GIBSON BANJO SERIAL NUMBER LIST SERIAL NUMBERS
GIBSON BANJO SERIAL NUMBER LIST SERIES
GIBSON BANJO SERIAL NUMBER LIST MAC

Please remember that the article that I put together and is on several sites about Earls banjo and its evolution was put assembled from various questions that I fielded from the old 'Scruggs List' back in the early 90's and does have a few gaps and the thing about 'Who made the early stu mac rings came from a question about the rings and I only added the thing about Steve for to answer where stu mac got rings before they began having them cast and turning them themselves.ĭon't get to spend as much time as I would like here, but hey Gibson gave me a wonderful opportunity and I love to do what I can now. Very soon after Stu mac started doing thier own ring they began the 'horseshoe knockout' where the lag screw hole was not drilled any more and continued that configuration until they moved the tone rings manufacture from the factory in Athens a few years ago. It had been several years since Steve had furnished Stu mac rings when the Scruggs model came along. Steve only did the rings for Stu Mac very early in the company history. In your post above 'The tone ring was in fact being supplied to Gibson by Stewart-MacDonald, and they were being supplied by Steve Ryan.' The Stu Mac rings by The Scruggs model came along were not supplied by Steve. I also believe the Golden Deluxe also has some sort of designation involved, as does the Flint Hill, but theirs might be in letters rather than numeric-I can't quite recall. If yours is in good condition, you could almost certainly make a profit on it, were you to decide to part with it.Īmbipicker-I know that the 49 Classic has a seperate serial number series, each one beginning with a 49, mine being 49-10, for example. I listened to them both, and I think he very well got a bargain.

GIBSON BANJO SERIAL NUMBER LIST SERIAL NUMBERS

I met a retired professional at a festival last summer who had just purchased two sister banjos with consecutive serial numbers in near mint condition for $4000. Lately, I've seen Honey Scruggs in good to near mint condition bring everything from $1400 to $2350.

So really all these banjos sometimes need is the hand of a good luthier for a setup. The tone ring was in fact being supplied to Gibson by Stewart-MacDonald, and they were being supplied by Steve Ryan. Later, when Earl's banjo was being given a refinish to more closely resemble what it once had been, Earl became convinced to change his signature banjo's look also.Īt one time, many people didn't think highly of the original Scruggs, believing there to be 'component' problems, when the fact of the matter is that the parts, in particular the tone ring and rim, sometimes just weren't fit particularly well. The peghead dimension compared to the later version is also slightly smaller. His banjo had seen at least two different necks and didn't really resemble the Granada it started out as by the time The line was started.

GIBSON BANJO SERIAL NUMBER LIST SERIES

Your banjo, with its amber finish (They are sometimes referred to as the Honey-colored Scruggs), was built to reflect the way Earl's banjo looked at the time the series was conceived. Mine is #433, but I have no idea what date it was born. Also ordered the 'Foggy Mountain Banjo' CD, I have the album and cassette somewhere and 'Fireball Mail' was always my favorite. I bought some new picks, got new strings on the way and dusted off my Earl Scruggs tab book. I read somewhere that they made some changes along the way with the finish? Are the older one's just as valuble as the newer one's?Īfter all the reading here, I'm fired up to get back into picking. Well I was shocked to see them selling for over $4000.

The banjo sat in it's case for the last several years.Īnyway, the other day I was online and decided to see if they were still making them and if so what they were selling for.

I played it for about 15 years until I bought a new guitar, then I kind of lost interest. My local music shop tried to talk me into a Deering but I insisted on the Gibson ES. I ordered my Earl Scruggs model when they first came out over 20 years ago.

Gibson banjo serial number list