With beautiful responsiveness, this Stelling Sunflower banjo takes a page from the classic Gibson instruments, while impressing their well known design work. This example dating to 1988 features a nicely stained ebony maple rim, measuring a thick 3/4" out of 3 ply, a one piece chamfer flange, and a classic no hole arched top tone ring. Right away, this is a loud and easy playing instrument suitable for any bluegrass player, with the thump, precision and volume made possible by its stunning resonator finished in a nice Cremona burst.
It has been well maintained by its original owner, and comes to us in great condition. The original Stelling branded tailpiece is setup with nice down pressure on the coated 11" head, and achieves a good neck angle via its internal dual coordinating rods and the expertly installed neck shim, ensuring excellent playability for years to come.
The neck itself made out of a beautifully flamed and stained piece of maple, and is designed with a 26" scale length, outfitted with a nice, bound and inlaid ebony fingerboard. A sliding 5th string capo has been added, and there are holes from previous railroad spikes (since removed). The neck is straight and yields easy action. The banjo was expertly re-fretted by Stiver Mandolin shop in 2012 - which still are in great shape with virtually no wear. The previous owner used this instrument sparingly as evident by how clean and well maintained it is. Original Stelling branded tuners work effortlessly, and the truss rod is functioning as it should with no notable relief.
Cosmetically this instrument is in great shape, and only shows slight wear in its nickel rim hardware - which is only due to aging (see photos).
Weighs 11.8 lbs.
Comes with a nicely upgraded Ameritage case with hygrometer.