How much wood do i need for a long neck banjo + dowel rod? - Discussion Forums

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ARCHIVED TOPIC: How much wood do i need for a long neck banjo + dowel rod?

Please note this is an archived topic, so it is locked and unable to be replied to. You may, however, start a new topic and refer to this topic with a link: http://www.banjohangout.org/archive/399050

Fungal Harmony - Posted - 08/25/2024: 20:20:14

Hi all, I'm sorry if this is an obvious question, but I decided to build a banjo, and would like a long neck. How much wood do I need for this? I saw an article saying 8 feet for a regular, so how much for a long neck? I plan on carving a scoop if that makes a difference. Thank you!

Bruce Berry Banjos - Posted - 08/25/2024: 21:25:21

I'm not meaning to be discouraging, but building a long neck from scratch might not be the best first-project.
There are a lot of subtle nuances in fabricating a neck, and the longer is going to be wee bit trickier.
I just checked, and Gold Tone has a pretty smokin' deal ($249) on a generic long neck that you can get a pot for, and it'll still be "your build".
Something to consider...
goldtonemusicgroup.com/goldton.../b1012-ln

mainejohn - Posted - 08/26/2024: 07:26:04

I built a long neck from scratch in 2009, and used a leftover maple board that I had saved from a previous 1975 neck project . If you "bookend" the board, it only needs to be 32" long. and at least 5" wide. I glued two "ears" to the peghead to accommodate the tuners for the second and third strings. My goal was a neck similar in dimension to Pete Seeger's iconic "lignum vitae" and because the birdseye maple board was about 35 years old, I skipped the truss rod, because the neck I had made from the same board in 1975 didn't have one and was still perfectly straight after 35 years, I figured the longneck would not warp., and so far, 15 years later, it's still perfectly straight. (I'm an old fan of 1920's Vega maple necks, one of which I have on my Regent, and after 101 years with steel strings, it's still perfectly straight). I mated the longneck to an orphan 10 15/16" TubaPhone which still had the original dowel stick, and I used that, but if you need to make your own dowel stick, there will be enough wood left over after cutting the rough shape of the neck with a band saw to make the dowel stick.

Edited by - mainejohn on 08/26/2024 07:29:34

On the coast of Maine...

davidppp - Posted - 08/26/2024: 09:25:02

I made a longneck banjo from scratch when I was 15/16. (That was some 60 years ago -- no BHO, no YouTube, no Stew-Mac, but music stores with fret wire, hooks& nuts, and tuners and access to the shop at my high school.) Some people (and manufacturers) piece the heal, tuning head, or just the ears. Mine was from four mahogany boards, side to side. By the way, many builders make the dowel stick out of the piece they cut out if the heel was part of the original piece of lumber. The (ODE-inspired) walnut/maple stripe down the middle left room for a steel bar down the middle. (I was unnecessarily paranoid about warping -- as many people remain to this day.) Bar down the middle was used in those days in Martin guitars. (I still have my O-18.)