#1
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Bishline Patriot 5 String Banjo
I went today to look at a Bishline Patriot 5 string banjo. The local vintage shop had one for $699 and I saw that it's a $2,000 banjo brand new. I got there and the shop owner pointed out to me that the 5th string tuner wasn't tuning right and the string had come off. I tried to string it up and the tuner just spun around and eventually popped out. I also notice that there were guides for the 5th string. One looked to be a small white piece with a slot in it and the two below were just tiny black spikes. I'm not sure if the black spikes used to have the white slot pieces on them or not. Maybe they broke off or maybe they are not supposed to be there? Anyhow, the string wouldn't stay in the guides either. The banjo's other four strings sounded great.
I was just wondering if this is an easy fix? If so, how much would it cost if I took it in for repair (I didn't buy it). |
#2
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Probably a dot of glue would keep the tuner in place if not a thin wood shim and a dot of glue, worst case replace the tuner for less than $50.
The white piece with the slot is basically a nut for the 5th string. The two black spikes are model Railroad spikes used for a capo on the 5th string, can probably just replace them. If you want to learn banjo those are pretty good. I probably wouldn't buy it to try and flip it. |
#3
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Thanks. Yes- it would just be one to learn on. I have no idea about banjos.
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#4
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Quote:
If you want to learn Old time/clawhammer or 2 finger style a friend of mine has a bunch of stuff free on YouTube as well as a fairly budget friendly lessons site; look for BanjoLemonade.com |
#5
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#6
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those are excellent banjos and you paid about 1/3 of its value. Most Bishlines are sold out at any dealer and Rob has about a 2 year wait list.
the 5th string tuner(that you said rotates), needs to be put in correct and at a specific angle to work best. someone may have attempted to replace that tuner with something else and opened up the hole too much. i would suggest taking to someone who has very good reputation for working on banjos and have them fix the issue-its not a big issue, but it needs to be correct. you may need to buy another tuner for that area, get a good brand that tunes smooth and holds tuning-dont go cheap. the repair person will suggest to you what to do. and i'll repeat, the tuner needs to have a little downward tilt forward towards the headstock to work best. and you want someone with knowledge to do the right job on your neck-especially if they need to alter the hole in any fashion(the hole may be wallowed out and need to be filled with some wood for the new tuner, or if its too small for the new tuner-may need to be opened up a little). a good video on replacement of the 5th string tuner-starts around 10:00 here's an older video showing need to open the space for a different size tuner-starts around 4:25 the railroad spikes were addressed in another reply. When set up correct, Robs banjos play easy, tune smooth, and sound really nice. even purchased new, a person is still getting about $1000-1500 more banjo than what they cost. good luck d |