stevel - Posted - 10/23/2009:  10:31:52

hey folks- a little while back my father gave me my grandfather's old banjo because my father doesn't play it and figured it would be better off in my posession. On first glance it appeared cheap (and hasn't been played for decades) so I just placed it in the corner and left it alone. However, now I am interested in knowing if its worth restoring.

I believe its a 1950s era Kay Banjo. It doesn't have any other info on it other than whats visible on the front of the headstock (no serial numbers, dates anywhere). It looks just like this banjo in the following link, except the one I have only has 16 brackets.

http://www.frets.com/FRETSpages/Lut...josetup.html

here's what my pot looks like (the name similarity in the URL is just a coincidence):

http://www.musicmansteve.com/primo/...es/Kpott.jpg

So in short, as far as restoring it goes, I was just planning on replacing the tuners (especially the 5th string one), and slapping on a new head and strings (maybe a new bridge too).

But, is it even worth the spending the money to do so? I appears to be in decent shape (no warping, cracking, etc).

thx for any insight everyone.

steve

LittleGoomba - Posted - 10/23/2009:  10:36:21

They go for under $200. I bought one for $60 in 1991 and still play it. It can make some interesting sounds if you mess with it a little. It won't ever be valuable as an investment. Mine is valuable to me, as I can take it on planes or camping trips without worry. I'll be REALLY upset if my 'nice' banjo gets a ding, but this Kay has lost 4 nuts, 3 tuners (after being replaced) snapped two bridges, and the head looks like it has chicken pox. I'll keep repairing it until it turns to sawdust. When it does suffer an injury, I just take it back home and fix it back up again.


"Friends don't let friends eat paste."

Edited by - LittleGoomba on 10/23/2009 10:42:43

fretlessinfortwayne - Posted - 10/23/2009:  10:43:03

Not a collector's item, but putting on new tuners, strings, bridge and head might be a fine idea and thus turn it into a player.

Dean

"Each one's got to have his own style. It's all creamed potatoes, just fixed a little different." -- Benton Flippen

tombriarhopper - Posted - 10/23/2009:  10:44:36

My brother-in-law has one and I enjoy frailing on it! He affixed a resonator that you can pop off.

Tom Briarhopper
http://www.wbtbriarhoppers.blogspot.com
http://www.myspace.com/tomwarlick

clawforlife - Posted - 10/23/2009:  11:08:03

this looks alot like the banjo William Elliot Whitmore plays proffessionly, his sounds awesome, very doc boggs or roscoe holcomb sounding.

BrianBanjos - Posted - 10/23/2009:  11:34:52

If it's playable it's not junk, it's fun! Don't spend Mastertone money fixing it up but heck, a new head, strings, and a bridge are quite reasonable.

Happy Pickin'
Brian Daniels
Deering Goodtime II
Deering Deluxe
No-Name Asian Rat from dear old Dad
Seagull Mini Jumbo vintage burst cedar and cherry
Tacoma DR-28 Herringbone
Fender Standard Telecaster

mike gregory - Posted - 10/23/2009:  11:41:30

Say this slowly, out loud.

Fixes and pixes with rollses and lixes!

Now, if just SAYING it is that much fun, imagine DOING it.

Get moving. Post pixes and music fileses when done, & thankUverMuch.

Bill Rogers - Posted - 10/23/2009:  11:42:55

I learned on one. Simply a lousy banjo. The pot's not terrible, but I didn't like the neck at all. Much closer to today's super cheapies than to the Goodtime and CC-100. That peghead logo marks it as post 1961. See: http://www.frets.com/FRETSPages/Lut...josetup.html

Bill

Edited by - Bill Rogers on 10/23/2009 11:45:10

R Buck - Posted - 10/23/2009:  11:50:50

I'll give you fifty bucks for it. :-)

RobBob
Music; the best way to count time. It is a journey not a destination.
www.blueridgerounders.com

stevel - Posted - 10/23/2009:  12:33:10

Rob Welch- yup, that's the one!

By "lost treasure" I didn't mean to imply it'll hopefully fund my retirement years =)

Bill- the neck does seem a tad narrow to me...

Would I need to make adjustments to the headstock to put geared tuners on instead of the guitar style tuners it has?

LittleGoomba - Posted - 10/23/2009:  18:46:21

You can see in the photo that I don't have guitar type tuners any more, nor do I have that huge 5th string tuner.

Changing over to geared tuners did require using a drill press. the holes already in place are a little too narrow for the sleeve that keeps your tuning post from rotating against wood.
The REAL tough part is finding a way to cut a cone shape into the 5th string tuner location. You can get a special drill bit, or do what I did. Use a small diameter drill deep, a slightly larger drill not so deep, etc. And GO SLOW.
You'll still have the nail holes from the guitar tuners in the back after all that work. They don't get hidden by the gear box in the new tuners.
The only advantage you'll have by putting new tuners is that you may not have to hunt for the real note when tuning. That is, unless your current tuners are shot. Does the 5th string tuner slip? If not, I'd leave it.
Probably a better repair investment would be to see if the metal ring around the pot is deformed at the neck. If the banjo was strung under tension, then decades of this may have bent the ring. Rather than try to straighten it, just add layers of duct tape between the pot and neck until you see the action you desire. Only at the upper (drum) part, not the whole interface. Don't worry about reducing intonation, because the banjo will never have it in the first place. I had to put a few layers of cereal box cardboard and maybe 10 layers of duct tape in there to get the action right. This is an easy, free, and reversible repair job, so if you mess up, you can always take a step back and try again. Not so when you take wood out of the peghead.

"Friends don't let friends eat paste."

Edited by - LittleGoomba on 10/23/2009 18:51:54