Hi Folks:
I just finished turning this old bakelite Reso-Tone into a fretless banjo. I ended up filing off all the frets and putting a brass plate on it. Yes, I have become a barbarian! I put a skin head and a Bart bridge on there, and swapped out some other spare parts (like the anger-inducing tailpiece). Sounds remarkably good! Now to learn how to play without frets.... The necks on these things are quite narrow, but I'm getting used to it.
Some benefits of the plastic banjo: Smoky smell from previous owner? Put it in the diswasher. Skin head gets too dry before you finish installing it? Throw the whole pot assembly back into the bathtub. Camping and don't have a salad bowl? You have an extra salad bowl.
If anyone is looking to fool around with fretless banjo for cheap, I heartily recommend these....
Chris
