Every banjo has a story. These appear to have a unique serial number scheme. Frets refers to the number of frets that are clear of the body. They are available for binding that is .060 and .090 binding. Then Gibson developed the adjustable bridge. George Gruhns Guide to Vintage Guitars by George Gruhn and Walter Carter. Ironically, after almost 40 years of making some of the worlds finest banjos, the Bacon and Day banjos were the first to carry David L. Days name. Brown or black finish, some binding only on the top and in the soundhole with one ring around the soundhole. Kay company banjos were normally not that high-quality but this one is different. Ironically the first blond J-45s were actually built in July of 1942 (Called the J-45N for Natural) and the actual number of these shipped is not known for sure.
Different Parts Of A Banjo: The Structure And Anatomy Your banjo is Asian made, likely Korea, but maybe Japan. Yes, paging Scott to the Collector's Corner, please. The first two digits tell you the month the banjo was built, the last two digits before the dash or space will tell you the year, and the numbers . The top and back bindings were black plastic. Headstocks say LoPrinzi. By the end in 1985-86, Gibson was basically down to the Les Paul model alone. CUSTOMER SERVICE. The A.C. Fairbanks Company (incorporated 1875) was succeeded in 1903 by the Vega Company (established 1889). The tuners were individual Kluson with amber buttons. Kluson tuners no longer had circle stamp (exposed gears riveted instead of screwed in place) and shaft size of 7/32 to save wartime metal. The only available finish was sunburst until 1954. By 1939 the 3 tone bar system was reduced to 2 tone bars and the angle of the X braces change to approximately 95 degrees.
Epiphone serial-number-information - identification They didnt sell well but did live up to their design intent of a heavier, booming tone with good overall balance.
How to Survey the Neck to Identify a Great Bluegrass Banjo Martin Guitars seemed to take note of the successful sales of the Gibson acoustic-electrics J-160E and CF-100Es. Yet somehow, there's a certain cool factor to this one.
Identifying Unmarked Banjos - Bill's Banjos ARIA BANJOS (1970s) banjos - guitar-list The L-series is very difficult to properly identify and date as they were inconsistent in their appointments and the catalog descriptions do not always agree with the actual instruments produced. Plectrum. MIDWEST BANJO CAMPJune 1-4, 2023New Manchester, IN
Dreamstime is the world`s largest stock photography community. Size 3 Gurian, either acoustic or amplified. The selected tuners varied randomly by model and year. serial number impressed to verso, 60 cm long Australian zither . The soundhole size coincided with the overall size of the instrument.
banjo headstock identification This can often be found on the back of the peghead or on the inside rim of the banjo. $ 5,719.00 $ 5,149.00. The 1970s are viewed by many collectors and players as the low point of Gibson manufacturing. Music Love. They were well suited for orchestral arrangements as well as individual play and accompaniment. In 1893, he patented a banjo neck fitted with a channel for the 5th string to pass through so it could be tuned at the headstock instead of its usual location. A flourish inlay under The Gibson in the headstock. Factory numbers (when the exist) appear in pencil inside on the block where the neck meets the body. 1952: The headstock gold decal logo was replaced by an inlayed pearl script and crown. It was intended to be more affordable and more readily available than its main competition: the Martin D-18. The tuners were individual. ARCHIVED TOPIC: VINTAGE BANJO IDENTIFICATION. In 1923 it appears that Gibson began to assemble A-2s with left-over blonde tops from A-3s. I chose a .090 binding that is layered, for a nice pin-striped look and Stewart MacDonald Guitar Shop Supply makes the perfect set of bits for routing headstock for binding called Piloted Binding Router Bits. See the notes below. The Gibson Southerner Jumbo was introduced in 1942 and discontinued in 1978. STONE BANJO CO - PEGHEAD SHAPES. Please note this is an archived topic, so it is locked and unable to be replied to. Our 19th Year * Sign Up Now
Post war logo, 1947/8 to '60s found on various guitar like Melody Maker, Les Paul Jr, Special, Lg0, Lg2, Sg Jr, Special, ecc, ecc.Note the dot link to G. '70 Gold logo - Decal instead silkscreening. The 5th string is a crucial distinguishing characteristic of the five-string banjo, both in the instrument's appearance and in the sound of the music. Serial numbers are addressed elsewhere on the web site but can be found also on Gibsons website and George Gruhn & Walter Carters book: Gruhns Guide to Vintage Guitars. (Folk Jumbo Natural and Folk-25). Banjos with pegheads like that shown in the first picture below are usually made by Buckbee. ARIA 921C. For example: Gretsch stopped production of Bacon and B&D banjos. Welcome to the Vintage Banjo Maker, please do sign up for email updates to keep in the loop about new additions to our research coming soon! It had binding on front, back, soundhole and the fretboard; The Gibson inlaid into the headstock and a better grade of spruce top. Pearl twin parallelogram inlays, Bridges: Rosewood belly-down. Find the worth of your vintage banjo from 1920s to 1970s. Michael Wright has compiled one of the largest picture galleries of headstock photos in his book "Guitar Stories Vol. Features: Carved curly maple body, with ornate multilayer binding, laminated maple neck, ebony fingerboard with abalone block inlays, gold-plated hardware throughout, two gold plated pickups with separate volume and tone, three-way selector switch. I just have a few questions. About Larrive Guitar Labels A-3s had refrigerator white tops with a black perfling line, adjustable truss rods and adjustable bridges. If you count the plies in the rim it is about 12 or 13 which is what I have seen in a lot of Asian banjos. Gibson. The original price in 1942 was $45. Pickguards between 1909 and 1921 +/- show a stamped patent date of Mar. The 31 year old part time musician has mostly been found on the contest stages in recent years, taking first in the National Bluegrass Banjo Championship twice, and in the RockyGrass, RenoFest . The exceptions are those guitars sold by Selmer in the UK which will (probably) have a number stamped into the back of the headstock and guitars sold by Van Wouw in the Netherlands. The one delivered first to Ray Whitley was not the model now seen as the beginning of the Super Jumbos, but a simpler 12 fret version. The final production versions had a double-braced red spruce top and rosewood back and sides with a sunburst finish. During the period of 1902 to approximately 1909 the mandolins sported tailpiece covers with a curly top and internal white labels with an image of Orville Gibson holding a lyre mandolin. Gibson believed that these choices would allow them to focus on their more profitable lines. The original V shape of the necks of the J-35s was replaced by distinctly round necks (baseball bats) and a tear drop pickguard. Late 1974 gold covered recording pickups are replaced with humbuckers. Modern Gibson Logo open "b" and "o". 593 Similar to 590 but with pearl (vs ivoroid) tuner buttons. MB -- mandolin banjo. Martin introduced their versions of acoustic-electrics: the D-18E in 1958 and D-28E in 1959. At least one model, the Epiphone Spirit, was manufactured in the USA during the early 1980s in the Gibson factory in Kalamazoo, MI. USA produced Epiphones of this era bear standard Gibson serialization and include the "Made in USA" stamp on the back of the headstock. The individual artist's touch on the . It is, therefore, not unusual to find older mandolins with replacement bridges. Like everything else connected to instrument identification issues there are many exceptions. 1974 $895 This was the best sales year for the L-5S shipping 555 instruments. The original partners were Fred and Cassie Bacon and Mr. and Mrs. Oliver Winship. I doubt you'll find this in a catalog. It had chrome plated standard friction pegs, rosewood finished neck and headstock with matchin resonator. The rosettes were simple white-black-white. Start your day off right, with a Dayspring Coffee teachers who sold them to students, some of which are tagged with the name of
The L-5S was the first high end jazz solid body guitar. Factory Order Numbers (FON) in the 2800s to 2900s and 300s to 500s and some in the 600-800s and 1000s range. in the third row of pictures below: Lyon & Healy (1864-1940) made many grades of banjos in many styles,
In 1926 Gibson introduced the L-series guitars with the L-0 at $35 and the L-1 at $50 (1928 prices). There was a line of black inlay (or ebony layer) along the centerline of the back of the neck.
Mando-banjo identification [Archive] - Mandolin Cafe Forum Gibson Steel Guitar. There were many name variations for The Bacon Banjo Company, Inc. but it remained in Fred Bacons name from 1920 until the company closed in 1938. Description: Internally constructed from dense EPS foam, the exterior of this Gator banjo case is covered in rugged 600-denier ballistic . MK-72 models were rosewood back & sides, 3 piece ebony/rosewood fingerboards with dot inlays & nickel hardware. Larger 2.25 wide by .140 laminated maple bridge plates replace 1 7/16 x .125 solid maple bridge plates, Change the body shape to square shoulder dreadnaughts, Injection molded .075 thick styrene pickguard replaces the older .025 thick celluloid pickguard, Plastic bolt-on bridge replaces the rosewood bridge, White pickguard with Gibson logo screwed down to the top. The bracing was revised to accommodate the moustache bridge and generally heavier than earlier models. The second type of headstock, as you can tell by its name, is the angled or tilted-back headstock. The neck heal had a white plastic cap. 1959: Larger crown frets and the adjustable bridge. Any dealer would want to find this as part of an estate sale and put it out to see what the market would bear - but none would have high hopes for its value. I have to say that it is most interesting. Another useful
Higher grade models (such as the Super 400, L-5, J-200, etc.) Though you were told there was only12 of this model made, it will not be any more valuable than if there 10,000 made. The standard early Gibson A models had a soft V shaped neck. Gibson Banjo Serial Number Factory Order Number Information; Pre-war banjos, Flathead, Mastertone. The hurricane of September 1938 destroyed the companys ability to manufacture anything. You can buy the book here on Amazon and I would highly recommend it. Gibson TP-6 tailpiece became standard. At the turn of the century, Orville Gibson was refining his notion of the superior mandolin: carved in the tradition of violins for greater volume and tone as well as comfort. Dimensions: 16 wide, 10 1/4 long and 4 1/2 deep. The current bridge height and neck angle was reached around 1910. Considering that Gibson was using a double X bracing for most of its other flat top guitars during that period, these instruments, with their modified fan bracing, stand out as some of the better sounding Gibsons of the time. Carl and August Larson built instruments between 1900 and 1944. New Location:
This was expanded in 1935 to about 1/3 of the top area. Similar to an A2 except for the top color: an orange top in the teens, and a white top (refrigerator-top) in the late teens and early twenties. MK-99 models were handcrafted and signed by Richard Schneider.
Vintage banjo from 1920s to 1970s - price guide and values - Carter's Some laminated maple necks with two walnut stripes down the center (5 piece neck), most with no truss rod (war time meallocations), Neck shape large and round (Baseball Bat) due to lack of truss rod, Poplar neck blocks. It was available with a Snakehead and had a shaped fingerboard extension. 1979 $1149 Antique Sunburst added to Fireburst, Cherry Sunburst and Natural. Some J-45 models with non-bookmatched two piece Adirondack spruce tops and some examples with four piece tops. The instruments had modified fan bracing and asymmetrical bridges. Some FONs for 1942 include 7116-7119, 7434, 7705, 7721, 907, 910, 923, 928, 2004-2006, 2059, 2098, 2110, 2119. CONTACT US; Headstock Shape. Labels say: A. Like everything else connected to instrument identification issues - there are many exceptions. Banjo serial numbers: During the 1920s, Gibson instruments were made in lots of 40s (for the most part, this procedure continues today). The first versions of the Super Jumbo guitar had a neck joint with 12 frets clear of the body placing the moustache bridge geometrically in the center of the distinctly round 16 7/8 lower bout.
Antique and Vintage Hall of Fame - Collectors Weekly The intent is to provide a rough dating guide. Mid 1921 through late 1930s: larger base with 2 feet, 3/8 adjustment wheels and wooden compensated bridge top. the bins that were used to move instruments from . In 1947 a natural finish J-45 was finally offered and given the designation: J-50. Gibson needed to revitalize its lineup of flat-top guitars the LG-Series was born. Other Banjo-Related Topics
According to the Gibson catalog, natural finish was the only option in 1939 but we are told that at least 2 examples exist of a cherry sunburst from the same period. This is a headstock that tapers from narrow at the top to slightly wider at the base (the reverse of the traditional Gibson headstock shape). In some cases, teachers would purchase these instruments and put their own names on them, but in many other cases they carry no identifying name at all. Only about a dozen were made. There were 1229 made. ss stewart presentation banjo - Google Search. The appointments of the Southerner Jumbo included more top binding and an additional set of rosette rings. Yuletide. There are no manufacture's labels or stamps on it. The hardshell case had a green or red silk lining. Instrumental. Some early necks were cherry before 1912. F Style mandolins have a carved nautilus shaped curl on the upper left-hand bout. Why not post a little tune with it. I have an open back banjo with a number 44 stamped in the ring, and May 2, 1899 carved in the support on the backside. Wyatt Fawley's banjo, model for the "Retrotone" banjo design : 1949 : 3399-86 -100 : 1-piece: Dots : I/N Auction 2/2007 with flathead ring from 1963 RB180 and 1959 RB100 neck : 1949 : 3399-90: RB-150: . The centerline of the neck had the black inlay. Acoustic Guitars. The bracing for the new larger models was X braced: there were 3 transverse tone bars between the braces 1 more than the Martin as Gibson experimented with bracing design heavy enough to support the large tops and light enough to be resonant and responsive.
What Does My Banjo's Serial Number Tell Me? - Deering Banjo Company Banjo Decal - Etsy The tuners cogs are peened on the shafts (the peening sometihas a waffle design). expressed on the sides and back of the 1934 versions. The J-160E was Gibsons second design for an electric flat-top guitar following the CF-100. 1978 $1079 Tobacco sunburst is dropped for Fireburst; Maple is now described as Natural. target no need to return item. Introduced is the year of introduction. Richard Schneider and assistant Abe Wechter acted as the on-site, full-time luthiers to collaborate and develop Kashas theories and bring them to a manufacturing reality. In the early years, due to the depression and the following wartime austerity, demand for this expensive instrument was limited and production quantities were small. It is not clear how Gibson decided to set their nut widths and neck thicknesses. Martin introduced the large body dreadnaught in 1932 It was bigger, bolder, and louder than anything Gibson had to offer. . peghead shape. 14" resonator on the banjo examined is probably non original (Korean). Huber Banjos offers our new owners the option of either customizing one of our stock models, or "designing your own dream banjo" from among the various wood and metal configurations, and the many . Mid 1950s: the pickguard changed from the teardrop to the larger undulating shape like the pre-war J-35s. The introduction of a truss rod cover to the headstock caused the inlay patterns to adjust as well. $80 in depression era dollars was beyond the means of most people of the time but 300+/- were built during its 3 year production run. ECL changed its name shortly afterwards to: Norlin Inc. for ECL president Norton Stevens and CMI president Maurice Berlin. It was the heart of the depression and the instruments cost $60 without a case. David L. Day was in his 70s. Rettberg & Lange (1898-1920) banjos were initially similar to Buckbee-made
Late 1960's Gibson Logo around 1969 with no dot over the "i". Like the SJ-100 of the same year, the J-55 had a stair-step headstock that persisted for only 2 years. Body shape changed to square shoulder dreadnought. They are very pricy at over $20.00 each, but worth it if you want . B&D models stopped around 1968 following Baldwins (Gretschs parent company) 1967 purchase of the ODE company. See Martin Serial Numbers for a dating information. Skip to main content. These digits should match the 4 digits found on the back of the peghead of your banjo. identify the manufacturer of these banjos in many cases, but some identify
I would sure like to hear what it sounds like. string peg perch is typically carved out from the side of the neck as shown
Q: What is the first step in determining the age of my banjo? Starting in 1977, Gibson adopted the current date-based serial system which codes for the year and day of production.
Home | Vintage Banjo Maker It was reintroduced in limited editions in 1991. Each model of the Mark Series was available in natural or sunburst finish. The headstock had a black wood face veneer. The space between the headstock center and the top of the lathe bed is the radius of the lathe swing. Depending on the selected source, there is disagreement about these numbers. There is a Kay company logo on the headstock but absolutely no other identifying marks. Martin Flat Top Guitar Body Sizes and Designations: The body size designation is stamped on the neck block starting in October 1930. In 1947 the name changed to the J-200 and the standard back and sides became highly figured maple. They did not imprint the instruments with any particular brand. On rare occasions, some dates can be found on . If you would like to use content from this page, see our Terms of Usage policy.