Tim in South Carolina - Posted - 08/18/2015:  18:06:41

I'm attaching photos of the Orpheum # 3 tenor a friend just gave me, a friend who plays banjo, but not  openback and not tenor. Pretty banjo! What a nice guy! I play clawhammer and not tenor, so I'm exploring what it would involve to get a five-string neck to convert the banjo. At this point I'd like an alternative to the cost of a custom neck. I've seen the online  Stew-Mac options (including unfinished) and the Saga and Gold Tone necks. Thoughts? Do folks sometimes sell spare used necks that might work with this kind of  pot (with traditional dowel stick)? The pot is slightly irregular, like 11 and 1/4 inches or so. Interesting tone ring--that rests on brackets. This could be a fun project.

Tim

gottasmilealot - Posted - 08/18/2015:  18:22:16

I recommend Gary Schattl here at the Hangout. He makes nice necks for older instruments.

Edited by - gottasmilealot on 08/18/2015 18:23:07

Dan Drabek - Posted - 08/18/2015:  18:52:45

If you decide to make a new five string neck for this very nice banjo, you can get a full set of pre-cut inlays for around $100. They would just have to be inlaid in the new neck and everything would be close to correct in appearance. In the old days, the peghead veneer would be pulled off and the fingerboard inlays would be cannibalized. Fortunately today it isn't necessary to do that. 

Scroll down the following page to see the inlay set:

luthiersupply.com/banjo_page.html

DD

Stephen45710 - Posted - 08/18/2015:  19:05:32

I just built a stewmac neck and love it. They do require a lot of work including cutting the peghead shape. You would also need the heel recut to fit your rim. You could probably find a builder on this site to build a neck for only a little more $ than you'd invest in parts and tools. Depends if you WANT to build it yourself. Will this be your primary instrument? 

pollywaffle - Posted - 08/18/2015:  19:24:27

Man, I obviously have the WRONG friends! 

Tim in South Carolina - Posted - 08/18/2015:  19:26:39

This is great feedback so far! Thanks. While I do have some woodworking experience I doubt I have the time to do my own neck, even starting with some of it possibly pre-cut. So what might a custom neck cost? Also, right now my main instrument is a Reiter Round Peak. I'm thinking this new neck would not have to reproduce the current fancy neck; while it's fascinating to see how available the proper inlay is, I'd be inclined not to go that far or invest that much in the required labor. So what might a custom simpler neck run?

Frog Level - Posted - 08/19/2015:  05:59:27

Congratulations on the new banjo! It looks like it will make a fine five string.

bartmcneil - Posted - 08/19/2015:  06:22:16

Wow! what a nice looking banjo. Certainly you could install a new neck but please keep the old one for the next owner. Were it mine I would restore it as is. But that is just me.

Tim in South Carolina - Posted - 08/19/2015:  07:07:26

Thanks, for the further feedback. Yes, I do indeed plan on keeping the current neck for the next owner, and not cannibalize it for parts or inlay.

Bob Kemper - Posted - 08/23/2015:  06:52:31

If you ever want to sell the tenor neck, please let he know.

Stikman - Posted - 08/23/2015:  07:14:46

I had Gary Schattl build me a neck for my Orpheum number one.He is reasonable and builds an awesome neck. Price will be dependant on how fancy or plain you want it. My Orpheum was rescued from a garbage pail and i think i could recoup all the $$ i put into if i ever decide to sell it(which i wont)

Will1717 - Posted - 08/23/2015:  07:33:50

Tim:

I actually have the same banjo that I fitted a 5 string neck to awhile back. I've been drawing up the rim and am thinking of reproducing this design as a standard banjo offering. The only issue is basically the fitting of the heel to the pot as the tone ring is set off the rim to create the space between the rim and tone ring which is the Orpheum trade mark. I may several necks in stock that have been sitting on the shelf for awhile, that could cut to fit your Orpheum rim. The necks that are available are 3 piece laminated necks that were earlier designs of the original necks that I use to build. We've since modified or neck profiles and these necks have become obsolete due to our new design. At the same time they're 100% okay and usable. If your interested, plus not in a big rush to get this project completed, you can contact me and I'll confirm what I have in stock and some pricing etc.

Hope this helps

Bill Rickard

Edited by - Will1717 on 08/23/2015 07:35:47

gschattl - Posted - 08/24/2015:  11:28:16

I am currently building 2 Orpheum necks if you are interested?