Sullivan parts are top quality, as good as any other parts on the market. You can build a fine banjo around a Sullivan pot.
Is it cheating to build a banjo this way? No. Unless you have a dedicated workshop for building you may not have the proper tools for banjo making. Trying to make a banjo with basic tools is a trying and time consuming process. Also, it depends on your level of skill. There are lots of things I feel OK doing but, if I feel like I'm going over my head, I will not take a chance on ruining a good piece of wood.
Bottom line, you know your ability better than any of us. If you want to build a banjo with a ready made pot you won't be doing anything that the rest of us haven't done. Sullivan is as good a place to start as any.

Sullivan supplied Gibson with the majority of their banjo parts during Gibson's final years of production.
As far as I know, Eric Sullivan has maintained the quality of his wares ever since.

A lot of the results of your build will be as dependent upon your skills and tooling as upon the quality of the parts you use.

If you do buy from Sullivan, I strongly recommend that you have him fit the tone ring to the rim. That fit is essential to how well the instrument will sound, and Eric is an expert at it.

Thank you Culloden and rcc56. I’m leaning toward their pot assembly with the fitted rim. My tooling & woodworking skills are good, but I think I’ll do it a little easier this first time and do more from scratch the next.

Rock.

I think you’ve made a great choice, for what little that’s worth. I have two Sullivan banjos — a beat up Vintage 35 and a new Ceres model. They are two differently styled mahogany banjos, different rims and tone rings, but both sound excellent and will likely be with me for the long haul…. Can’t go wrong with their products in my experience.

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Originally posted by GeeBeeThreefinger

Is it cheating to assemble a banjo this way - lol.

Also, looking for other ways to cobble a pot together.

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Not cheating at all. I assembled two parts banjos this way. I did the finish on both, the binding and purfling on one, but actual woodworking lutherie on neither.  I also bought a parts banjo that included several 1970s Gibson parts plus several non-Gibson parts. Over the past 5 years, I have acquired Gibson parts from different eras (or Gibson-sourced parts in the case of hooks and nuts) to create a multi-era Gibson parts banjo. I sent a 99 RB-250 rim, 1960s Doehler flange and late model "Crowe" tone ring to Eric Sullivan to be fitted to each other.

Any way you can put a banjo together is fine. Who would you be cheating?

As to other ways to cobble a pot together: Buy a rim, tone ring, and flange that typically go together and send them to someone to make any adjustments for fit, including adjusting the fit of neck to pot if something more serious than DIY shimming is required.

If you have a wood shop and the skills to do all the required work, so much the better.

TimFoster Old Hickory gotta be honest, I’m very excited about the possibilities. Will definitely try the purfling/finishing next go ‘round Old Hickory.

Thank you for the replies. I’m hooked. Reel me in.

I'd recommend Sullivan to anyone wanting great parts. I've never been anything but very happy with all my dealings with Eric.

I have dealt with Sullivan from their beginning and yes put my own together--it ain't all peaches and cream--Using their parts to make a masterclone is what I would do =if I needed a new one--I would love to try a torrified block maple rim and neck--and jls ring--but finances don't fit--Their equipment--resources and knowledge --puts them in a great place for us lessers--They can do a better job on rim or heel cut in minutes than me in days--

yes you definitely-need some woodbutcher chops--it ain't paint by numbers--as long as it plays good --one can go with simple ornamentation--my route that is

I built my first banjo back in 1974 with !st Quality Banjo's parts. I always found Bill extremely easy to deal with and very helpful with advice. Since he passed, I have dealt with Jeff and have been very satisfied with his parts and services. I have retired my old Granada, and continue to play my Sullivan Festival DeLuxe with the Sullivan cryogenic tone ring.I bought it with a left-handed neck, and Jeff took it back in trade for a new replacement right-handed neck. That was "going the extra mile."

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Originally posted by GeeBeeThreefinger

I like that there is an option for different pot woods.

Also, looking for other ways to cobble a pot together. I’m into a mellower timbre than maple offers, and playing a melodic style. Been enjoying walnut & mahogany ‘jos.
 

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Most Masterstone-style banjos, be they maple, walnut or mahogany, all have a maple rim. There are exceptions, off course. The choice of mahogany, walnut or maple however refers mostly to the neck wood and the resonator veneer. (Just in case, you're not aware of this…)

I believe the multi-ply rims of the somewhat Mastertone-style 1970s Fender Artist and Concertone banjos showed walnut on the outside, matching their walnut necks and resonators. But that could well have been only the outer ply or two (allowing for the different O.D. of the rim skirt and the exposed band between flange and tone ring).

I know what Im going to say isnt popularbut its my experience. I wanted to put together a Sullivan banjo but gave up after not being able to get a return call or email after multiple attempts. I may try again in the future but not being able to easily contact a business makes me nervous.

In general for any business I cant get ahold of I worry: If i forgo contact and just order and provide my credit card, will I get what I wanted, nothing at all? If it arrives broken or not at all is the rma process going to be a huge time sink? Is the site secure?

At least with Sullivan I know it was a legit business but Im mainly worried about if something goes wrong.

I will still try them for serious work but yes they don't mind the phones nor the call back very good ==that has been posted several times--here--When they moved to the south I think time frames and hurricanes hit them full blast--but Eric and wife Marcia? carry on Bill's traditions hopefully they can get that fixed--

Thank you for all the input Tractor1, beegee Old Hickory, NotABanjoYoda. Very much appreciated.

Emiel i wasn’t aware of the maple rim. But I’m thinking of a mellower tone, so might try a black walnut rim to see what it does. I’m not looking, necessarily, to make an old-school Gibson. Thank you for the help.

"Emiel i wasn’t aware of the maple rim. But I’m thinking of a mellower tone, so might try a black walnut rim to see what it does. I’m not looking, necessarily, to make an old-school Gibson. Thank you for the help."

GeeBeeThreefinger that might be a good idea, I don't know. Maybe Ken LeVan can tell us something about this…

As far as trying a black walnut rim, just remember, banjo builders tend to be well supplied with woods that the market WANTS. They don't have black walnut wood laying around in the proper widths and thicknesses to make a rim, most likely.

For your first banjo build, you might want to stick with conventional "off the shelf" wood choices. You can get mellower tone with set up work, or as mentioned above, by choice of NECK WOOD. Most builders have the 3 main neck woods in stock. Maple (brightest), walnut (medium) and mahogany (warmer) the the leading neck woods.

Mellow can be achieved some--but how and which way would depend on your definition
mellow achieving topics
heads
bridges
hand positions
neck woods
tone ring types

it can come down to tone vs volume in the set-up also

these are my personal opinions I don't claim correctness

quote:

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Originally posted by Emiel

"Emiel i wasn’t aware of the maple rim. But I’m thinking of a mellower tone, so might try a black walnut rim to see what it does. I’m not looking, necessarily, to make an old-school Gibson. Thank you for the help."

GeeBeeThreefinger that might be a good idea, I don't know. Maybe Ken LeVan can tell us something about this…

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The two most important aspects of a banjo rim are the geometry (diameter / height) and the stiffness and density of the rim itself.  Large diameter and deeper rims favor lower notes, and smaller diameter and shallower rims favor higher notes.

The stiffer a rim is, the less it vibrates, keeping the energy in the head, producing more sound.  Rim vibration and flexing draws energy away from the head, lessening the sound production, making it “mellower”  for lack of a better term.

Different kinds of wood have different densities and stiffnesses.  In the long history of banjo-making, maple has been the wood overwhelmingly most used—it’s pretty stiff and not so heavy.

Here is a chart showing the relative stiffness and density of 6 common banjo woods—as you see maple is in the middle. All other things being equal, a banjo with a mahogany rim might sound more mellow than one with a maple or birch rim but you have to take this with several grains of salt, because the difference is really really subtle—the neck, head tension and bridge are all more important. A larger or smaller diameter would be even more important.  Species of wood is important according to its physical characteristics,and the variations within one species can be greater than between different species—every tree is different. A maple tree grown the mountains where I live would be WAY different than the same species grown in the bottomlands.

Here is a comparison of two identical banjos—only the wood is different, one walnut, one maple, and you can be the judge:

wonderful stuff Ken got me thinking --another item this non expert ran across when comparing woods with similar properties was maple had less mineral deposits --so that might ad to it's secrets==

Thanks for the heads-up The Old Timer. The reason an alternate wood occurred to me is only that Sullivan has black oak as a rim option. But looking at the incredible information Ken LeVan posted (thank you!) I might go for mahogany. The sound clip you posted, Ken, is ear-opening. The sounds are similar, but the walnut seems to be a little fuller in timbre. Closer than I would have thought, though.

I have a radiused walnut neck set aside. Will see what that does.

I recently had Eric build be a 1924 Snakehead, open back woodie. I chose to use an 11" red maple block rim with an added ring of factory floor maple. He put only a very slight bevel so the head would just clear. He built a beautiful tiger maple neck and did the Snakehead headstock beautifully. We used a tube only from a two piece flange. We can easily recut and add any type ring and a resonator if desired but I'd have to wear earplugs if this thing had a std ring!

If you are looking for a mellower tone, you might also consider a wood (grenadilla, etc.) tone ring instead of a bronze ring. There is a post currently discussing wood rings.

That’s a beauty Redbone!

Thank you for the tip Jbo1, I will certainly look into that.

I wound up with the whole walnut shebang and 20 hole ring. Will see how it sounds. I have a sweet stonebanjo fretless that is incredibly mellow. I’m looking to make this one a resonator with a bit more presence for jams n recording, but getting the fullness of tone as opposed to the upper registers of a nice maple.