Stelling 5-String Sunflower Bluegrass Banjo (Curly Maple)

Dear Chris,
I am sending your banjo out in the morning, May 16, 84. It is really a beauty, and in my opinion much nicer than the new bellflowers. As far as woods go there is no comparison. God bless you.

Sincerely,
Dan
Dan's Banjo Shoppe

Sorry!

All this material is gone. What you're seeing here is the ad I placed on eBay. Sorry if it's misleading... CB

I'm Chris Brown, a professor at U. Rochester in Rochester, NY. I got this Stelling Sunflower new in 1984 and played it in the group "Hard Cider" until 1990, when I went on sabbatical, the band disbanded, and I decided to try the classical guitar. This banjo has done a lot for me and It'll do the same for you. Here it is, in excellent condition with lots of extras.

In response to some email questions. There is some fret wear on 2,3, 4 in the obvious (G-chord) spots. In my opinion there are years of playing left before any new frets will be called for, but this may be a matter of taste. The playability seems fine and there are no associated buzzes. I'll try to get a measurement of depth soon.

There is one narrow indentation on the resonator that would have been a 3/4" long scratch if it had gone deeper. As it is the finish is unmarred and you have to get the light right to see it.

The following sections describe the items in the lot.

If you have any questions at all prior to bidding or anytime, feel free to mail me: brown@cs.rochester.edu

Banjo and Accessories

For more on the world's premier banjo builder, check out Stelling's Website. On the current price list, the Sunflower is $3300.

These images are half-resolution (quarter-sized). If you want to see full-resolution versions, here they are. Back ,
Front ,
Peg Head .

Books and Music

These are all included in the lot. All music is in tabulature notation unless otherwise noted.

Business Matters

You're bidding on all the above materials. It's probably unnecessary to say that Stellings are increasing in value and my guess is that some of the books are hard to find.

Buyer to pay actual charges for insured and tracked shipping with carrier of buyer's choice in addition to the closing auction price. Shipping charges will be computed at close of auction. I'll accept a money order or cashier's check. I'm told an escrow service like tradenable.com lets you use your credit card and builds in an approval period.

Shipping Information. This lot will probably ship in four boxes, total weight around 60-70 lbs (banjo, case and accessories come to about 25 lbs). My zipcode is 14627.

Chris Brown, University of Rochester, brown@cs.rochester.edu, 716-275-7852