Hi, Jock. Unless you absolutely have your heart set on a long neck 5 string, first off I'd recommend that you purchase a standard length neck banjo. Most of the folks I know who have long neck models end up using capos all the time and I have heard that there are more problems with neck warping. As far as a decent banjo tutor, there's Ken Perlman's book entitled "Clawhammer Style Banjo" which is for both beginning and advanced banjo players. There are also two videos available that cover the same material as the book (ugly videos I must admit, but the explanations are very clear and will have you playing in no time). I'm afraid I can't really help you as far as what to pay for an instrument, as I've been living in France for the last fifteen years and banjos are fabulously expensive over here (?). I've no idea what the going price for a good instrument would be now, though I'm sure some of the other kind folks here at Mudcat can steer you in the right direction. I can suggest that if you happen to live anywhere near Elderly Instruments (Lansing Michigan), you might swing by there and see what they have to offer in the way of secondhand instruments or consult their on-line site at http://www.elderly.com/welcome.htm (sorry, I don't know how to do a blue clicky) One last word: if I were you, I'd avoid banjos with a natural skin head—unless you're a purist—because of difficulties with tension when the weather changes. There are now banjo heads (Fyberskin, or is it Fiberskyn?) that provide the "softer" sound preferred by most old-time and clawhammer players. Happy hunting!

cheers,

Aux