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Hunting
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No maker's marks, probably
built by Buckbee. Very good mechanical shape, scuffing and wear typical
for a vintage banjo. Slight rutting @ 2nd string @ 1st & 2nd fret.....
just barely visible and does not affect playability.
Scale length = 26". Dowel was
loose, wouldn't hold tune, so I re-glued the dowel & corrected the action.
I've got it set up with fairly high action (about 1/4" at the octave)
right now because I like how this banjo plays with high action. The bridge
is 7/8", so the action can readily be lowered by using a shorter bridge.
Nylgut Minstrel strings, Yellowstone banjo head. Violin-type pegs. I
replaced all 5 pegs w/ new rosewood pegs. The 5th string peg hole is
slightly enlarged at the surface but I didn't think that it needed to be
corrected..... peg operates & looks fine.
Had no dowel yoke hardware but was drilled for a screw to pass through the
pot into the heel. I installed a snug-fit, slot-head brass screw.
Interesting brass plate at the bottom of the fingerboard. Also some brass
cladding on both sides of the heel area.
All fingerboard MOP dots
have high crowns & stuck up above the fingerboard. I debated what to do
about these, since I thought they may not be original. I decvidede that
they are old, if not original, so I removed them, made the recesses deeper
and re-installed. One dot was missing, so I made a replacement.
FLAWS:
Fingerboard had two, very ugly, amateurish-looking MOP diamonds in the fingerboard between frets 9 - 11. I removed them, replaced them with walnut stained to match the fingerboard.
Normal scuffing due to age. Overall the finish is in good condition.
ON THE PLUS SIDE:
Very nice tone, very good playability. The brass ornamentation is a bit unusual. I like the simple, "paddle" pegheads.
