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Working on a Mando ? Harp built around WW2 . Was stored in attic by a chimney. Basically hyde glue cut loose and it pretty well fell apart with minimal effort. Gonna clean the "black" off it someone sprayed on .... not orig. and see if i can make it sing again. Notice the Fret Board Inlays . 2 missing , I have to try and match . That should be fun

_________________
The Shallower the depth of the stream , The Louder the Babble !
The Taking Of Offense Is the Life Course Of The Stupid One !
Wanna Leave a Better Planet for our Kids? How about Working on BETTER KIDS for our Planet !
Forgiveness is the ability to accept an apology that you will probably NEVER GET
The truth will set you free , But FIRST, it will probably Piss you Off !
Creativity is allowing yourself to make Mistakes, Art is knowing which ones to Keep !
The Saddest thing anyone can do , is push a Loyal Person to the point that they Dont Care Anymore
Never met a STRONG person who had an EASY past !
http://wiksnwudwerks.blogspot.com/
http://www.facebook.com/groups/GatewayA ... rAssembly/

Looks like fun Wud.

Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk

_________________
Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

Still not sure why someone painted the thing black . Cleaned off the back and it is a really nice piece of wood.

_________________
The Shallower the depth of the stream , The Louder the Babble !
The Taking Of Offense Is the Life Course Of The Stupid One !
Wanna Leave a Better Planet for our Kids? How about Working on BETTER KIDS for our Planet !
Forgiveness is the ability to accept an apology that you will probably NEVER GET
The truth will set you free , But FIRST, it will probably Piss you Off !
Creativity is allowing yourself to make Mistakes, Art is knowing which ones to Keep !
The Saddest thing anyone can do , is push a Loyal Person to the point that they Dont Care Anymore
Never met a STRONG person who had an EASY past !
http://wiksnwudwerks.blogspot.com/
http://www.facebook.com/groups/GatewayA ... rAssembly/

Yep, that one deserves a bit of TLC. Looking forward to seeing how it comes back together.

Curious, why do you think it's a mando harp?

_________________
"Act your age, not your shoe size" - Prince

This pic was sent to me by another luthier 1927 Tenor Harp ...... I am not sure what it is, Guessing

_________________
The Shallower the depth of the stream , The Louder the Babble !
The Taking Of Offense Is the Life Course Of The Stupid One !
Wanna Leave a Better Planet for our Kids? How about Working on BETTER KIDS for our Planet !
Forgiveness is the ability to accept an apology that you will probably NEVER GET
The truth will set you free , But FIRST, it will probably Piss you Off !
Creativity is allowing yourself to make Mistakes, Art is knowing which ones to Keep !
The Saddest thing anyone can do , is push a Loyal Person to the point that they Dont Care Anymore
Never met a STRONG person who had an EASY past !
http://wiksnwudwerks.blogspot.com/
http://www.facebook.com/groups/GatewayA ... rAssembly/

Looks like an old Gibson bass banjo, but it's not big enough. The peghead shape says banjo to me, as well as the amount of neck inlay. I guess it's the harp designation that's throwing me. Tuned like a mandolin would be easy enough, but it could be tuned like a 4 string banjo or even a tenor guitar. Wooden topped banjo types are out there, no reason it won't work. It's a headscratcher for sure.

What scale length is it? No makers marks at all?

I remember working on a really long scale banjo in the late 70's. It sustained forever, unlike many tradition banjos. Had an amazing sound.

_________________
"Act your age, not your shoe size" - Prince

Scale is 20-1/8" He claimed his dad built it , however there are things that look factory to me . The only reason i even thought / mentioned Harp was due to the pic above . So to be totally honest , im not sure

_________________
The Shallower the depth of the stream , The Louder the Babble !
The Taking Of Offense Is the Life Course Of The Stupid One !
Wanna Leave a Better Planet for our Kids? How about Working on BETTER KIDS for our Planet !
Forgiveness is the ability to accept an apology that you will probably NEVER GET
The truth will set you free , But FIRST, it will probably Piss you Off !
Creativity is allowing yourself to make Mistakes, Art is knowing which ones to Keep !
The Saddest thing anyone can do , is push a Loyal Person to the point that they Dont Care Anymore
Never met a STRONG person who had an EASY past !
http://wiksnwudwerks.blogspot.com/
http://www.facebook.com/groups/GatewayA ... rAssembly/

Many styles, sizes and types of banjos out there - 4, 5 and 6 string - and mimicking a host of other stringed instruments from ukes to guitars. There aren't many commercially made with wood tops. Mostly because what has become standard is an 11" dia rim. So there isn't a lot of top real estate to generate sound unless it's a thin membrane.

I think Gold Tone still makes a wood topped "banjo" in the commercial market. Small shop builders will sometimes make them on request, but there just isn't much demand that I've ever seen.

They are often attractive to folks that don't want to get into the more technical aspects of a modern banjo build, or someone who wants a quieter instrument or is on a tighter budget. Hardware for a modern banjo build can get pretty expensive and a wood top eliminates a lot of hardware.

I'll bet this one is a home built instrument. Banjos are a lot of fun and since typical banjos are a bunch of parts bolted together - they are a tinkerers dream. I've built several and can attest to the fun part.

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Brian R, Wood Mechanic
N8ZED

I want to build one. Being quieter than a normal banjo would not be a bad thing.

Especially if a person is just learning !

_________________
The Shallower the depth of the stream , The Louder the Babble !
The Taking Of Offense Is the Life Course Of The Stupid One !
Wanna Leave a Better Planet for our Kids? How about Working on BETTER KIDS for our Planet !
Forgiveness is the ability to accept an apology that you will probably NEVER GET
The truth will set you free , But FIRST, it will probably Piss you Off !
Creativity is allowing yourself to make Mistakes, Art is knowing which ones to Keep !
The Saddest thing anyone can do , is push a Loyal Person to the point that they Dont Care Anymore
Never met a STRONG person who had an EASY past !
http://wiksnwudwerks.blogspot.com/
http://www.facebook.com/groups/GatewayA ... rAssembly/

Cleaning off the Black paint someone added found a very nice looking walnut heel cap .

Never ceases to amaze me

_________________
The Shallower the depth of the stream , The Louder the Babble !
The Taking Of Offense Is the Life Course Of The Stupid One !
Wanna Leave a Better Planet for our Kids? How about Working on BETTER KIDS for our Planet !
Forgiveness is the ability to accept an apology that you will probably NEVER GET
The truth will set you free , But FIRST, it will probably Piss you Off !
Creativity is allowing yourself to make Mistakes, Art is knowing which ones to Keep !
The Saddest thing anyone can do , is push a Loyal Person to the point that they Dont Care Anymore
Never met a STRONG person who had an EASY past !
http://wiksnwudwerks.blogspot.com/
http://www.facebook.com/groups/GatewayA ... rAssembly/

Top back on , Saving as much orig. wood as humanly possible

Back sanded , Now to fit the neck and reset

_________________
The Shallower the depth of the stream , The Louder the Babble !
The Taking Of Offense Is the Life Course Of The Stupid One !
Wanna Leave a Better Planet for our Kids? How about Working on BETTER KIDS for our Planet !
Forgiveness is the ability to accept an apology that you will probably NEVER GET
The truth will set you free , But FIRST, it will probably Piss you Off !
Creativity is allowing yourself to make Mistakes, Art is knowing which ones to Keep !
The Saddest thing anyone can do , is push a Loyal Person to the point that they Dont Care Anymore
Never met a STRONG person who had an EASY past !
http://wiksnwudwerks.blogspot.com/
http://www.facebook.com/groups/GatewayA ... rAssembly/

Lookin good.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

_________________
Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"