Looking for an original banjo built by Jenes Cottrell as a honest price. Please contact me at [email protected] if you have one, or know of someone that has a banjo.
Starting to Take ShapeOver the past couple of days, I was able to make some decent progress on the the neck. On Tuesday, I finished the inlay, polished, and fretted the fingerboard. On Tuesday I glued the fingerboard on the the neck. Wednesday was a pretty busy day, so the only thing I could get done was Glue the veneer to the peg head. This evening, i was able to rough shape the peg head. All that is left to shape the peg head is to take care of the curves on the top. I'll finish that tomorrow, and begin shaping the banjo neck. On Saturday and Sunday, I hope to shape and sand the neck, inlay the peg head, and construct the armrest + brackets.
Earlier this year I was contacted by my friend Dave O'Dell to do banjo building demonstrations at the West Virginia State Folk Festival. Dave is the president of the Folk Festival (located in Glenville, WV) and is one of the best banjo players out there. That discussion eventually led me building a banjo for the festival to raffle off each year. This banjo will be inspired by the banjos of the great Jenes Cottrell. Each year, I will build my own interpretation of a different Cottrell torque converter banjo. The banjo to be used this year, was built by Jenes in 1971 and was donated to Glenville State College. The purpose of this raffle is to raise money for the West Virginia State Folk Festival. The Folk Festival will be selling raffle tickets as soon as I finish the banjo and will be sold up until the drawing at the Saturday Night Concert as the West Virginia State Folk Festival, on June 22, 2014. Raffle tickets will be available from the finish date, both online and in person. I will post a link once it is up. I would also like to note that the banjo I am building will be inspired by the banjo built by Jenes. I will be replicating many of his design elements. However, true to the folk tradition, I will be adding my own ideas and influences to the banjo. I will be posting to this blog throughout the build. This banjo is notably different from many of the Cottrell banjos. Most notably, the neck of this banjo is thinner than most of his other necks, especially closer to the peg head. The inlay, from the 7th fret and up the neck, is considerably larger than the typical Cottrell neck. Also of note, the placement of the inlay on the 9th, 11th, 13th, 15th, 18th, and 21st fret. This happened on a few of his necks, which is closer to guitar fret markers. instead of banjo. The peg head, is one that I haven't seen before and the bridge is made of walnut. Typical pieces to a Cottrell banjo:
-Solid black walnut neck, this include the fingerboard and dowel stick. -Converter or Pressure Cooker Rim -Celluloid or Bakelite inlay from knitting needles, old shop lights, or refrigerator crisper trays -Postage address label on the back of peghead -"Hawk Bill" heel -Name and finish date on on the dowel stick -Fabulon glossy finish -Aluminum tension hoop from street signs -curve to a v-shape neck profile. -guitar style tuners Extras if a customer was willing to pay more: -More shoes/hooks -Aluminum t-bar bridge -Custom Aluminum tailpiece made form a 2 quart sauce pan. -Metal tubing between the bridge and taipliece -side marker inlay -Arm rest The Banjo I'm building will include: -Laminated black walnut neck with wenge -Black walnut veneer on the peghead -Knitting needle bakelite inlay -Bakelite heel cap -Reproduced tailpiece -Reproduced walnut bridge -Glossy fabulon finish -24 banjo hooks -Arm rest -U shaped neck profile -Converter rim -"Hawk Bill" heel -Planetary Tuners -Name and finish date on on the dowel stick -Custom Aluminum tailpiece made form a 2 quart sauce pan. |
AuthorI build banjos inspired by the West Virginia musician and craftsman, Jenes Cottrell Archives
September 2019
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