5-String Open Back Banjos

Simple lines complement the look of this superb open-back banjo.   Equally simple dowel stick construction with a 12” rim and frailing scoop make this a perfect choice for old time or round peak traditional styles.   This version has the famous Tubaphone tone ring that was invented by the Vega Banjo Company and first utilized in a production instrument back in 1909.   One of the first, and most successful, tone rings of its time the Tubaphone, originally spelled Tu-Ba-Phone predates the Gibson Mastertone tone ring by at least 16 years.

The Regent model also has the adored and revered Whyte Laydie tone ring, but it noticeably has only a star inlaid on its ebony headstock overlay and no ivoroid fingerboard binding. It is otherwise similar to the Whyte Laydie model (with a few other changes) but around $450 less expensive. Let us read together the Bart Reiter Banjos’ Statement of Origin: Bart Reiter Open Back Banjos are, they say, made entirely by one Mr. Bart Reiter in his East Lansing, Michigan shop.

The Deering website says: Pick it in the parlor, in the park, or any where you go…Deering’s new GoodTime Parlor banjo is light weight and made with a shorter scale to meet a variety of needs for today’s banjo players! Introduced at the industry’s major show in Anaheim recently, the model was very well received by dealers, artists, and other attendees. 

The Deering website says: Pick it in the parlor, in the park, or any where you go…Deering’s new GoodTime Parlor banjo is light weight and made with a shorter scale to meet a variety of needs for today’s banjo players! Introduced at the industry’s major show in Anaheim recently, the model was very well received by dealers, artists, and other attendees.

The Standard model is designed to provide an affordable openback with a good, plunky sound. The maple rim is ebonized similar to many of the vintage banjos. This model comes with a mahogany neck for rich tone.

Dowel stick construction without tone ring Cooperman 12" 3-ply Maple rim 25.4" scale length/bone nut/1-5/16" nut width Indian Rosewood cap on bottom of rim/dowel stick/heel cap Ebony 17-fret fingerboard with frailing scoop Mahogany neck w/traditional small peghead shape Nickel plated grooved tension hoop leaf inlay on peghead/Elite Amber head 5-Star Planet tuners/2-way adjustable truss rod brown stain and matte finish overall Tweed hard-shell case.  Our Discount Price is $2,083.00 and Our Cash Discount Price is $2,020.00.

All Exotic Wood Series banjos are naturally colorful- no color staining needed. The rich hues of dark chocolate browns with black grain, the purples, the auburn reddish browns all make these banjos incredibly beautiful. Neck and rim bindings are hand made from the contrasting colorful woods adding an elegant look. The fingerboard inlays are simple cut diamonds in abalone, combined with the peghead inlays of the Balladeer. 

Figured hard maple neck, ebony fingerboard and peghead, ivoroid binding & wood purfling on both neck and rim, abalone inlays on both the neck and peghead. Standard block laminated rim, Tubaphone-style tone ring, Fiberskin head.

This old time banjo has a walnut neck with a 12" walnut pot, a radiused fingerboard with Saturn and Stars inlay, hand rubbed oil finish, a thumb scoop, removable dowel stick, Renaissance head, exotic wood cap tone ring, a Nechville tailpiece, including a heavy duty hard shell case.

This is the standard description beginner model from Deering, sans tone ring, with a bit of a neck bow, but good sounding and a good banjo to learn on if a person who likes to embrace pain wants to limit the purchase price.  There is no better bargain in an American-made 5-string beginner banjo as this.  All natural maple finish, black dotmarkers, and simple appointments; it is light in weight and functional.   Was $369.  Make us an offer!

Although the Fairbanks and Cole Company predated the solo flight of A. C. himself by 10 years, and in that time the prior partnership built around 15,700 instruments, Mr. Albert Conan Fairbanks went out on his own in 1890. The Whyte Laydie model was introduced in 1901 and then something really bad happened – in March of 1904 the Fairbanks factory had a ferocious fire (factually, a fearsome conflagration). NOW ON SALE!!!  WAS $5213 BUT NOW: 

From day one, way back in 1995, there has been a controversy over the non- traditional peg head the Goodtime sported on it’s debut. Affectionately called the “Gumby” peg head the Goodtime not only broke tradition in looks but in volume of sales that made it tough to keep up with demand.
The Deering List Price is $499.

Greg & Janet Deering, not content to rest on their laurels, have  introduced this New GoodTime version which has the traditionally carved Deering fiddle peghead.  It also has the new dark walnut “bow-tie” inlays in perfect contrast to the blond maple neck. The newly engraved Goodtime scroll and 5-point star surrounds are what stands the GoodTime apart from every other banjo in this price range, It is truly “Made with Pride in the USA”
The Deering List Price is $499

Per the Wunderlich website:  William E. Boucher Jr. Of Baltimore, MD was one of the most prolific banjo makers of the mid-19th century. His unique design which involves a vaguely Fender-shaped headstock design and having a skin head on both the front and the back, became the icon of the American banjo in the decades before the American Civil War.

Behold an actualVega Pete Seeger model from the mid to late 1960s, but with no long yellow rectangular paper label inside the rim, which printed and hand-written label contained the serial number and model name. This is a shame, but name or not it is in every way the bona fide famous Pete Seeger model.

The Deering website says: Pick it in the parlor, in the park, or any where you go…Deering’s new GoodTime Parlor banjo is light weight and made with a shorter scale to meet a variety of needs for today’s banjo players! Introduced at the industry’s major show in Anaheim recently, the model was very well received by dealers, artists, and other attendees. 

Deering (new) GoodTime open-back 5-string banjo, satin finish, with a slender, low-profile rock maple neck with a multi-ply birch and maple rim, standard 11” diameter, single coordinator rod and geared tuners, with zipper gigbag. These banjos are the best deal we know of in an entry level instrument. They are made in the USA near San Diego by one of America’s most proficient banjo companies. The Deering List Price for the banjo alone is $499 plus $57 List for the case.

12" head, scooped at the end of fingerboard. Bart Reiter mostly makes 11” diameter open back banjos that are fretted all the way to the last fret. We wanted something more in keeping with the needs of the dedicated traditional player and so he made us the Round Peak model – which we are proud to offer you! These are marvelous.

This version of the quintessential prewar original 5-string open back Vega bears the “Fairbanks by” stamp on the dowel that Vega used from 1910 to 1925. There is extensive heel carving, a gryphon, star & acorn inlaid headplate;  the head diameter is 10 15/16” and the scale length is 27 1/8”. This banjo sounds incredibly good – full of acoustic warmth, lush sonority and the magical melodiousness of the Roaring ‘20s.  WAS $4943 BUT NOW ON SALE FOR: