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 Post subject: Vintage Tenor Banjo ID
PostPosted: Mon May 14, 2018 1:40 pm 
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A reader writes:
I have a banjo that could be 40-50 years old and I know nothing about banjos...could I send pictures and get some information about it from you?

-------------------------------------------
Thanks for getting in touch.

Have you seen our article "How Much is My Banjo Worth?"
https://creekdontrise.com/acoustic/banj ... _value.htm

That has a lot of information that will help you determine what kind of banjo you have, and much more.

If, after you've read that article and figured out what you can from it, you still have questions, please just reply to this e-mail n attach photographs.

Have a great day!

Paul


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PostPosted: Mon May 14, 2018 1:46 pm 
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The reader sent the following photos.

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PostPosted: Mon May 14, 2018 1:47 pm 
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Margaret, it's a 17-fret tenor banjo, probably built before 1960, and possibly built before 1941. It was not a professional banjo, but it wasn't the cheapest made, either because it has a wooden "pot" (shell) and not a metal one as the cheapest ones did.

MOST of these banjos were built to play early forms of Jazz (Ragtime, Dixieland, etc.), and to make them loud, they almost always had resonators on the back. It's surprising that yours does not. I can't see any signs that it once had a resonator, but that's hard to determine without seeing it in person.

If it never had a resonator, that's another indicator that it was a student instrument. Is the fretboard painted or is that the natural color of the wood they used? If it's painted that's a sign of budget instrument.

So it's "vintage" but not name-brand. It's old, but probably playable. It's a student instrument, but not the cheapest they made. It's made for early Jazz but isn't all that useful for that without a resonator.

What I'm trying to say is I don't see many good comparisons. Here are two:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-TENOR- ... 0505.m3226

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Tenor- ... Swf-tars~y

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Banjo- ... SwCoBakufk


https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Tenor- ... SwBPJartQ6

The last one is pretty close to yours as it has a wooden pot but no resonator. It's probably older, and its original skin head has been replaced with a mylar drum head, but that's pretty common on banjos that old.

Hope this helps,

Paul


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Paul Race playing a banjo. Click to go to Paul's music home page.Whatever else you get out of our pages, I hope you enjoy your music and figure out how to make enjoyable music for those around you as well.

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    - Paul Race Click to see Paul's music home page Click to contact Paul through this page. Click to see Paul's music page on Facebook Click to see Paul's music blog page Click to hear Paul's music on SoundCloud. Click to sign up for the Creek Don't Rise discussion forum. Click to learn about our Momma Don't Low Newsletter. Click to see Paul's Twitter Page Click to see Paul's YouTube Channel.



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