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jpiperson2002 - Posted - 02/08/2009: 18:58:00
Here are pictures of some minor modifications made to my Deering Goodtime banjo to personalize it for use as a clawhammer style banjo.
First I added a curved hardwood Nechville armrest which fits the Goodtime's 16 bracket rim correctly, a translucent Renaissance head for it's mellower tone, and a Sampson dark brown old growth Walnut bridge. Then added a frailing scoop above the 17th fret by prying out the fret wires and using a table saw like a dado to trim a 1/4in deep scoop in the top of the neck. Finished with fine sandpaper and urethane varnish. The scoop works fine but afterward I thought that it looked too deep so I glued a small wood ornament in the scoop for visual interest;
It took about an hour to sand out the indented logo from front of the peg head, The curved top of the peg head was trimmed back to three flat edges which give it a more traditional look;
I also wanted to imitate the look of the old time banjos by using a wood dowel to cover the coordinating rod. Got a small maple table leg at the hardware store for $4 and cut a slot lengthwise along one edge which was wide enough to slip over the metal coordinator rod. 3 small magnets were glued into into the base of slot to hold the cover securely to the coordinator rod. A couple of small pieces of 2-sided tape keep it from moving around. This coordinator rod cover is purely cosmetic and does not affect the sound of the banjo; 
And finally, mounted a small vanity name plate the heel of the neck;
Tuners can be hard to keep track of, so I cut off the clip arm from an Intelli 500 tuner at the case and glued a couple of flat rectangular neodymium magnets on the back corners of the tuner. Then glued a couple of small magnets on the rim, just out of sight under the edge of the armrest, to accept the tuner. Now the tuner is always mounted securely to the banjo. It can be used where it normally hangs is under the arm rest or it can be attached anywhere along the steel tension band for better visibility.
Here's a front and rear shot with a no-knot tailpiece replacing the Deering Presto which came with the Goodtime. Since this picture was taken I removed the Remo logo from the head with a small amount of lacquer thinner on a paper towel, takes under a minute and doesn't leave any discoloration on the head;
The Goodtime is an easy banjo to work with. It's a simple design, the wood is dense and doesn't chip when cut, and since it isn't stained cuts won't show after being sanded and varnished.
John Piper
Edited by - jpiperson2002 on 03/13/2009 20:23:12
Banjolution - Posted - 02/08/2009: 20:06:44
Your Banjo looks spectacular!! Good work! I bet she sounds a LOT better too! Woo-hoo!
Have fun!
Moss
True Change Comes Only From Within...
jpiperson2002 - Posted - 02/09/2009: 08:16:25
Just used regular clear urethane in a spray can. The wood is very hard and fine grained, it sanded very smooth with fine 220+ sand paper and then a light pray of the urethane blended in perfectly with the surrounding varnish.
I'd used a drop of super glue to attach some magnets which were moved later. The glue residue was scraped off the finish with a dull knife, then a couple wipes with fine sandpaper and a spray of urethane made the slight mark disappear. This wood isn't like working on a stained or verneered surface. The wood pattern still comes through clearly when the surface of the wood is sanded away and the color is the same throughout.
Trimming the peg head only took a few minutes since it was essentially just 3 straight cuts. I'd planned to add a curve the top but the wood was too hard for the grinder. It took some forceful sandpapering by hand just to round off the edges after trimming the peg head.
I also glued a couple of small magnets to the back of an Intelli 500 tuner from which I'd cut the clip 
so it could be attached it to the tension band on the rim;
John Piper
Edited by - jpiperson2002 on 03/13/2009 15:47:20
dpete210 - Posted - 02/13/2009: 16:53:37
Nice job, John! Congratulations!
Any day playing music is a GOOD day. 
jpiperson2002 - Posted - 03/13/2009: 12:48:00
Here are a few more recent changes to my Goodtime;
I replaced the guitar style tuners which came on the banjo with a set of four 5 Star planetary tuners from StewMac (http://tinyurl.com/dgaaan). This was for cosmetic reasons only, the original tuners worked fine. Didn't bother to replace the original 5th string tuner, just replaced the knob on that one to match the others. 
The hole in the replacement knob I got for the Deering 5th string tuner was a bit too large to grab the flat sides of the tuner post so I wrapped a small piece of double-sided tape around the post before mounting the knob.
Since the neck doesn't have any inlay I decided to fancy it up a bit by attaching a carved ornament to the face of the peg head. My 12 yo son found this one for me at a local bead and costume jewelry store for $3US and a couple drops of superglue holds it in place. I've removed a few other glue spots from other parts of the banjo and it comes off relatively easily. Personally I probably wouldn't glue anything to my BG 250 but this is my project banjo so anything goes;
I'd tried a no-knot tailpiece for awhile, looked OK but I wanted to have more control over the sound so it's been replaced with an adjustable Kershner tailpiece also from StewMac (http://tinyurl.com/bt6qbv). It's kept relatively parallel to and high off the head for a mellower sound but could be tightened down closer to the head for a sharper bluegrass sound; 
Lately I've been using AMB custom string sets (http://tinyurl.com/attt5c) with gauges closely matched for tension (9.5/12.5, 11/11.9, 14/12.1, 20/12.4, 9.5/12.5). Still undecided on these, the 3rd string on the GHS 170 lights I had been using (12/10.5 lbs) was a little bit easier on the left hand pull-offs and bends (than the 14/12.1 lbs) but right hand rolls seems a bit more predictable since the strings all react more evenly due to the matched tension.
I've also started to store my tuner inside the rim. The small magnets on the back of the tuner clip onto any 2 of the bolt heads inside the rim and hold it securely in place. This doesn't seem to affect the sound and the tuner responds very well. I'm happy with the way the clip-on wood coordinator rod cover worked out, it looks better to me than the exposed metal rod;
With the tuner in that position I can retune the 2nd and 4th strings on the banjo to double C tuning in about 30 seconds while some of the other folks in my class struggle for minutes to retune correctly. Plus I never lose track of the tuner. If I feel like it I can remove the tuner and clip it to the tension band as shown in a previous post above but I prefer to just leave it inside the rim where it's easy enough to see while tuning.
Here's a front and back view and I don't plan to change anything else other than to swap out bridges and strings once in awhile. I know that I could have purchased a much better banjo in the first place for the extra $300 I've spent on the replacement tuners and different tailpieces and heads and small collection of bridges (http://tinyurl.com/befqd3) but that wouldn't have been nearly as satisfying. Now I have a box of spare parts to try on other banjos and more important I've learned things about a banjo which I'd never have known otherwise.
I was quite surprised to discover that none of the other beginning banjo players I've met in my classes have even considered changing out any of the parts on their instruments, not even bridges. The parts substitution and testing phase is 1/2 the fun of learning how to play and now I have a personalized one-of-a-kind banjo that stands out (be that good or bad) in a room full of other Goodtimes. 
John Piper
Edited by - jpiperson2002 on 03/14/2009 04:24:36
1four5 - Posted - 03/13/2009: 14:20:02
I LOVE the orniment on the peg head! Thanks for the great pictures and ideas! ...
Dean
jpiperson2002 - Posted - 03/13/2009: 21:11:02
quote:
Originally posted by JedNeedsCoffee
THANK YOU for trimming that peghead!!!!!! ....
dockbogggs - Posted - 08/29/2009: 01:34:58
looks nice.
I could never really understand where Deering was coming from with his original goodtime peg head. Quirky and not aesthetically pleasing. Trimmimg it down is deffo a good idea.
dock
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