Need advice on using CA glue and Veneer on a Banjo

[Mark Gottesman]

Well, I am doing something very new to me.

I have a banjo neck where I have pulled the frets. I want to glue cherry veneer into the slots using CA glue.

I have little experience with this stuff outside of some Crazy Glue repairs.

I have a bottle of Medium viscosity CA from Woodworkers and have a couple of questions.

Since it does not seem like a good idea to work out of the bottle can I put some on a plate and apply with toothpicks?
Is there a better way to precisely apply it?

What sort of open time / working window would I have with this glue?

Would it be better to put glue in first and then put in the filler strip or put in a strip and apply glue to top?

How well does it wick?

Can this glue be colored with lampblack?

How well does this glue take dye? I had thought to use shoe lether dye to even up the color on the finished fretboad.

Any other thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[CarvedTones]

Just an FYI before you do this. Fretboard blanks are not that expensive. Ebony banjo fretboard blanks are 2 for $25 here:
http://www.allenguitar.com/fretbd_blank.htm
If you are filling the slots to go fretless or change the scale length, I would think about getting a new fingerboard.

 

[Mark Gottesman]

I did investigate replacing the fretboard. The banjo I am converting to fretless is from the 1890's.
They ebony covering the fretboard is about 1/16 - 1/8 thick and still in good shape. If I put on a thicker fretboard then I will have problems with setup and string height.

Here is a photo link so you can see what I am working with.
http://s164.photobucket.com/albums/u13/gyozu/Project banjo/

I also thought about just finding another neck to convert and leaving this alone, but again, there are some technical difficulties that don't make it attractive.

My final thought on pursuing this route is that it allows the restoration of the neck to the original fretted configuration if a later owner decides that is what they want to do.

Hope that explains a bit more as to why I am asking about the CA Glue route.

 

[Phil S]

Mark I know nothing about banjos and fretboards but after building a bunch of rc planes I am fairly good with ca. The medium should work well, put it thinly on the banjo and then apply the veneer, pressing it down for about a minute. If you spray the veneer with accelerator the bond will be almost instant - I tend to not use the accelerator as it works too fast for me. If the edges of the veneer are difficult to hold down you can go back under and use just a small amount of medium or thin would be even better. They make a precision tip that fits over the glue bottle tip and allows for very precise placement of the glue. here is a link for the tips www.stevensaero.com/ZAP-Flexi-Tips-24-pkg.-PAAPT21-p-19781.html or send me your address and I will mail you a few to try.
phil