North Bender - Posted - 04/14/2014:  10:44:11

A friend bought this Bacon long-neck for $300.  I've never seen one before and I'd appreciate any comments you have on it's reputation, value and age.  It seems to be in excellent condition.  The 5th string tuner looks nice and may be after-market?

bargrasspicker - Posted - 04/14/2014:  11:13:47

rcmoore has pics on his page of a bacon longneck. these would probably have been from the 60s, yours looks to be higher quality being the belmont model perhaps. nice looking fretboard etc. Value is dependent on where you sell it i would say but im not sure.

heres rcmoores pics. banjohangout.org/myhangout/pho...umid=3669

Edited by - bargrasspicker on 04/14/2014 11:17:51

Culloden - Posted - 04/14/2014:  11:42:42

These were made by Gretsch in the 1960's. I am unsure of its value but $300 sounds like a fair price. I have seen a regular length five string version for much more.

North Bender - Posted - 04/14/2014:  16:52:21

I didn't think many people would be versed in these. I've never seen one before and wonder how many were made. I'm sure it's from the '60s folk era.

Jbo1 - Posted - 04/14/2014:  17:45:26

A Bacon Belmont was my first good banjo, after starting on a 5-string Kay, bought with trading stamps. I remember my teacher (who was an accordian player, but thought he would teach me plectrum banjo using a Mel Bay book, and by having me remove that "useless short string") brought in a long neck Bacon for me (or my parents) to buy. I thought it looked weird. All the other banjos I saw (and there weren't that many to see in Phoenix in 1971) had shorter necks. The Bacon I ended up with had a standard neck. So yes, this would be a mid to late 60s banjo. The 5th string tuner is after market. All the tuners were originally friction. 

North Bender - Posted - 04/14/2014:  19:57:33

Thanks jobo (and bargrasspicker and also for your insightful info Culloden).



I started on a 5-string from Sears and Roebuck around 1963. I think I have a vague memory of a fancy 5-string in a shop back then that may have been a Bacon. To me it looked pretty snazzy at the time. But I've never seen a Bacon since and I don't know what their reputation is. Were they possibly considered as higher end for the time? It seems pretty comparable to my Vega long neck (the less expensive Pete Seeger variety).

All tuners were originally friction?  That is pretty low end.

 

Edited by - North Bender on 04/14/2014 19:58:33

Helix - Posted - 04/15/2014:  04:13:20

Looks like it's in great shape. Is this Longneck in Phoenix? If you need setup, give me a call, I have a tailgate.

Look at that CAPO! Hold the 5th friction tuner between two fingers and then go outside and fling it as far as possible. I have parts.

The Odes, Gibsons and Christys were the only things available.

I played in the Minutemen in 62-63 over in KC, but we had a Harmony plastic banjo we cannibalized to make our own longneck from a 2x4, the new rim was Masonite, worst ever, a dud, the frets were HO railroad track, the spike , too. We had Pete's book, but no money. So we earned every penny.

Good luck, welcome to the hangout

mikehalloran - Posted - 04/15/2014:  22:33:16

The ones I have played generally had clubby necks (my favorite), no tone rings and are pretty easy to set up. I like to set the heads on these just below the break point - they tend to sound a little dull if looser, IMO.

They respond well to a heavier set than many use. Strings are cheap so play around till you find the set that works the best.

If those are friction tuners, replace them. The 5th is geared - good.

If the 5th string capo is chrome plated, it is a Vega Pittman (even if made in Japan). If nickel plated, probably a later Golden Gate. Once you learn the trick, these work very well. The trick is to place the bar right up behind the fret. not spaced between them.

>The 5th string tuner looks nice and may be after-market?<

If chrome plated, it could be a Kroll which by 1964 or so, was available as an add-on from nearly everybody. One would have to see it in person to tell. They were also available in the aftermarket.

Edited by - mikehalloran on 04/15/2014 22:37:01

mikehalloran - Posted - 04/15/2014:  22:45:52

If you ever find a long neck where the Bacon headstock is painted over black, do not remove the paint! Look to see if the neck has a graft indicating that it was once a regular 5 string. If so, removing the paint will hurt the collectibility. You should be able to make out the decal by shining a strong light on the face of the 'stock.

Wha?!?!?

Pete Seeger and friends liked to convert these to long necks. There was no steel reinforcement which made cutting and splicing easy. Pete then re-painted these necks black and covered the headstock decal. He felt it wasn't fair to the Bacon name to try to pass these off as coming from the factory.

I have seen a few of these over the years but never gave them much thought even though I knew the story. Of course, once on the lookout, I never saw one again.

Edited by - mikehalloran on 04/15/2014 22:47:18

john bange - Posted - 04/16/2014:  07:09:10

A Bacon long neck in a usable hard case for that price is a great buy.  They often go for double that.  There often is more info on the long neck banjo group site. 

Ks_5-picker - Posted - 04/16/2014:  07:14:32

I handled one recently at Mass St music. The neck felt a lot like a Louisville slugger I used to have. ;)

john bange - Posted - 04/16/2014:  09:53:36

quote:

---

Originally posted by Ks_5-picker

I handled one recently at Mass St music. The neck felt a lot like a Louisville slugger I used to have. ;)

you're right about that.  they do have a clubby neck but I didn't have a problem with adjusting to it

Joe Connor - Posted - 04/16/2014:  10:02:38

Mike, could you tell us more about the banjos Pete Seeger and his friends used to convert? I would love to hear the whole story because it sounds interesting.

Dave Douglass - Posted - 05/03/2014:  15:03:30

I had a folk music buddy that had one of these. It sounded good but had a real fat neck compared to my Gibson longneck. This was in 1963.

Polle Flaunoe - Posted - 05/03/2014:  23:50:23

Bacon Belmont was a series of banjos and guitars built by Gretsch for Montgomery Ward - from 1946 to late 60s or so.

The design/construction of the banjos was altered a few times during these years.

The banjo in question is an example of the last version - built mid/late 60s.

Polle