Barnburner - Posted - 03/25/2026:  15:13:58

Hi!



I do not play the banjo, but I'm as guitar collector. I have the opportunity to buy what I understand is a very rare and sought after banjo by a maker called NBN, that I would loan out to my banjo playing friends.



Can anyone see from these pictures if this is a genuine instrument?

The Old Timer - Posted - 03/25/2026:  15:27:52

I'm no expert, but this looks like an early 1960s lower end (but respected) model by Ode banjos. I've never heard of "NBN".

pinenut - Posted - 03/25/2026:  16:00:44

quote:

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Originally posted by The Old Timer

I'm no expert, but this looks like an early 1960s lower end (but respected) model by Ode banjos. I've never heard of "NBN".  The "lower end" Ode/Ome feel and play like high end banjos.  Chuck made banjos for players. 

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+1

Check the inside of the rim casting for the brand markings.

Edited by - pinenut on 03/25/2026 16:11:14

banjoy - Posted - 03/25/2026:  16:07:48

Never heard of the brand. Googled it and see that it does have an ODE connection, and it seems on 20 of these were made? It seems that Stephen Stills played a longneck NBN.



The rare and sought after verbiage seems to be echoed in the google search. Rare doesn't mean valuable, just that there are few of them. Aluminum pot, no tone ring is not something a lot of 5-string banjo pickers seek out.



Anyway, it's an interesting banjo and yes, it's a genuine instrument that I hope you're not overpaying for. Whether it's a genuine NBN, probably so, this would not be something that would be faked or copied.



I'm guessing there are folks here knowledgeable on this brand.

Edited by - banjoy on 03/25/2026 16:11:15

banjoy - Posted - 03/25/2026:  16:14:32

Here is what google AI had to say:



NBN banjos were rare, high-quality instruments produced in Longmont, Colorado, during the late 1960s and early 1970s by Monty Novotny, Reb Bennett, and Bernie Nettesheim, former employees of ODE banjos. Known for premium craftsmanship, only about 20-30 of these banjos were made before production ceased in 1976.

Key Details About NBN Banjos:



Origins: Founded in 1969 by former ODE employees after Baldwin bought ODE in 1966.

Quality & Features: They featured top-tier craftsmanship, often with curly maple, rosewood, and engraved gold-plated hardware.

Notable Users: These instruments were favored by professional musicians in the 1970s, including Stephen Stills.

Long Neck: One known instrument is a long-neck banjo used by Stephen Stills.

Rarity: They are considered very rare, as the company primarily focused on guitars, producing only around 20-30 banjos.



==========



The banjo does appear very similar to the lower-end ODEs which have aluminum pots and no tone ring. But maybe rare means valuable for this brand? I doubt it but am wide open to being wrong. I wouldn't mortgage my house for it though.

Edited by - banjoy on 03/25/2026 16:16:44

pinenut - Posted - 03/25/2026:  16:16:56

quote:

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Originally posted by banjoy

Never heard of the brand. Googled it and see that it does have an ODE connection, and it seems on 20 of these were made? It seems that Stephen Stills played a longneck NBN.



The rare and sought after verbiage seems to be echoed in the google search. Rare doesn't mean valuable, just that there are few of them. Aluminum pot, no tone ring is not something a lot of 5-string banjo pickers seek out.



Anyway, it's an interesting banjo and yes, it's a genuine instrument that I hope you're not overpaying for. Whether it's a genuine NBN, probably so, this would not be something that would be faked or copied.



I'm guessing there are folks here knowledgeable on this brand.

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Per Google:  Monty Novotny (NBN) worked at Ode and apparently shared Chuck's banjo build ethic.

facebook.com/groups/7417685092...46570635/

Edited by - pinenut on 03/25/2026 16:19:26

Pigeontown Banjo Co - Posted - 03/25/2026:  16:33:11

I posted much of this on Facebook as well. I am an avid collector of all the companies associated with Chuck Ogsbury - who founded Ode in 1960 - and thus collect NBNs with special passion. They were made under the direction of Monty Novotny, who was one of the principals in the Ode shop before the sale to Baldwin in 1966. Monty bought a lot of Ode's old stock - especially the Muse banjo necks which had a slightly different peghead and that Baldwin was not going to keep using. NBN incorporated in September of 1969. I know of only 9 NBN banjos and company sources say they only built 11. One is a longneck built for Stephen Stills. One is a paddle headed D with propeller inlay. All NBNs have this unique fleur-de-lis inlay with typeset stamps of NBN on the fleur-de-lis. One of the 5 NBN's I own has a 7 ply rim made by Ode, another two of them have Baldwin made multiply rims. This one has a Baldwin style 2 pot. I don't think anyone would go to the trouble of faking an NBN and I am certain this one is genuine - their most basic neck on a Baldwin pot.

Barnburner - Posted - 03/25/2026:  16:41:39

Thank you! Just so I don't overpay, what kind of a value range would you put on one like this?

Barnburner - Posted - 03/25/2026:  16:42:15

Also - where on Facebook?

Pigeontown Banjo Co - Posted - 03/25/2026:  17:03:04

Hey Mike
Examples of this that are completely Baldwin (not a perfect comparison) can be had for $600-1000. I recently sold an early Baldwin with a Boulder made neck that was probably the cleanest I’ve ever seen - $1400. In that sense, this NBN is certainly more rare but not necessarily more valuable. The Facebook thread was a fellow who is local to this auction and wanted to know what the banjo was

Pigeontown Banjo Co - Posted - 03/25/2026:  17:08:07

Also from what I could tell this was a local auction only not offering shipping…and the typical 15% buyers commission

Barnburner - Posted - 03/25/2026:  17:17:15

Yes - I have s friend in Boulder who was going to grab it and ship it to me in CT.

I comment old and rare instruments and this sounded like a very sought after example so it caught my eye. I gather it's not worth the hype I'm putting on it...

Thanks for your knowledge and insight

Pigeontown Banjo Co - Posted - 03/25/2026:  17:26:49

I mean - I’ll probably be bidding but their pots were really unique and special so it’s too bad this has a really commonplace one

banjoy - Posted - 03/25/2026:  18:04:04

Wow leaning some cool banjo history here, ODEs and their brethren are usually excellent banjos. I've owned a few ODEs myself, they're wonderful American made banjos. The neck on this one is almost identical to ODE. So if you can grab this for a good deal it's worth grabbing. Rare is rare, it's just not all that valuable but it seems in pristine condition. If you can get it for $1000 or less it ain't a bad deal. Much more than that maybe not so much, but that's just my opinion. It's probably a dandy picker too just given its pedigree.

Barnburner - Posted - 03/25/2026:  18:09:14

Auction is sitting at $201 now.

Ira Gitlin - Posted - 03/26/2026:  06:46:26

quote:

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Originally posted by Pigeontown Banjo Co

They were made under the direction of Monty Novotny, who was one of the principals in the Ode shop before the sale to Baldwin in 1966. Monty bought a lot of Ode's old stock - especially the Muse banjo necks which had a slightly different peghead and that Baldwin was not going to keep using. 

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I suspected as much from banjoy's AI search result. Baldwin bought Ode in 1966, I believe, so it seems likely that such an Ode-like instrument would be made from leftover parts from Ogsbury-period Ode.

Dan Gellert - Posted - 03/26/2026:  11:17:05

A good instrument, but not a great or especially collectible one. Other than the name it's still a fairly common early cast-rim Ode.