as you can see from the photo. First of all, the neck and bowl are both bowed from years of string tension (it was strung with heavy gauge strings, and has spent 30 years strung in a cupboard!). It has a number of issues, all of which I believe are pretty standard for these kinds of instruments. If I can make this relatively playable I would like to, and I understand it will never be like new. I'm not concerned with monetary value, and suspect it has very little anyway. I'm very interested in repairing this instrument and it's case as well as possible. He and my nan (his daughter) both played, but since my dad inherited it it has sat ide (and strung) in a cupboard. I have a banjo mandolin, which I inherited through various family members, and which originally belonged to my great-grandfather.

Banjo repair near me