Mcpeake-Kulesh Tone Ring - Discussion Forums

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ARCHIVED TOPIC: Mcpeake-Kulesh Tone Ring

Please note this is an archived topic, so it is locked and unable to be replied to. You may, however, start a new topic and refer to this topic with a link: http://www.banjohangout.org/archive/397526

Pgmikeyb - Posted - 05/26/2024: 10:11:01

Hello I’m fairly new to this site! I see a lot of great discussions here.. I wanted to raise a question about my Mcpeake-Kulesh tone ring that I have! I’ve not the slightest clue really where to begin but I’ve heard some newer Gibson banjos preferably the ones built around the 1990s and early 2000s. Obviously as we all know they have a Gibson Kulesh tone ring in them…. How close is the Mcpeake-Kulesh to the Gibson Kulesh!? Did Gibson have a slip fit on their tone rings?! I’m very curious to know.

Edited by - Texasbanjo on 05/26/2024 11:20:14

Texasbanjo - Posted - 05/26/2024: 11:22:42

I am moving your thread to Building, Setup and Repair forum so you'll get more answers.

Please read the forum titles and decide which one best fits your question(s). This has nothing to do with tabs, so it really doesn't go here.

rcc56 - Posted - 05/26/2024: 11:58:28

McPeake tone rings are very highly regarded. Curtis McPeake went through a great deal of effort to design a superior grade tone ring.

But as far as what the assembly practices were at Gibson at any given time during their final 20 years of banjo production, it probably varied considerably, depending upon which way the wind was blowing at the moment.

Probably the only sure way to determine the tone ring fit on a modern era Gibson would be to disassemble the banjo.

Edited by - rcc56 on 05/26/2024 12:12:10

rcc56 - Posted - 05/26/2024: 12:39:59

Addendum-- I just re-read your post, and I cannot comment on whether the Gibson Kulesh tone rings are of the same quality as the McPeake rings. Someone else will have to give you that answer. Sorry about that.

Edited by - rcc56 on 05/26/2024 12:41:26

lightgauge - Posted - 05/26/2024: 15:48:19

Based on reading posts over many years here, a lot of Gibson banjos were built with overly tight rings. Very common on Scruggs models for a while. As Bob said, always best to check.