westsideryan - Posted - 06/13/2014:  18:16:55

I was removing the head on my OME banjo for the first time.  It was really stuck on the rim.  I was working around the rim pulling up a little bit at a time.  When it finally let go, I took two chunks of ebony out of the scoop area of the fingerboard.  I am looking for input on the best way to repair this.  I do happen to have an unopened bottle of the green Titebond wood glue somewhere.  Would this be a good glue to use?  Should I just glue down the bigger chunk?  Maybe I could sand down the smaller divot as I can't locate the chunk that came out (maybe it's dust?)?  Should I just bring it into a shop?  Any input would be great.  I am kinda ticked at myself for letting this happen!  I had called Tanya at OME and asked if I should remove the neck to change heads because it looked like such a tight fit and she told me no, but now I am wishing I had.  I was really hoping on getting my new John Balch head installed tonight but I guess that will have to wait.

Thanks for the help,

-Ryan

Edited by - westsideryan on 06/13/2014 18:31:54

the-fish - Posted - 06/13/2014:  18:29:55

Yeeesh that sucks. Did you buy it new?

Zachary Hoyt - Posted - 06/13/2014:  18:36:40

I would use a high quality CA super glue like the one from Stewart MacDonald for a repair like that.  For the missing piece I guess you will just have to live with it if you can't find where it flew, or you could try mixing up some ebony dust and glue but it will never match all that well anyway in my experience.  It would be better to remove the neck from the pot before removing the head.

Zach

Old Hickory - Posted - 06/13/2014:  18:47:10

I would think regular carpenter's wood glue would do.  Then use  masking tape as a clamp.  Tape it down good and tight.  Then leave it alone overnight or even 24 hours.

Stew-Mac sells black super glue that might fill the smaller divot where the piece is missing. But I think that's going to dry glossy and really show. 

pawoodwkr - Posted - 06/13/2014:  18:48:45

It looks like you still have the chip piece, westside, so what I would do is put down a bit of wax paper so as not to ruin any tabletop. Take a tube of clear cyanoacrilate glue (super glue) and dispense a drop on a toothpick, and "paint" a small amount at the fretboard area and, with a pair of tweezers position the chip as best you can. Press a piece of painter's tape over the repair and leave it for an hour, no less.

westsideryan - Posted - 06/13/2014:  19:01:59

quote:

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Originally posted by the-fish

Yeeesh that sucks. Did you buy it new?

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Unfortunately, I pretty sure that what I did is not covered under warranty.  Plus, I think that the shipping costs to ship it to ome and back would be more than having it repaired locally.

beegee - Posted - 06/13/2014:  19:04:01

Superglue the remaining piece back in, clean up with a razor-bade and maybe some micromesh. The missing piece, layer on some Stew-Mac black medium superglue, profile with a razor-blade after it hardens.

westsideryan - Posted - 06/13/2014:  19:14:11

quote:

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Originally posted by beegee

Superglue the remaining piece back in, clean up with a razor-bade and maybe some micromesh. The missing piece, layer on some Stew-Mac black medium superglue, profile with a razor-blade after it hardens.

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So the black super glue should make the fracture line a little less noticeable (I'll include a photo with the chip in place)?  What grit micromesh would you recommend?  The smaller divot isn't all that bad and it is pretty shallow.  I don't know how I would build that area back up, but maybe I could hit that with the micromesh or 0000 steel wool to smooth it out so that it is less noticeable?

It's bad enough that I beat up my banjo, but I have all of next week off and all I wanted to do was relax and play the banjo!  Oh well.

G Edward Porgie - Posted - 06/13/2014:  19:26:45

I'll go along with beegee on this. The Stew-Mac black superglue works great for small fills. The razor blade can be used to level things off, then like a scraper for more smoothing. If done properly, and very carefully, no one will ever know except you.

I'm surprised that an Ome staff member would tell you not to bother with removing the neck. Chipping a fingerboard is always a risk when it's close to the head, so I always get it out of the way first. Tanya should have known better. I look at the situation as being their fault, although I doubt that they would.

westsideryan - Posted - 06/13/2014:  19:31:13

quote:

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Originally posted by Zachary Hoyt

I would use a high quality CA super glue like the one from Stewart MacDonald for a repair like that.  For the missing piece I guess you will just have to live with it if you can't find where it flew, or you could try mixing up some ebony dust and glue but it will never match all that well anyway in my experience.  It would be better to remove the neck from the pot before removing the head.

Zach

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Yup, I really should have taken the neck off.  I had called and talked to Tanya at ome about how to deal with the dowel stick and remove the neck.  She asked why I would have to remove the neck and told her that I was replacing the head.  She then told me that there was no need to remove the neck to change a head.  Please note that I am not blaming Tanya for this.  I should noticed that it wasn't going to make through.  I did just try putting the tension hoop back on and it is a tight fit without having the head on there.  So, lesson learned.  From now on when changing a head the neck will come off.  I will be figuring out how to take it off in just moment!

westsideryan - Posted - 06/13/2014:  19:52:44

Would there be anyway to make a corner dam so that I could fill the small divot with the Stew Mac black super glue and ebony dust without it dripping down the neck?

westsideryan - Posted - 06/13/2014:  22:09:29

Would a certain type of masking tape work as a dam?

westsideryan - Posted - 06/14/2014:  00:20:55

Well, now that I took the neck off (which no joke took all of one minute), I don't understand why you wouldn't want to take it off.  In fact, even if you could swap heads with the neck on, I would still take it off because it made putting the head on a heck of a lot easier.

Old Hickory - Posted - 06/14/2014:  07:47:04

You would build the divot up just by painting on a little black super glue at a time. Drop a little on, let it dry. Drop a little more on, let it dry. Keep going until the divot is filled and the superglue extends out of the divot area.  Then scrape and sand as advised above.

Edited by - Old Hickory on 06/14/2014 07:47:23

westsideryan - Posted - 06/14/2014:  18:52:29

Thanks everyone for the help and suggestions.  I really do appreciate it!

westsideryan - Posted - 06/16/2014:  18:12:44

I ended up just using some thin Zap CA glue, some ebony dust that I procured from a guitar end pin, a sanding block, and a nail file.  I think that it turned out pretty good!  It's too bad I can't cancel my order with Stew Mac.  Oh well!  I'll post some pictures a little later.  Thanks for the help!

westsideryan - Posted - 06/16/2014:  18:41:30

tomberghan - Posted - 06/17/2014:  02:39:04

Fantastic Job!  Excellent - can't see any scars at all!

jbalch - Posted - 06/17/2014:  05:42:00

Excellent work.

kona - Posted - 06/17/2014:  05:48:28

Great job. That's a fine looking banjo, especially like the details of the scoop area.

Dave1climber - Posted - 06/17/2014:  06:48:16

Now that you have done that repair very nicely, the next thing to do is build your own banjo. 

jmoathout - Posted - 06/17/2014:  07:57:49

Good job. I have John Balch goat or calfskin heads on 4 banjos. I think you will be pleased. Go slow and don't over tighten after installation.

westsideryan - Posted - 06/17/2014:  09:18:51

quote:

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Originally posted by jmoathout

Good job. I have John Balch goat or calfskin heads on 4 banjos. I think you will be pleased. Go slow and don't over tighten after installation.

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I love the sound and the look of the head!  Over tightening is one thing that I am slightly worried about.  I made myself a Steve Davis Tension Gauge and I am still able to slide a quarter under it on either side of the bridge.  I also broke out my Drumdial just to get an idea of where I was at and came up with readings of 88-89.5 so I am thinking that I am within the limits.

RV6 - Posted - 06/17/2014:  10:21:12

Great  job on the repair!

On my two 11" banjos with goatskin heads and, using the Davis 10" ruler method, the heads sound good between two dimes and a quarter.

Bob

westsideryan - Posted - 06/17/2014:  10:38:01

quote:

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Originally posted by RV6

Great  job on the repair!

On my two 11" banjos with goatskin heads and, using the Davis 10" ruler method, the heads sound good between two dimes and a quarter.

Bob

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Thanks for the info! Do you slide the coins right in front of the bridge? I can get a quarter through but not quite a quarter and a dime.

RV6 - Posted - 06/17/2014:  12:25:20

quote:

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Originally posted by westsideryan

quote:

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Originally posted by RV6

Great  job on the repair!

On my two 11" banjos with goatskin heads and, using the Davis 10" ruler method, the heads sound good between two dimes and a quarter.

Bob

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Thanks for the info! Do you slide the coins right in front of the bridge? I can get a quarter through but not quite a quarter and a dime.

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I measure right at the treble end of the bridge.  Sounds like you might be dialed in pretty well.  How does it sound?       -   Bob

Old Hickory - Posted - 06/17/2014:  12:43:25

Great job!

And really smart thinking on getting ebony dust from a guitar end pin. 

Now, what kind of convenient and inexpensive object can be sacrificed for rosewood dust?

westsideryan - Posted - 06/17/2014:  14:02:22

quote:

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Originally posted by RV6

 

I measure right at the treble end of the bridge.  Sounds like you might be dialed in pretty well.  How does it sound?       -   Bob

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It sounds great!  

I just realized the the foot of my banjo bridge is the same thickness as a quarter!  

westsideryan - Posted - 06/17/2014:  14:04:38

quote:

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Originally posted by Old Hickory

Great job!

And really smart thinking on getting ebony dust from a guitar end pin. 

Now, what kind of convenient and inexpensive object can be sacrificed for rosewood dust?

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I ran a across a rosewood pen blank that someone had given me but besides that I couldn't come up with anything else.  

rubicon - Posted - 06/17/2014:  14:23:48

nice job on the repair

westsideryan - Posted - 06/17/2014:  15:45:05

Thanks!

jmoathout - Posted - 06/17/2014:  16:09:12

Steve Davis tells me his gauge is for Remo and Five Star heads.  His gauge on my 11" hide heads "rocked" quite a bit, indicating too loose a head - this is when it sounded pretty good to me.  He indicated he might set up a goat skin banjo and test a bit.  I find that with a 10 3/16" straight edge, it sounds good to me when a quarter fits snuggly just forward of the bridge.  The 10 3/16" was not planned - it's just the length of a side of a drafting triangle whose point had broken off.  Steve might like to hear of your experience with his gauge on a hide head.