Goldtone OB-250+TP questions

[slade.edmonds]

Howdie folks. New banjo player here (and new Gold Pick member as of early Jan 2026). Loving the lessons! I plan on posting another message in the near future around the lessons and separate of this thread that is more toward my actual banjo and (I reckon) the setup of it.

I bought my Goldtone OB-250+TP direct from Goldtone early December 2025. At the time I didn’t even know banjobenclark.com existed. I simply had the itch to learn the banjo, and I went for it. I have practiced 2 hours a day ever since receiving it. I am very much hooked!

Anyway, as I spent more time with the banjo I started noticing and questioning things and that is what this post is about. I don’t know anyone personally that I can both ask these questions and show the banjo to directly so I figured I would give the forum a shot.

The first thing I noticed was that my finger kept slipping off the 1st string when I began learning and experimenting up the neck. At first I thought my technique was bad and it probably was (and probably still is lol) BUT… I eyeballed the neck and noticed the 1st string was way out on the edge of the fingerboard. Compared to the 5th string, which had ample room to mash the string without it contacting the edge of fingerboard and slipping off. Then I inspected the tailpiece and noticed it too was aligned in such a way that all the strings would be positioned more towards the 1st string side of the fingerboard. The tailpiece screw was even ‘leaning’. Anyway, not a big deal really, I just wiggled the tail piece in the direction I wanted it to move and then also nudged the bridge and was able to straighten out the issue.

Then I became more curious about the set up… bear in mind I know basically nothing at banjo setups or much of anything around the banjo at this point. But I notice that the truss rod cover and the inlay on the headstock are slightly out of alignment (they are still that way now). Not by a lot, but enough that my OCD has kicked in and I am constantly noticing it thinking to myself hmm this is just weird that that doesnt align perfectly at this price point.

Then a little more time goes by and I start to develop a buzz on my 4th string D. I changed my strings to see if that would help and it did not. I watched the Huber set up videos which are awesome by the way and decided I would give the truss rod a small adjustment as the neck was very flat (so counter clockwise). In the process of doing that I removed the truss rod cover of course and when I sighted down the neck I saw a noticeable difference in the amount of nut sticking out on the 1st string side versus the 5th string side. Again, not by a lot but the 5th string side measures about a 1/4" from the headstock to the edge of the nut whereas the 1st string side measures about 11/32". Sighting down the neck then it looks twisted or something. Maybe the nut is just not flush in the neck.

Anyway, I am just trying to level set my expectation on the banjo. Am I overthinking this in a big way? Are the Goldtone instruments even in this price range expected to have tolerances in this range? If yes, I can move on and keep playing without worrying much about it I think. I somehow have it in my head that this isn’t the way the instrument is supposed to be.

I am in touch with someone at Goldtone, but I wanted to post here to get a wider range of opinions hopefully, as so far the only feedback I have gotten is that they don’t actually see the issue I am describing even though to me its pretty clear.

Thanks a lot for your time!

I will go ahead and post a few pics…

[Juansolo]

I am by no means qualified to give you advice, but I think the 4th string buzz could be caused by shifting the bridge to compensate for the 1st string sliding off the fret board.

[Mike_R]

I have a GoldTone Twanger and it came with a great setup (Thanks Jake and Ben!). Unfortunately for you, it has been my experience that most instruments ship from the manufacturer with needed setup. That setup often doesn’t happen, but if you get a good retail shop, they will do the setup. I was shocked when I learned how high the action was on newly shipped Martin guitars were. A guy at Martin explained that (assuming good neck angle and such) you could easily lower action, but you have to replace parts to raise it. At this point, my recommendation is to get a setup done (they might need to make a new nut or move and modify it, and some other minor things). A good setup makes all the difference.

On the other hand, if you want to learn how to setup stuff, there are some good resources out there (http://frets.com/FretsPages/pagelist.html is more guitar oriented, but much of the processes are the same). I do my own setup work and it isn’t rocket surgery, but it takes a while to get comfortable with it. I think Ben’s maintenance series was super helpful when I first got a banjo.

[Archie]

Sorry I can’t offer any advice on setups. As a Dealership maybe @BanjoBen or @Jake at the General Store might be able to offer some guidance.

[BanjoBen]

Great to have you here @slade.edmonds!

This is a common song I hear folks sing who buy either direct from the company, box stores, or other retailers that don’t do setup. We have to spend a good amount of time with each Gold Tone banjo to get it playing like we want. It is totally possible, and they have the guts needed to be incredible banjos.

Good news is there are folks in the Atlanta area that do some good setups. Email me at Ben@BanjoBenClark.com and I’ll connect you with a Gold Pick member in Conyers that will be able to counsel you. You have a great banjo there, just needs a little work.

You can ship it to us for a setup, but the shipping costs aren’t worth it as you should be able to find someone close to home.

[slade.edmonds]

@BanjoBen thanks again, I have a path forward!