I always liked the concentric rings of a style 3, the wood marquetry concentric rings of a style 4, the MOT veneered resonators on style 11's, 10's, and KK's...what appeals about these beloved conversions the most to you?
7 Comments |
 | banjodr says:
1/27/2011 6:29:17 PM
They are what I grew up listening to for the most part even though I had a melodic phase and some non Gibson banjos during the 70's. forgive me please.....just kidding.
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 | Possom says:
1/27/2011 7:30:37 PM
The old tone is what I love...I've played some of everything, Deerings, Stellings, new Gibsons, Bishline, Crafters, at a price 2 1/2 times what I have in my 26 TB1...none of them compare. The tone those old banjos produce is out of this world. You can literally feel it. When you hit that 4th string and can feel it in your gut through the resonator....that's what I love! I'm already thinking about what I want to build for the next one :)
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 | Pepper Laing says:
1/28/2011 6:32:01 AM
What appeals to me is pretty much everything about them, I`m especially drawn to the style 1`s as I think they are underrated and affordable, and the simplicity of the style 1. The old banjos just have a lot of character, all around. I like em` a little rough around the edges and well played. Not into shiny new stuff. These are what the newer builders are trying to achieve, I mean besides the holy grail all original Gibson 5 string Flat heads, but who can afford one of those? These great old banjos are the closest and next best thing!
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 | banjoplyr. says:
1/28/2011 8:00:56 PM
i AGREE WITH POSSOM,tONE OF THESE OLD BANJO is awesome,clearity of notes from one end of the neck to the other without lose of power.also the deep tone on the 4th string.I had Arthur Hatfield covert my1936 11 with a neck he made and set up,the neck is to easy fret and a pleasure to play.
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 | Beardog says:
1/30/2011 6:39:39 AM
These old banjos just have a sound all their own. I played a beat up, totally bedraggled old RB 100 arch top, with no tone ring, just a newer neck and one of those real big, old, tarnished Ode D tail pieces on it last summer. It was absolutely unbelievable. The banjo belonged to a 14 year old kid down in Texas....he had no idea how awesome that banjo played and sounded. If I hadn't felt so guilty, I should have bought it from him on the spot!
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 | david in ky says:
1/30/2011 6:13:53 PM
Hey everybody, I guess you could say my love of antiques has finally carried over to banjos. I'm just fascinated by the history of the Gibson banjos and, of course, the history of the guys that played them. My first pre-war was a བྷ AT diamond flange. I recently bought a TB-1 that needs a little restoration. Haven't decided on how much of a conversion I will do on it. I agree with Pepper that the 1's and 2's are great little banjos and you don't have to mortgage the farm to own one.
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 | Bohonkie says:
3/23/2011 8:27:21 AM
Seems like a common thread here that the tone is unique - I agree. I have owned several banjos over the past 30+ years but none has equalled the tone I get out of my '28 Granada. I used to think she was a '29 but recently found out she's a year older. That's OK; I've always liked older women...
From the beginning I was also hypnotized by those rings on the resonator. Whoever built the neck for this tenor conversion copied those rings perfectly all the way up the neck.
These banjos are simple and built with extremely high quality parts. Can't say enough about them and anyone who criticizes them is, in my opinion, probably just envious.
There is a reason why some items such as old Gibson banjos, Martin guitars, etc., are benchmarks.
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