JoePasko - Posted - 01/13/2015:  07:50:12

I inherited my father's 1933 Bacon Sultana Silver Bell tenor, when he

passed away in May 2013. My grandfather bought it for him,

second-hand, in 1952, from my Dad's banjo teacher

Stephen St. John of Schenectady NY. My dad was 13 at the time

and had been learning on a rental model since he was 9.

My Hangout profile photo is of me playing it at my father's funeral.  

He played it all my life, and it is truly like a member of the family.

I grew up up in the 60's with The Beatles, and The Monkees,

and The Mamas & The Papas, etc., on the radio.   But live and in-person in my living

room was 'Five Foot Two Eyes Of Blue', 'Old Shanty Town', 'Jada', and all those

tin pan alley favorites. It was all good music to my young ears !

 

The banjo is in overall great condition and doesn't need any restoration, per se ... but I felt it could use a

good wash-behind-the-ears.  Now with some other music projects out of the way, this one's next

on the list.

Re: the ongoing debate over "patina" vs. "grunge" -- this is definitely a case of the latter.  I intend to retain patina and eliminate grunge.

It's awfully filthy .. I can see a ring of deeply compressed dirt between the head and the hoop.  I am going to

take it all apart, clean every piece, and put it back together.

First thing I did this morning, was remove the resonator assembly and then unscrew the flange from the

back.   Take a look inside !!   Dirt, dust and dead bugs !

Up until now, I never considered a vacuum cleaner as an essential banjo maintenance tool !

Do you know what's lurking inside your banjo ??

 

Edited by - JoePasko on 01/13/2015 08:08:48

CEParagon124 - Posted - 01/13/2015:  08:20:24

Great that you have it and can play it.

I'm curious as to whether the banjo was kept in a case or standing against the wall in a corner.

Charlie Noyes

JoePasko - Posted - 01/13/2015:  08:36:14

At home, he always kept it in hardshell case under the bed.   But he was an avid hunter and fisherman, and had some hunting and fishing buddies who played guitar.  In the evening, after a day on the lake or in the woods, they would play music around the fire, or in the hunting camp. Plus taking it to outdoor music festivals, where it could be extremely dusty, or extremely muddy .. or even both in the course of the same weekend ....it's had a lot of exposure to mother nature.

Edited by - JoePasko on 01/13/2015 08:36:40

jbalch - Posted - 01/13/2015:  08:42:42

I've seen lots of dirt & grime hiding in old banjos.  But you have an extreme example.  It is high time to clean that banjo up!

BTW - with the history of your dad's banjo you might enjoy seeing one that I purchased from the family of the original owner in the Albany NY area.  Apparently, the lady who had this one was a student of Mr. St. John also.  This was a fantastic 1934 B&D Special #2.  I have since sold it to another BHO member. But you can see photos on my homepage and attached below:

more photos here: banjohangout.org/myhangout/pho...umid=2857

Edited by - jbalch on 01/13/2015 08:43:50

pgroff - Posted - 01/13/2015:  08:47:24

Hi Joe,

Just wanted to say that I also grew up in the 1960s in a house where my Dad played tenor banjo at home!  That was also in central NY state.

What a rich musical life your banjo has had, and what a great family heirloom.

Best of all that you are playing it and caring for it.

All the best,

Paul Groff

Dan Drabek - Posted - 01/13/2015:  08:54:25

I once had a guitar project I put on hold for a couple of years to build a boat. When I went back to it, I discovered that a mouse had built a nest inside. Looked even worse than your resonator. :->

DD

Texican65 - Posted - 01/13/2015:  09:04:30

Gross! I can't believe all the build up in there. Good man for giving that banjo the time to shine again...and with such a special attachment to it, it'd be a shame to let it alone for another few decades...all too often that seems to be the case. Are u going to polish any of the metal? I'm restoring an old Morrison that's very corroded and filthy, I've got a huge job ahead, but found a nice polish that's very non abrasive.

Dow

JoePasko - Posted - 01/13/2015:  09:48:12

quote:

---

Originally posted by Texican65

Gross! I can't believe all the build up in there. Good man for giving that banjo the time to shine again...and with such a special attachment to it, it'd be a shame to let it alone for another few decades...all too often that seems to be the case. Are u going to polish any of the metal? I'm restoring an old Morrison that's very corroded and filthy, I've got a huge job ahead, but found a nice polish that's very non abrasive.



Dow

---

My last project was having a metal-clad Stewart rim professionally restored, and turning it into the 3-string banjo that I have been blabbing about all over the Hangout :

banjohangout.org/topic/295815

The extant hardware on that thing was corroded and rusted beyond use, so I went with all new parts.  I was making something new out of something old, anyway, so it didn't really matter.

Fortunately, the metal parts on my Dad's banjo are all in good shape.  But I do intend to remove each single piece (hoop, brackets, shoes), clean them all with a mild vinegar & water solution, and then hit each piece up with Mothers® brand chrome polish & a microfiber cloth.   I have had good results with this product on all sorts of string & percussion instrument cleanups.

Good luck with your Morrison restore.   Is that a German silver wrap ?  I know a guy who could do wonders with it : )

JoePasko - Posted - 01/13/2015:  10:20:05

quote:

---

Originally posted by pgroff

Hi Joe,

 Just wanted to say that I also grew up in the 1960s in a house where my Dad played tenor banjo at home!  That was also in central NY state.

 Paul Groff

---

Remember when Tiny Tim had that fluke hit with Tiptoe Through The

Tulips, in 1968 ?   I bet I was the only kid on the block who already knew that song !

Funny thing is, all those tunes my father sang and played were

from well before his time, as well.   But that was the repertoire of

the tenor banjo, I guess.  They were probably in the song folios

that he learned from, as a kid.

All these years later, I can still rattle the names of dozens of

those songs right off the top of my head (and probably still remember

a lot of the lyrics too).  Sweet Georgia Brown, When Irish Eyes Are Smiling,

Waiting On The Robert E Lee, Tavern In The Town, East Side

West Side All Around The Town, Four Leaf Clover, Darktown Strutters Ball,

Casey Would Waltz With The Strawberry Blond And The Band Played On...

Not the music of most youths born in '61, but it sure was the music of my youth.

Edited by - JoePasko on 01/13/2015 10:21:55

FRAILER57 - Posted - 01/13/2015:  10:30:03

Wow that's an impressive amount of what my Dad use to call "Moof Mawf ". LOL. I once took a friend's dobro apart, and found a mummified horned toad inside. I fell off my stool, laughing so hard. He said his uncle used to travel 'round and busked in the old days. He inherited it when his uncle passed. After cleaning it up, and not wanting to do an injustice to this fine instrument, I reinstalled said horned toad with a drop of hot glue, so it wouldn't break up any more. when Jerry came by to get it, Ishowed him his Amigo. He almost wet his pants laughing. And you know that 'bro sounded really good. From then on,Jerry called it Amigo .

Enjoy your latest project, and Play away Joe!

Kevin

Edited by - FRAILER57 on 01/13/2015 10:33:46