No - This is a standard Stella Banjo uke design. I've seen several score exactly like it over the last few years. Oscar Schmidt made literally thousands of these in the 20's and into the early 30's as Stellas and as unmarked Schmidts before discontinuing production in the mid 30's when they went bankrupt. They sold their model names - La Scala, Sovereign and Stella - to Harmony in 1939. The company making instruments under the name Oscar Schmidt now is actually not connected to the old Jersey City firm. The name was picked up by The U.S. Musical Instrument Company, which is the parent company of Washburn, in the 90's.
There'd be no reason to knock off this Schmidt as this was their cheapie ($4-6 over time) and even today, they only fetch about $50-$150. It may look homemade, but it isn't. This was a very cheap design to produce. Schmidt made other banjo ukes - including a better made open back, the
Stella Emerald City , and
Sovereign that had a nice, thick pots and decent quality designs, but this was their budget model. The pot only has a few layers of laminate and the rings, which may look decorative, are actually there to brace the pot so that the head can be tightened to the correct tension without cracking the pot. As you'll see in these below examples and your own, even with these important braces, the pot definitely begins to bend out of circular.
Cherry dyed maple
http://www.musurgia.com/products.asp?ProductID=2184&CartID=50646312132010
plain maple
http://www.elderly.com/vintage/items/180U-557.htm
Another cherry dyed
http://www.ukuleleunderground.com/forum/showthread.php?35685-Banjo-Ukulele-Oscar-Schmidt-Stell
Black crackle - based on the large number that survive, crackle finish was a Schmidt specialty
http://www.gryphonstrings.com/instpix/34122/34122.php
And another several from ebay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...OjS6BUc%3D&viewitem=&sspagename=STRK:MEWAX:IT
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...OjS6BUc%3D&viewitem=&sspagename=STRK:MEWAX:IT
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...OjS6BUc%3D&viewitem=&sspagename=STRK:MEWAX:IT
Also - since very few banjo makers machined their own parts, you will see variations on tailpieces and tension nuts. Banjo uke players also routinely traded out parts to suit their tastes. I've got two Slingerlands, one has a Grover tailpiece, the other has a no-name. My two Stromberg Voisinets have different tension nuts. Even Gibson used different hardware at different times; Ludwig was the only company that made all it's own hardware. Stella/Schmidt were made in the 20's with violin tuners, and in the 30's they began to use a standard friction tuner. However, owners of the early ukes frequently upgraded to Grovers and other tuners once they became available, so you frequently see different makers' tuners on banjo ukes from the 20s.
OK, more information than anyone EVER wanted, I'm sure, but I have it, so why not share it?
Duh! Just realized you guys already posted to two of these links - sorry for re-hashing!