Fitting the Neck to the Gourd

After I shaped the neck the way I wanted it (take your time!) then it is time cut holes in the gourd to accept the dowel stick.

This turned out to be easier than I thought:

1. Measure the distance from the fretboard to the top of the dowel stick
2. Measure the distance from the fretboard to the bottom of the dowel stick
3. Measure width of dowel
4. Carefully transfer those dimensions to the gourd with pencil
5. Eyeball it to make sure you didn't mess it up
6. Cut away!

To cut the square hole into the gourd I used the biggest drill bit I had to gain access to the centre, then used a coping saw to carfully remove the bulk of the waste and then used a file to square up the hole. Keep testing the fit, and be sure not to make it too loose.

Next comes the exit hole on the opposite side of the gourd. David Hyatt (see links) had some great detailed instructions for measuring the angle and get getting a precise hole to leave room for a bridge. I choose to just eyeball it, since I am going to make a bridge, and I can adjust the height of it to fit the gourd.

So basically you want the exit hole to be slightly higher then the entrance hole, which allows the gourd head to slope downward from the fretboard, so that the strings stay close to the fretboard even though you have a bridge. Okay this is hard to explain! You only need a small angle because you don't want the bridge to be too high.

After that I keep fitting the dowel all the way through so that it was tight, but not too hard to remove. I then shaped the heel of the neck to fit the gourd a little snugger (?). I don't have a curved chisel, which would have come in very handy here (i'll buy one for the next banjer...).

I discovered very quickly that without proper tools, and with a one piece dowel stick it was next to impossible to get it to fit super tight to the gourd. I got it "good enough" and then left it alone.

Now it actually looks like a banjo, and my 4 year old son asks "can I play it now?". Getting there, but the next step is the one I am dreading the most....attaching the skin to the gourd!