I finished this one yesterday October 30th 2026. It’s special because it’s one of two ash necks I bought from my friend Logan Phares who had the ash log cut by Elbon James at Normantown WV a few years ago and I got two necks out of this one board. The emerald ash borer was first spotted in WV I believe in 2011 and this tree was cut before the bugs got to it. It’s sad to see so many dead ash trees killed by the ash borer because the wood gets all soft and pithy and really not even good for firewood. This neck has some really fine growth lines so it grew slower than the other ash necks I had on here recently I think I still got one of those left. It’s interesting how a trees location plays a part in what the wood looks like. An ash tree growing in a sunny meadow without close competition will grow much faster and have wider growth rings than one grown on a hill with trees all around it so the neck on this banjo is of the later type with its close growth rings. I did stain the neck because people seem to like that look but I left the quarter sawn cedar natural color. It had a nice aromatic cedar smell before I applied the finish. 
It measures 38 1/2” overall length, 11” wide, 2” side height with the bridge 26 1/2” from the nut in the photos. Being as how it’s Fretless you can place the bridge anywhere you want because there are no frets to restrict you and you may find something more comfortable for you to play than the standard banjos you already have. This one does have a round back neck profile which was more common historically especially around Watauga county North Carolina and I do base my design on the old Stanley Hicks family banjos like you see in the Foxfire book and vintage clips on YouTube. I never got to meet Stanley or his storytelling brother but I feel like we would have had some fun visits. With the Aquila 1b super nylgut strings this banjo has a real bright old timey sound and comfortable to play. The nylgut will take about two weeks of stretching to settle in but I have tuned them 3 times to standard tuning so that makes it a lot easier for you. The solid ebony violin pegs are fit into holes reamed with two violin peg reamers with one special made for the 5th peg. The reamers cut the same taper and thickness as the pegs so you get maximum friction hold even more if you press in. I will include a set of guidelines with a lot more information. 
I been making these off an on since 1996 and the last few years making them more regularly. I had a flash flood on May 27 this year and got into some credit card debt to rebuild the bridge and cleanup which took 3 months so the 8 banjos I have listed how when they all sell will fully pay what I owe and hope that the holiday season sales rush will accomplish that then I will go back to making one or two a month like I used to. I have a very small cluttered work space and make each banjo one at a time by hand. I have a basic pattern but depending on the wood and what my hand tools do the outcome of exact dimensions can vary. All the wood I use comes in different sizes and no two banjos I make are exactly alike. I got some repeat customers who like to buy banjos made of different woods and i have a few in museums and spread out all over the world. I do ship fully insured so there is no risk to either of us with a great company like this and I don’t hesitate to shop anywhere globally even in the madness of all these tariffs. A customer in England said the tariffs cost him around 60 or 70 dollars and shipping was reasonable so when you compare my prices to others it’s still a good deal. I do make each shipping box myself and use two kinds of bubblewrap and styrofoam peanuts. I think I covered everything and I hope you can tell you are reading something that I just sit here and typed myself as the maker of the instrument. I don’t like the AI descriptions and wish that option didn’t exist. Anyways thank you for reading all this and look forward to doing business with you!