Why not do it yourself. All you need to do is to get some very fine sandpaper and strip the finish off the back of the neck. Then apply 4 or 5 thin coats of either Ozmo hard wax oil or tru-oil. Lightly rub with a 0000 steel wool after each coat.

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Originally posted by martyjoe

Why not do it yourself. All you need to do is to get some very fine sandpaper and strip the finish off the back of the neck back to bare wood. Then apply 4 or 5 thin coats of either Ozmo hard wax oil or tru-oil. Lightly rub with a 0000 steel wool after each coat.

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John Boulding.

Yep John Boulding is your man for the job

It's a pretty simple job. Fine sandpaper and some sort of satin oil. I'm personally a fan of tru-oil. Not too much, just enough to protect the neck but no so much that you get the neck glossy again. And never sand so much that it impacts on the natural shape and contours of the neck.

When I made the neck on my main banjo into a speed neck, initially I was disappointed that there was so little change in how I played, and I thought I had wasted a lot of time and effort on this endeavor. But over the next year or two I found myself doing much better at moving up the neck quickly, and in general being more comfortable working above the 12th fret. At this point I'm glad I did it, but at first I was less enthusiastic. So, don't expect dramatic change in your playing. Over time you'll come to appreciate the benefits of a speed neck.

I concur, John Boulding has done 2 speed necks for me, and I like his work very much because the transition blend from finish to none finish area is very professional. IMHO, thats the trickiest part. Anyone can sand down their neck and apply stain, wax, etc. but it can be tricky to have the color match. He does an awesome job and is very reasonable.
I purchased a section of large PVC pipe, and after removing just the 4 tuners, ( the 5th can stay and still fit in the pipe), I padded it with foam rubber & put it in the pipe. Its a very stable & safe way to ship a neck.

I just don't have the confidence to take such drastic action with an instrument I value highly. I'd far sooner let a trusted professional do the work. For most of my 55+ playing years, my banjos have had conventional, finished necks but my primary banjo for the past 10 years has been an Osborne Chief and that came with a 'speed neck'. I live in the UK where we rarely experience extreme heat and humidity, so I guess the benefits of a 'speed neck' may be rather less than in the USA. However, the neck has been a revelation! It feels wonderful, almost no friction when moving quickly up and down the fingerboard and the neck has a silky feel. I still prefer to see a finished neck from an aesthetic standpoint, but the practical benefits of a 'speed neck' have certainly won me over.  I'd highly recommend it from a player's standpoint.
However, I'd offer one word of caution. 'Speed necking' a valuable, collectible instrument may devalue it significantly in a resale market. Not everyone is a convert, and many would prefer that a good banjo should remain as it was built by its maker.

Thanks for all the replies. I will check John out!