I'm getting ready to build an open back banjo, something I haven't done for quite a few years. Where is the best place to get parts? I noticed that Stew Mac no longer sells the open back pot on their website, so I'm thinking that they might be getting away from parts for open back banjos. Is there another source, or perhaps a better source? Thanks in advance!
Try Bob Smakula at Smakula fretted instruments in Elkins, WV. I'm sure he'd be happy to advise you. He sells banjos heads, tuners, bridges, tail pieces etc. I don't see necks on his website but they shouldn't be hard to find. I got an Enoch from him and he sells a lot of those. Open back banjos are his specialty and he's a really nice guy.
Balsam banjo has most things you would need.
I recently used a shell from https://nordicshells.com/. They make laminated drum shells but have added dimensions appropriate for open-back banjo rims. My build is one of the four that I used to explore the sound differences due to the wood part of the rim itself. My drum-shell construction was thin cherry. The other three were various versions of Goodtimes. I used the same neck and pot hardware on each. The sounds were different enough to be heard but really pretty subtle. Whether you care is up to you. The write-up with sound files is here: https://www.its.caltech.edu/~politzer/rims/rims.pdf. For played music (rather than single plucks and graphs), you've got to get to pages 24 & 25.
I'm actually quite fond of that thin cherry. I matched it with a solid mahogany neck and Joel Hooks' extra-thin Aquila strings. With standard Deering Goodtime armrest, tailpiece, and tuners, it only weighs 3 lbs 10 oz.
Gold Tone sells parts.
I should have mentioned that Deering sells all the open-back parts besides the rim: https://www.deeringbanjos.com/collections/banjo-parts. Today, they're 30% off.
Rickard sells nice parts
Used tenor banjos, particularly unbranded and lesser brands often sell for next to nothing at auctions. Well below the cost of parts that can be harvested from them.
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