Does anyone on here know where I can find information on Luscomb Wonder banjos? I’m thinking about purchasing one of Reverb, but without knowing much about them I’m hesitant. It needs all new tuning pegs and the fingerboard is in rough shape. I’m not sure if it’s missing anything else as I’m not familiar with the model.
What did you want to know? It looks like a lower end, student grade banjo in the photos.
The fingerboard would probably have to be replaced for the banjo to play really well... it appears to be dyed hardwood, which is usually not refret-able and is often delaminating from the neck.
Andy
Thank you! I’m completely new to the banjo world. Just bought a Gold Tone CC Carlin 12 a few months ago.( My first instrument, I have no prior experience with another type.) I was just looking for a comprehensive explanation of The Luscomb Wonder but I can’t find anything on the Internet.
Not a whole lot to explain. It's a classic-era student grade banjo, with Luscomb's patent tone ring. Here is the patent:
patents.google.com/patent/US504810
I think the price is on the high side, considering the plain ornamentation and the work it will very likely need to play well. It's almost certain that the fingerboard would have to be replaced.
Andy
Edited by - Andy FitzGibbon on 11/28/2020 07:19:06
My dad got an old Luscomb decades ago somehow or other. To my bluegrass trained experience it was an uncomfortable thing. It had a thin all-metal rim that really dug into my lap when holding it, typical flat neck angle of that period which means HIGH action with any normal type of bridge, friction (wooden) tuners, uncomfortable neck shape. Really, nothing to recommend it. That little prissy wood "tone ring" inlet into a groove in the top of the metal rim really seemed ridiculous. Someone in its past had chipped or cracked that wood ring during a head change, so it was a little bit boogered up.
This one had not aged well in that some of the inlays had fallen out and were gone, and the fingerboard had come slightly unglued from the neck substrate.
I was glad to trade it off in a bunch of instruments to Bernunzio for a guitar I wanted.
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