You know you've been around a while when you begin restoring an instrument you made in the 20th century. In 1999 I built a mountain banjo in the style of Frank Proffit, who lived two counties away in Watauga County, N.C. This banjo has a a six-inch, goatskin head and a stovepipe tone ring. In 1999 the head shrank into place perfectly taut after tacking the softened hide to the inside of the pot with a temporary spacer (a wooden disk flat on the bench with the head draped over to create the correct amount of slack), then inserting the rustic tone ring and screwing on the back. Eventually the head tore, and I'm replacing it. My question is: what should the dimensions of the disk be. In my memory the disk was 3/4" thick and 2-2.5" in diameter, but I'm not sure. Back in '99 I found the plans (with the disk dimensions) in a Dennis Waring book, but I can't seem to find that book or stovepipe-style plan. Any thoughts?
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