Sunday, May 20, 2012

Restoring a c1907 Orpheum 5-String Banjo

The Orpheum is mostly all there. The neck is in excellent shape. I made a new fretboard and will have to match the inlays.


I found some excellent photos of an Orpheum #3 from the same era and copied the inlays. I hand-cut the abalone shell and routed the fretboard.

The peghead is in excellent shape and just needs one small piece of the inlay replaced.

Close up of the abalone inlay and the routed space in the fretboard.

the fretboard inlays in place and sanded flush.

Close up of the first fret I hand cut from abalone shell.

1 comment:

  1. Wow Mark! Incredible work and thank you, thank you thank you. The documentation on this Orpheum is 1907 and I am still attempting to get the tag to maintain the history of the this instrument. Will continue to look forward to following the progress that you are making!

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