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Old Hickory - Posted - 02/15/2022: 08:01:42
quote:
Originally posted by ban-joe
The truss rod nut is backed off completely, so that’s where it will stay.
No fret buzz or any other worries
That's the situation in my oldest banjo, made for me in 1973 by a DC-area buider. Well, the nut is just shy of fully backed off, just snug enough to prevent rattle. The truss rod is doing little or nothing.
coolet5 - Posted - 02/15/2022: 16:00:02
Alright, all you Banjo techies! Joe was in my place and messed up with the Banjo. I`ll keep the suspense going and will give him the utmost respect to explain the situation. Joe, back to you...
ban-joe - Posted - 02/15/2022: 16:37:29
I think maybe Isaac meant to say that I “messed with” his banjo not “messed up” with. At least I hope that’s what he meant. :)
But kidding aside, the banjo is fine.
I forgot to bring a bridge to work this morning, as I had intended, but luckily I was in the wood shop all day. I have a banjo there with a 5/8” bridge, which I used as a template to quickly fabricate a rudimentary 11/16” bridge.
And that funky bridge was all it took to get the Stelling back in business.
There was a Sullivan 5/8” bridge on the banjo, and the head seems pretty undertensioned to me. So the action was really low, with some buzz at the frets up the neck.
The neck relief is fine, actually more than spec. (I didn’t gauge it, but well over a credit card thickness.)
I believe Isaac is now going to buy a good 11/16” bridge and tighten the head a little.
I suspect that the reason the truss rod nut seemed so over-tightened (when we suspected a back-bow) is that a prior owner was trying to lessen the relief. maybe??? Who knows.
Anyway, all’s well that ends well.
And it was nice meeting Isaac. I have a new friend.
Maybe Isaac will post a photo of that bridge. Everyone will want to buy one!
coolet5 - Posted - 02/15/2022: 16:45:04
quote:
Originally posted by ban-joe
I think maybe Isaac meant to say that I “messed with” his banjo not “messed up” with. At least I hope that’s what he meant. :)
But kidding aside, the banjo is fine.
I forgot to bring a bridge to work this morning, as I had intended, but luckily I was in the wood shop all day. I have a banjo there with a 5/8” bridge, which I used as a template to quickly fabricate a rudimentary 11/16” bridge.
And that funky bridge was all it took to get the Stelling back in business.
There was a Sullivan 5/8” bridge on the banjo, and the head seems pretty undertensioned to me. So the action was really low, with some buzz at the frets up the neck.
The neck relief is fine, actually more than spec. (I didn’t gauge it, but well over a credit card thickness.)
I believe Isaac is now going to buy a good 11/16” bridge and tighten the head a little.
I suspect that the reason the truss rod nut seemed so over-tightened (when we suspected a back-bow) is that a prior owner was trying to lessen the relief. maybe??? Who knows.
Anyway, all’s well that ends well.
And it was nice meeting Isaac. I have a new friend.
Maybe Isaac will post a photo of that bridge. Everyone will want to buy one!
"Messed with" of course! Edited. check out this Bridge!
coolet5 - Posted - 02/20/2022: 15:36:33
Hello,
Can anyone here give me a complete list of the tools I need to set up my Red Fox Banjo? Also, what are you using to take measurements? A simple metallic ruler will be enough or are the better tools for that? I got the Stelling manual and I want to try and carefully mess about with it.
Thanks.
Alex Z - Posted - 02/21/2022: 04:55:46
A decent 6-inch metal ruler will work for most all at-home adjustments (typically 64th inches), except for neck relief which is measured around .010 - .025 inches on a banjo.
For neck relief, snip off the ends of several banjo and guitar strings of different diameters. These will make accurate round gauges of the diameter of the strings, in the ballpark of neck relief for banjo. For example, .010, .011, .012, .013, .017, .020, .022, .025. etc. If you're shooting for .018 relief, the .017 should clear and the .020 should not. That's good enough.
Forget the credit card, business card, two sheets of paper stuff. Not nearly as accurate as the string diameters.
For guitar, neck relief may be on the order of .005-.007, and that's where the folded dollar bill comes in.
Old Hickory - Posted - 02/21/2022: 20:51:40
That's great news on the banjo needing only a taller bridge and head tightening! So much for the twisted neck diagnosis.
If you want a real tool other than pieces of string for measuring relief, that would be a set of "feeler gauges." Metal strips in various thicknesses. Bolted together at one end so they can fanned out to access the one you want (or multiple strips can be stacked to achieve a specific thickness).
Besides this, I previously linked to a 6-in-1 tool that provides 4 screwdriver bits (2 flat and 2 phillips) and two deep nut-driver sockets (1/4 and 5/16 inch): the sizes you need to adjust most hook nuts and the truss rod nut.
Wire cutter for trimming strings is a must-have. Combination needle-nose pliers/wire cutter can be handy. Some people like a string winder, but I think they're more useful on guitars than banjos.
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