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twang.htm

First off, I should say again that this is an incomplete instrument (no vellum or strings, only one tuning peg and there's one tensioner nut/hook missing ~ but they're the only missing components apart from there being no case) ~ that being said, it's beautifully made, fretless, in virtually undamaged condition and has received practically no playing at all (I spent many years as a guitar maker and am able to say that the ebony fingerboard is pretty much as new and still highly polished smooth). Pegs and tensioners are two a penny and if somebody wanted it all original, then tough ~ but if I was still in business, which I'm not (retired) I'd replicate the missing parts easily in a short time ~ but do people actually want a 100+ year-old 12" headstock vellum and 5 strings? Pass...
 
Here are some pix I took today and considered cool and relevant:
       
Regarding it's potential playability, the neck is very strong and has multiple laminations:
Ebony~3.5mm / Maple~1mm / Rosewood(?)~3.5mm (which layer contains the side position dots, which are 3.5mm mother-of-pearl) and then another darker Rosewood~1mm (generic?) before the body of the neck material begins - which I can't identufy but is some form of reddish wood with a ruler-straight grain pattern. I would suggest that there is some form of reinforcement internally as (and I am very used to applying hand-simulated string tension) it does not give even 1mm relief at brutal string guage tension. My eye tells me that there may have been built in "a few thou." of negative relief - a trick I used to employ when making the many maple and carbon fiber reinforced "no-trussrod" necks that I did. Fingerboard inlays are mother-of-pearl again. Approx. 14" octave scale ("the dusty end!"). Something tells me whoever built this wanted it to play LOUD!!! 
Although I don't know much about banjo construction (not my thing) I can tell you that the "body" (?) is fine bird's eye maple ply bound over with bright nickel plated something-or-other alloy that in combination is ferro-magnetic - so probably steel (?) ~ There's no corrosion so I can't tell. It's a 12" hoop size. There are 30 tensioners (one to be found). 
I took the whole thing apart 15 years ago and cleaned every individual part of the vellum - tensioning mechanism, body shell and ring; it had obviously not been played even then for many years - probably an "attic" job - it was filthy but came back to a tasteful lustre.
 
Right, then ~ pay dirt time. "You tell me" is the bottom line. As I said, I worked in the business for many years and know all about 100% mark-up so am unshockable and by now bomb-proof, believe me ~ but before you go getting all excited at the prospect of getting a great deal (which you will if you go for it) you need to know the obstacles...
If you want to make an offer and are prepared to employ your own shipping agent and sort out the relevant "mechanicals", I'd be prepared to accept a deposit on trust against the balance on receipt and approval (surprised, huh?).
 
 ~ on the understanding of course that I find you and break your legs if you run...
 
Really seriously for a moment, I'll take nearly anything for it to get it out of the way ~ I live in a small place with quite enough equipment and guitars. A couple of hundred dollars to me and it's yours ~ I took it in part payment for a guitar repair job and did that much worth's work on just the clean-up job. That's worth payment up front, I'd say ~ and I do have a reasonable idea what you'd get for it to a collector after setting it up with skin and strings etc.
 
Cheers for now. Good luck.
 
steve acworth 

 must fly...