Mando-banjo identification

[KanMando]

I just received this mando-banjo I bought on e-bay and I'm hoping someone can help me identify the builder. There are no manufacture's labels or stamps on it. It appears to be all original except for the bridge, which appears to be a banjo bridge crudely slotted for 8 strings, and the head, which is probably plastic.

There is a steel tone ring on the maple rim, and the rim has a maple cap. It's missing a piece of hardware (a pressure plate?) where the dowel comes through the rim. I'm not so sure the piece of hardware on the dowel is original. Right now it serves no function as far as tensioning the neck-body joint. There is a slight indention on the rim where the orignal pressure plate was.

I've done some research on-line, and this instrument bears more similarity to a Stromberg than anything else I've found, but its headstock shape is slightly different.

Anyway, I'm going to restore it to playing condition and annoy my wife even more than usual.

Bob

[KanMando]

Another photo:

[KanMando]

Another photo:

[KanMando]

Photo of headstock:

[KanMando]

The last one:

[MikeEdgerton]

Actually that looks like about 90% of the mandolin banjos I've ever seen. Oviously this was made for the trade. Unless Jim Garber of someone else can ID it from that inlay on the headstock (and I've seen that inlay on numerous intruments)you don't have a good chance of really finding the maker. Take a mirror and see if there is anything on the top of the dowel stick. On rare occasion there is information stamped there.

If it plays well (as well as any mandolin banjo can be expected to play) and it sounds good (again, as good as any mandolin banjo sounds) just enjoy it. It wasn't built by Gibson, that's about all I can say for sure.

[Jim Garber]

It wasn't built by Gibson, that's about all I can say for sure.

Ditto... it looks like it may have a tone ring which is also in its favor. There were tons of these no-names made in the teens/twenties.

[devilsbox]

I think you are missing two wooden wedges that go between the metal clamp and the rim. The metal piece on dowel stick was used on some of these, but there should be a couple of wood wedges to take up the space and hold the neck tight. Keeping the proper neck angle is the biggest problem with these. No, its not how they sound, its really the neck angle. I have some similar ones.

[8ch(pl)]

This one looks like it was probably made in the old Buckbee banjo plant in New York City. Rhettburg and Lange made a major percentage of the No-name trade banjos there in the early part of the 20th century.

The bridge may be original. Vega and Weymann M<andolin-banjos had a larger bridge than found on their tenor banjos of that era. I made a bridge about 4 or so inches long for my Vega mandolin banjo. This helps to mute out the "Rangy" sound that people seem to hate about these instruments.

Other things than can help is extra light strings, .009 to .032, like on abowlback, (I used 2 sets of tenor banjo strings)and stuffing an old wool sock under the head, wedging it between the skin and the dowel stick, at the bridge.

Best wishes and good luck. This seems to be a good quality Mandolin Banjo.

[8ch(pl)]

The post above the one that I just did is right on about neck angle. I elongated the hole (in the pot) for the tailpiece screw in the dowel stick so I could angle that end of the dowel stick up and increase the angle of the neck. I put a shim of wood between the end of the neck and the metal hold down ring on the pot.I used a rat tail file to elongate the hole

[KanMando]

I think you are missing two wooden wedges that go between the metal clamp and the rim. The metal piece on dowel stick was used on some of these, but there should be a couple of wood wedges to take up the space and hold the neck tight. Keeping the proper neck angle is the biggest problem with these. No, its not how they sound, its really the neck angle. I have some similar ones.

Yep - I found the two wedges, which appear to be rosewood or walnut, loose in the case. I put them into place between the clamp on the dowel and the rim. The nut is in pretty bad shape, and the bridge, which I now agree, is probably original, appears to be a poorly adapted five-string bridge. I'm having Mike at Mass St. put a new nut and bridge on it.

I took it completely apart last week, and it does have a Vega "Little Wonder" tone ring. It appears to be a pretty well-made instrument - worth restoring.

Bob