1890s SS Stewart Piccolo 5-String Banjo

Overview: Piccolo 5-string banjos are so hard to find. This S.S. Stewart is absolutely the cutest one I've seen outside of a few modern builds I've had the chance to play, too. It's a mini-me to their main-line banjos and built in the same fashion -- spunover rim, ebony board, the classic headstock shape, and intended for gut (modern: nylon) strings. This on arrived in pretty good shape but needed glorified setup work to be at its best.


Interesting features: It has a newer, replacement skin head. The hardware and fittings are all in good order and the finish, while having some wear and tear, looks nice. The very short scale enables the current medium-tension Nylgut strings to at least tune up to D over 5-string's normal G tuning (which is where I've kept it tuned). I suppose it could be tuned up a whole octave, but specialized strings would be needed as the scale is closer to concert ukulele than soprano ukulele (with which you can use normal Nylgut banjo strings and go up an octave) and I think it would be hard to find the right stuff to get up that high.


Repairs included: Tim gave it a level/dress of the frets, cleaning, fit a new bridge, and gave it glorified setup work. It's playing spot-on and is ready to serve.

  • Weight: 2 lbs 14 oz
  • Scale length: 14 7/8"
  • Nut width: 2"
  • Neck shape: 1 9/64"
  • Board radius: flat
  • Depth at first fret: 5/8"
  • Depth at seventh fret: 45/64"
  • Head diameter: 7"
  • Depth overall at rim: 2"
  • Rim wood: unsure
  • Tonering: integral hoop
  • Bridge: maple/ebony
  • Fretboard: ebony
  • Neck wood: mahogany
  • Action height at 12th fret: 1/16" overall (fast, spot-on)
  • String gauges: Nylgut medium tension
  • Neck relief: straight
  • Fret style: low/small

Condition notes: It still has older Champion friction pegs which can be a bit of a pain to use if you're not used to them. I'd be happy to install geared pegs of whatever type is desired, but that often runs to ~$100+ upcharge just for the parts. The heel was broken and repaired at one point but the job was good and it's health and stable. The head and bridge are replacement but the rest of the hardware appears original.


It comes with: It's got the most amazing little custom hard case that someone built from scratch for it.


Consignor tag: BUON






















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