Noah Cline - Posted - 09/25/2014:  17:29:12

Went and visited my grandparents in VA, and their neighbor (who I hadn't seen for many years; he doesn't have a whole lot, but has a heart in him as big as he is) had been mentioning a couple months ago to my grandparents about a really old banjo that he knew of that I believe belonged to his grandmother, and wanted to show it to me and let me fix it up, if he could find it. I completely thought that it would turn out to be a Buckbee or some other no name.

When we got there, he and his bother (who was in from MD) came up to visit us. He mentioned about finding it, and ran down to get it, brought it back, and I got a shock. Here he came carrying it in. I'd have never guessed it would have been a mountain banjo. His brother mentioned that there was two others known of (ironically the one's pot is octagonal-shaped). The banjo that he let me take to fix up may have been made (along with the other two) by his "Pap" Holman. He wasn't sure whether this one was made by him or not, and I haven't found any sort of names or marks on it (yet). 

Wish I could post pics of it, but I don't have my main computer (it's being worked on at the moment) to be able to do so.

Hopefully I can get some up of it here in the next week or so...  

Edited by - Noah Cline on 10/10/2014 18:06:01

vintagegeorge - Posted - 09/25/2014:  18:29:21

Did he give it to you or are you fixing it for him? Sounds amazing. I hope to see pics soon.

dfwest - Posted - 09/25/2014:  18:29:51

Noah,

Sounds very cool. I look forward to seeing the photos.

Dave

cbcarlisle - Posted - 09/25/2014:  19:15:27

Get as much information as you can: names, locations, dates, relatives, etc. You can never know too much about these oldies...

davidwigal - Posted - 09/25/2014:  19:30:31

Man I know that that old banjo is in the right hands. I still have that old Buckbee that you brought back to life, which you did a  really great job on Noah; and for some old tunes it sounds way better than my newer more expensive open-backs.

Can't wait to see some pictures; especially of the finished instrument 

You rock Noah!

Edited by - davidwigal on 09/25/2014 19:34:23

Noah Cline - Posted - 09/26/2014:  14:02:53

quote:

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Originally posted by vintagegeorge

Did he give it to you or are you fixing it for him? Sounds amazing. I hope to see pics soon.

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He gave it to me to fix it up for him (he just wanted to see it playable). Not sure at the moment, but he may give it to me since his kids have nothing to do with him, and I think he'd rather see me have it rather than his kids. 

Noah Cline - Posted - 09/26/2014:  14:07:08

The one thing that's bugging me is that I wanted to keep the original head on it, but it's almost separated (the head's simply tacked on the top ring over the hole) on one side, but it's still somewhat tight. I really wanted to keep everything original with it, but I'm thinking it may be better to go ahead (since I he and I want it playable) and put a new head on it, and try to age it to "match" with the rest of the banjo.

Noah Cline - Posted - 09/26/2014:  16:12:38

Pictures!!! (got my webcam software to work on my laptop)

Old Mountain banjo (VA)

Noah Cline - Posted - 09/26/2014:  16:26:06

From looking in the sound hole, it looks like the center ring is bent and countersunk in both rings (the center ring looks like oak). The top and back rings are about 3/4" thick, but are "domed" on the inside. I think the neck's pine. Not sure about the top and back rings.  Has one of the tuning pegs (when I first seen this banjo, there were two old guitar strings on it, with one being tied to that tuning peg, but it was inserted from the front of the peghead. The nut looks like plastic (?); it looks transparent. Four screws in a cross-shape go through the top ring into the back ring, running beside the middle ring on the inside. The head is tacked on, covering up those screws. (The picture of the light coming in the sound hole was to show the hole in the top ring). Two screws go through the top tab into the neck; the back tab has one. Simple aluminum tailpiece.  

Edited by - Noah Cline on 09/26/2014 16:27:35

vintagegeorge - Posted - 09/26/2014:  18:52:07

That thing is killer! I hope he lets u keep it..

davidwigal - Posted - 09/26/2014:  19:32:04

Wow that is cool; do you think that a coffee-stained calf-skin head might resemble the original head?

jun3machina - Posted - 09/26/2014:  19:51:38

Woah!! Neat! How old do you think it may be? Fascinating specimen

cbcarlisle - Posted - 09/26/2014:  21:53:58

If it were mine I would clean it up (with oil soap), make similar pegs for it, a nut and bridge, and string it up with light nylon strings. If the head is, indeed, reasonably tight it should sound OK. [I might add another, subtle, nail or two to stabilize the split(s).] But once you replace the head it will lose the Effect of the original. There is no "authenticity" or "patina" or "original state" implied and, certainly, it would not harm the "value" but, as long as the head works, why replace it unless and until you Have to. (And you probably will have to, eventually.) All in all, I would be content to leave it as a fragile memento of the past, in a modestly playable state.

I'm not a big fan of these (fairly common) homemade metal tailpieces but I'd probably grit my teeth and keep it, too.

Once the head completely fails - if it does - you'll have decisions to make about the tacks, etc., but why borrow trouble.

But it ain't mine...

[I have seen other banjers like this, with the top and bottom rings rounded off, and a few with the center ring bent from a splint but they seem to belong to a different tradition from the Hicks-Proffitt-Glenn style.]

mutantmoose - Posted - 09/27/2014:  07:22:43

I love the neck to headstock transition on the back of the neck. Details like that are just fantastic. Have fun!

bd - Posted - 09/27/2014:  11:31:30

Wow! That's a cool old banjo. I'd just replace the head. They aren't meant to last forever anyhow. & I'd ditch the tailpiece as well or use the same piece of metal and reshape it.

Noah Cline - Posted - 09/27/2014:  13:33:36

Thinking about it, I don't think I'm going to replace the head (I was looking at it today, and the head tightened up on it). 

I don't think the split's going to affect it too much, and I feel like it would look out of place to replace it with a new one, even if I did try to age it.

As far as the tailpiece goes, I'm going to leave it, but I am going to do something about the holes in it; don't want the Nylguts to be cut.

Noah Cline - Posted - 09/27/2014:  13:35:12

quote:

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Originally posted by vintagegeorge

That thing is killer! I hope he lets u keep it..

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I hope he does, too. Really interested in seeing the other two, if they are still in existence. 

Wish this thing could talk... 

Noah Cline - Posted - 09/27/2014:  13:41:59

quote:

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Originally posted by jun3machina

Woah!! Neat! How old do you think it may be? Fascinating specimen

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Not sure about age; guessing maybe more than 50 years old.

Noah Cline - Posted - 10/10/2014:  17:54:18

Completed restoring it last week. 

I was really surprised at the sound and tone of it.

VIDEO: Old Mountain Banjo -- Josie-O/Cumberland Gap (click to view)

Noah Cline - Posted - 10/10/2014:  17:57:19

The octagon banjo that I mentioned earlier in the thread does exist; it was found the other day along with a neck. 

Won't get to look at them till Thanksgiving...

davidwigal - Posted - 10/10/2014:  19:16:08

quote:Totally awesome Noah! You be jammin' 

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Originally posted by Noah Cline

Completed restoring it last week. 

I was really surprised at the sound and tone of it.

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XXXris - Posted - 10/10/2014:  22:38:45

Wow, it really sounds great. You've got a treasure there. Super playing too, btw.

Edited by - XXXris on 10/10/2014 22:40:35

jun3machina - Posted - 10/11/2014:  09:26:55

Wow!!! I am amazed at the sound on that banjo! Beautiful playing BTW! Thank you so much for sharing...what a treasure