In the latter half of October and first few days of November I made one custom neck and three stock banjos. The custom neck was to fit a Deering pot. The owner brought the banjo up to have the neck fitted after I got it put together. It’s curly maple with a curly ash peghead overlay and a hop-hornbeam fretboard. The fretboard has a 12″ radius. I forgot to take pictures of the neck after it was installed on the pot. Usually I do that before shipping, but in this case there was no shipping to be done.

The workshop is coming along well. I finally got the OSB sheets applied to the underside of the roof and in the corner behind the big shelf so now the insulation and vapor barrier are covered. I put up scraps on the underside of the ceiling joists along both walls, so now I have lots of spaces to store flattish things. I’ve still got a ways to go to get organized, but it’s getting better.

I also bought a used lathe recently. This is the first real lathe I’ve had, and it’s much better than the ShopSmith for turning rims. I had been thinking of buying something like this once I got settled in to the shop, but this one came up used at a good price and was only about 90 miles away. The legs are too short for me, so when I want to use it I clamp it to the table saw top.

Currently I’m beginning work on two banjo necks and a guitar. The guitar will be my first dreadnought size, so that will be fun. It should be easier to bend the sides since the waist is not as pronounced as most of the guitars I’ve built. I’m hoping to get these done by the end of the month, but with house woodwork still ongoing I am not as fast as I hope to become later.