datsunrobbie - Posted - 06/01/2026:  14:12:16

I just picked up a Silvertone banjo. I searched the internet for a few hours, cannot find one that is a close match. I plan to fix it up myself to start learning to play. the 5th string tuning peg is missing, as well as some of the binding on the neck. Nut will have to be repositioned. Otherwise seems to be fairly intact.

The Old Timer - Posted - 06/01/2026:  14:21:12

How unusual. Is the round part (when viewed from the back) made of metal or wood? That's a bit fancier and more sturdy than the typical beginner level banjo. It almost looks like it was intended to have a resonator.

Also unusual is that it's a "long neck", with 7 frets to the 5th string tuner (normal neck has 5 frets to the tuner.

You can fix the nut in place with a drop or two of wood glue or even Craz Y Glue if all the surfaces are cleaned of old glue residue.

Presuming you get it fixed up to learn to play, you will find it uncomfortable to hold in your lap because the protruding "flange" sticking out from the side of the pot/rim will leave a stripe on your thighs! Perhaps someone can suggest what type of resonator you might want to be on the lookout for, to give you a more comfortable surface for your lap.

I've never seen one like this, so I don't what it might have been labeled. It might have carried the model name including the word "Folk" or "Long Neck".

Silvertone used to be a brand in the Sears Roebuck family. Do some searches on old Sears catalogs.

Hopefully others will recognize it and give you more help.

OldFrets - Posted - 06/01/2026:  14:27:53

Model 805, a re-branded version of the Harmony 21832. This is from a 1964 catalog:

The Old Timer - Posted - 06/01/2026:  14:32:42

Looks like OldFrets nailed it.

I found an old BHO discussion of Sears Silvertone Harmony/Kay banjos. Harmony turned out some of THEIR models with the "Reso Tone" rim construction of Bakelite (resonator too) which had that protruding flange. Looks like the long neck "folk" model in OldFrets posted dispensed with the resonator. Bakelite would be the material on the "non-warping" rim.

banjohangout.org/archive/323836

datsunrobbie - Posted - 06/01/2026:  17:17:51

Thank you so much for the help. Looks like the banjo is the same age I am!

PrairieSchooner - Posted - 06/02/2026:  09:37:43

Definitely a Harmony with a Bakelite rim; some of the rims were painted. I had one years ago; I reshaped the peghead into something I perceived as more banjo-like and installed banjo tuners. I even put some wood veneer on the pot. Lipstick on a pig? Yeah, but it had a nice old-timey sound. I loved that banjo and I wish I still had it.

 

Old Hickory - Posted - 06/02/2026:  10:08:55

"Flashing gold colored non-warping shell..."

"Non-warping" most likely means plastic (Bakelite), confirming what's already been said.

Because it's a Pete Seeger style long neck, you'll tune it low to E (except I suppose the fifth string). Put a capo at the third fret -- as in the Sears picture and what Pete did -- and play mostly in G.

Enjoy!

pinenut - Posted - 06/02/2026:  10:13:58

quote:

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Originally posted by datsunrobbie

I just picked up a Silvertone banjo. I searched the internet for a few hours, cannot find one that is a close match. I plan to fix it up myself to start learning to play. the 5th string tuning peg is missing, as well as some of the binding on the neck. Nut will have to be repositioned. Otherwise seems to be fairly intact.

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J.Albert - Posted - 06/02/2026:  13:31:40

My first banjo was a Sears Silvertone bought in 1964, just like the one with the standard-length neck shown in the pic above. The "45rpm record" that came with it was a short series of lessons by Nat Winston, a friend of Earl's. Wish I could find a copy of that recording today...