Hi
An Ibanez is being offered to me for around 400 dollars
I believe it is a 70’s artist series
I currently have a Tanglewood Cove and am playing at intermediate level
Does anyone know anything about the Ibanez and is it a good upgrade?
Thanks
Jason C
The Ibanez Artist seems to be considered one of the best and most desirable of the Kasuga masterclone banjos. Typically they get a bit overpriced in the UK and often get listed around the £1000 mark - there's a tenor on Reverb for £1600! and a five string for £995 which is closer to a reasonable price. At something under £350 it would be considered a bargain depending on condition though. And that it's definitely an Artist rather than something like a Mountaineer.
If you can confirm that it is a 70s model produced in Japan, then if it is in reasonably good shape and playing condition, that would be a good price, IMO. Just be sure that it has no major structural issues.
Bobby
The 70’s Ibanez Artist was a killer banjo! I had one from 1975. Traded it in on a Gibson RB250 about five years later. Really wish I had kept it now. Couldn’t afford to own two banjos in those days.
What Bobby said bears repeating; make sure it is a Japanese banjo from the seventies. I would not pay that kind of money for one of the new Ibanez banjos. I tried one of them in a local music shop and it was nearly unplayable.
Word to the wise: Inspect the rim and make sure it isn't delaminated. I've looked at probably a half-dozen of these banjos because I really like the look, but every single one of them has had rim delamination.
Still a good banjo, and you can just do a rim changeout. Even with the delamination, they all sounded pretty good. But before you buy it you need to do a thorough inspection.
At $400, even with a delaminated rim, it's probably a decent deal. For another $300-400 you could swap the rim for a top quality rim, and have a very nice banjo for under $800.
What everyone said above.
If it’s the model I’m thinking of, it kind of an ersatz mishmash of RB-4/RB800 style.
If it’s Japanese and from the 70’s- those are great banjos. Had one back then, very early 80’s. Dragged it everywhere. I remember it having a really nice neck.
If it is what you say it is - 400 is quite a good deal if it is in decent condition. I would jump on it as there cannot be too many of those in the UK.
If the sale is not time critical- post some pictures. Many will chime in based on those.
Funny thing too. These banjos have a multi-ply rim. Some would say that's lower quality, and maybe it is, but that's exactly what Gibson was doing when these Ibanez copies were made.
At the time they came out in the 70s, the Ibanez Artist series was arguably higher quality than the Gibson Mastertones of the same era.
Edited by - KCJones on 03/31/2023 12:28:41
There are Ibanez banjo catalogues on line. Search for it then ID the model.
Here you go folks, party down:
s93105080.onlinehome.us/Ibanez-Catalogs/
vintagejapanguitars.com/ibanez...atalogue/
The issues I have seen with the Japanese Artist series banjos are backward bowed (humped) necks (twice) which are not readily corrected by the one way truss rod and cloudiness under the clear coat (once) which is only cosmetic.
Otherwise a great banjo if these conditions don't exist. I just took a no name but definitely Kasuga made banjo in on a trade, sounds and plays great.
Edited by - Fathand on 03/31/2023 21:14:57
Wreath Inlay? I had one back when they hit the market. I upgraded the tuners and set it up with new head, bridge and tailpiece, played it for a while and sold it to one of my students.I thought it was a good banjo and $400 seems like a fair deal.
Hi
Many thanks for everybody’s contribution- the advice and feedback was great.
I’m now the proud owner of a Ibanez masterclone- literally hasn’t been played since the 70’s - just kept in a case under a bed
I really appreciate the level of support people will go to on this site-
Regards
Jason C
jason lee My opinion is that you have made a real "find." Under the bed is usually a safe place with volatile relationships
I disagree about a delaminated rim, They all still play banjo notes. The delam Gibsons do, too.
Something of that order is characteristic of lammies with latitudinal grain to vintage with.
What is the tone ring? The Tub-A-Clone?.
Otherwise I found "patent dodger" features and some small quality issues. The tailpiece mounting ball may be left-handed thread and the rim rods may have a "unique" way of mounting the rim to the neck.
Otherwise this is a "good" banjo, can be set up slinky and allow you to learn until you will know the time to decrease limits.
And the hardshell case, very nice. How much sustain are you getting? How many seconds?
Hi Larry,
Thanks for your input- the exact model is Ibanez FB 593 artist series.
The tone ring is what came as standard and to my ears the sustain rings for a while (this is my first banjo with a tone ring, so I have nothing to compare it with)
The banjo is in perfect condition and makes my last banjo feel like a toy.
Here is a link to the 1976 Brochure
hoshinogakki.co.jp/pdf/ibanez/...Banjo.pdf
I have set it up- installed a deering smile bridge (I’ve also orders a Scorpion bridge as well to try)
I’d welcome any of your thoughts on the banjo and any improvements you’d suggest
Thanks from the Uk
Jason C
Keep in mind that banjos from that era were designed for 1/2" tall bridges.
Congratulations on your new banjo! In my opinion these are professional grade banjos with an intermediate price tag. Andy Goessling (RIP) of Railroad Earth played one as his main banjo on stage for years. $400 is an excellent deal! Get it set up well and it will be as good as banjos with $2k+ price tags
The banjo is in perfect condition and makes my last banjo feel like a toy.
As it should. Very nice.
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