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Jaryo14 - Posted - 10/03/2020: 09:13:14
Looking for information on a banjo my dad left me when he passed away
banjowannabe - Posted - 10/03/2020: 10:46:41
Obviously a Bacon & Day #3 Silver Bell tenor. Very desirable. However, there are a lot of people on this site that are more knowledgeable than I am, and they will need some more photos of the back of the neck and resonator - and a photo of the inside of the pot after you take the resonator off. Also can't tell for sure, but the tailpiece looks like a replacement.
Bob Smakula - Posted - 10/03/2020: 11:12:45
The Bacon banjo aficionados will add to this conversation, but I would like to point out that you should remove the strap.The metal buckle will scratch and dent the banjo while the vinyl backing of the strap can dissolve the finish.
Bob Smakula
Jaryo14 - Posted - 10/03/2020: 11:48:25
quote:
Originally posted by banjowannabe
Obviously a Bacon & Day #3 Silver Bell tenor. Very desirable. However, there are a lot of people on this site that are more knowledgeable than I am, and they will need some more photos of the back of the neck and resonator - and a photo of the inside of the pot after you take the resonator off. Also can't tell for sure, but the tailpiece looks like a replacement.
Ok thank you
Jaryo14 - Posted - 10/03/2020: 11:49:57
quote:Originally posted by Bob SmakulaThe Bacon banjo aficionados will add to this conversation, but I would like to point out that you should remove the strap.The metal buckle will scratch and dent the banjo while the vinyl backing of the strap can dissolve the finish.
Bob Smakula
banjotrader - Posted - 10/03/2020: 16:50:33
Not much to tell. The Serial Number can help isolate the manufacture year but is a mid 20s example just based on it features. It’s a no.3, it’s gold plated, it’s missing an armrest and inlay(s). Great sounding banjos and a true workhorse! Congrats
Polle Flaunoe - Posted - 10/04/2020: 01:48:26
This banjo does IMO seem to be a mid 20s SILVER BELL No. 1 (or maybe a No. 2) - recently "up-graded" with a gold plating and a partly faked or "borrowed" resonator metal tag.
Many lower grade examples have in the past been "up-graded" in a similar way.
A genuine No. 3 will have a bound peghead - this doesn´t - and it will have a carved heel - hard to detect from the present pics - but if it in fact has the carvings, it can instead be an originally silver plated No. 2 - now gold plated etc..
If possible - do please loosen the 4 nos. large thumb screws round the pot and take off the resonator assembly - inside you´ll find the serial number stamped in two places - plus e.g. a stamped Style number.
Nevertheless - this No. 1, 2 or 3 banjo will - once gone over and set up by a specialist - become a killer banjo - indeed suited for various tunings and playing styles.
Congratulations for now owning it!
The Old Timer - Posted - 10/04/2020: 07:43:48
I also advise removing that strap but for a different reason. Where it is attached to the peghead is a dangerous no-no. The round "pot" of the banjo is SO heavy, that suspending it around your neck connected to the peghead puts a terrible bending strain on the neck.
Most tenor players don't use a strap at all, but if they do, both ends of the strap are connected to the big round "pot" only.
Jaryo14 - Posted - 10/04/2020: 09:22:29
quote:
Originally posted by Polle Flaunoe
This banjo does IMO seem to be a mid 20s SILVER BELL No. 1 (or maybe a No. 2) - recently "up-graded" with a gold plating and a partly faked or "borrowed" resonator metal tag.
Many lower grade examples have in the past been "up-graded" in a similar way.
A genuine No. 3 will have a bound peghead - this doesn´t - and it will have a carved heel - hard to detect from the present pics - but if it in fact has the carvings, it can instead be an originally silver plated No. 2 - now gold plated etc..
If possible - do please loosen the 4 nos. large thumb screws round the pot and take off the resonator assembly - inside you´ll find the serial number stamped in two places - plus e.g. a stamped Style number.
Nevertheless - this No. 1, 2 or 3 banjo will - once gone over and set up by a specialist - become a killer banjo - indeed suited for various tunings and playing styles.
Congratulations for now owning it!
The serial number is 17187 not sure what that means
stelldeergibber - Posted - 10/04/2020: 12:55:48
That serial # corresponds with 1927, based on a chart I got off the Hangout years ago.
banjotrader - Posted - 10/04/2020: 17:21:05
hangoutstorage.com/banjohangou...02020.jpg
seems to indicate a few other things going on with this banjo.
Hooksets doesnt match, so the dowel Style Number will be necessary to validate
1927 date is wrong, ditch your chart. 1925 it is
Edited by - banjotrader on 10/04/2020 17:24:00
Polle Flaunoe - Posted - 10/05/2020: 00:48:30
quote:
Originally posted by Jaryo14
The serial number is 17187 not sure what that means
SN 17187 indicates a mid 1925 build - do have a look at my general database as published:
acoustudio.dk/BD_and_Bacon_database.html
The non-posted side picture at your profile shows a carved neck/heel - this rules out an up-dated No. 1 - but it does (besides the wrong replica hook sets) show another interesting/puzzling thing - the rather large gap between the heel cap and the resonator flange could indicate, that the rim is somewhat taller than usual. So far only found on a few custom made examples.
Bacon did over the years build a limited number of Silver Bells - marked with the style designation XX. This style was never cataloged - it´s often described as a style between a No. 2 and a No. 3 - or a gold plated No. 2. As a large part of the Bacon banjos made were ordered directly at the factory - some customizations could to a certain degree easily be performed.
So maybe yours is a custom ordered Style No. XX - but if so the dowel stick inside the pot will carry a No. XX stamp. Do please have a look and tell us about this.
Do however have in mind - during its 95 years of age the banjo has been re-finished/re-plated - and maybe some non-correct parts have been used (so-called hybrids are quite often seen) - only a close inspection by a specialist can tell about this.
