Stiff neck?

Well, here's the piece of wood I picked out for the instrument's neck.

(I hope it's strong enough!)

I've decided at this point that I'm going to have the neck about as wide as a classical guitar neck. I'm used to playing on a wider neck and like the space it gives my chubby fingers to move. This decision is bound to cause me problems, but we live to learn.

I picked this piece of North American Tulipwood up at John Boddy Timber in Borough Bridge. I'd had a lovely day out with Chin, Emma and my goddaughter Martha at the RHS garden at Harlow Carr, and happened to mention I was looking to make a biscuit tin banjitar. The next thing I know, we're strapping toddlers into car seats and zooming north on the A1 on the hunt of wood.

Between shepherding two toddlers around an assault course of splintery doom, and Chin waving lumps of wood under my nose saying "smell that", I picked out a nice piece of wood.

http://www.john-boddy-timber.ltd.uk/

http://www.rhs.org.uk/harlowcarr