My banjo already had a name.a personalized truss rod cover was available from Gibson for $5 in 1929.
Virginia was the original buyer of my tb-2 that I bought in '98.
I took it to Jimmy Cox in '99 and he made it into my rb-4 conversion.
I've retired the cover so that nothing will happen to it.

When I first got my Stelling, I fell in lover with her. She was beautiful, so I ended up naming her Beauty. Why a girl's name? Because of all the gold and bling she had and because she could be a little bit temperamental sometimes.

The little banjo that Dale Small made for me I ended up calling Shorty. Why? because he made the neck 3" shorter, thinner and narrower so my arthritis would allow me to pick. Worked for several years until I got my Stelling. Now Shorty sits there and stews because he doesn't get the attention he used to.

I never named my first banjo, don't know why.

gc picken you are my hero! Supposed to busy but yet sneaky enough to pull it off . Kudos. Great question. I hang a name on everything. BR-240 guitar- named Della, 28 tb-3 named- Ophelia. 34 tb-11-named Miss Annie. Frank Neat arch top, named Ralph. Davis Burled walnnut named . Milton. Lol. Get it ? Milton… burle ? And a rk-35 named Lamont jr.

All of the banjos that stay in the stable have names. The arch top is Archibald. Main jamming banjo, I had a Fletcher Bright CD on my table and "Fletcher" fit. 1940 Style 11 has a FON, Greg Earnest found the original owner's name in the Gibson ledgers, so the banjo has that owner's first name. All bear far more dignified names than what I've bestowed upon cats.

Banjos that do not inspire names, evidently no emotional attachment, they get resold.

I usually name the ones I build, but I'm not very original with many.  Like this one I call "Woody".  

My first Bluegrass banjo, a custom built Maple 4 hole arch top, became Archie. When the broken Star Flower neck on the Stelling was replaced with a Walnut Hearts & Flowers, it also got a matching resonator, more or less a complete makeover. Not to be mistaken for a Gibson, I had Monstertone inlaid on the peg head.  

I would but there just aren't enough names.

Never have; never will. I don’t name my cars either.

One is called Old Faithful, one is the Whyte Laydie, one is the Old Gal (Vega Wonder), and the RB150 is the Bow Tie. Don't ask me why I don't call the RB250 the Bow Tie.
Some days I may call my banjos names I can't post on here.

When my granddaughter was 3 years old she named my banjo Teasia. To this day I’m clueless as to where she came up with that name. ??

One of my banjos is "The Morgan Monroe." The other is, "The Gold Tone." 

I do have a third one that's more-or-less assigned a more-or-less permanent spot in the back of a clothes closet.... it's the one I got [read: overpaid] at a pawn shop to begin my banjo "journey" [cough, hack, splutter].  It has "Austin" on the headstock, but if/when I refer to it, it's usually, "that el-cheapo* one I got at the pawn shop."

* = that's not saying either of the other ones are expensive. 

Names?  Names?

Let me guess -- do they have middle names too?

And when you're upset with the banjo, do you call them by their full names:  "Jonathan William Smith, you better get in tune right quick."  

5 minutes of my life I'll never get back.

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Originally posted by Alex Z

Names?  Names?

Let me guess -- do they have middle names too?

And when you're upset with the banjo, do you call them by their full names:  "Jonathan William Smith, you better get in tune right quick."  

 

5 minutes of my life I'll never get back.

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I did warn you in the subject line! :)

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Originally posted by Texasbanjo

When I first got my Stelling, I fell in lover with her. She was beautiful, so I ended up naming her Beauty. Why a girl's name? Because of all the gold and bling she had and because she could be a little bit temperamental sometimes.

The little banjo that Dale Small made for me I ended up calling Shorty. Why? because he made the neck 3" shorter, thinner and narrower so my arthritis would allow me to pick. Worked for several years until I got my Stelling. Now Shorty sits there and stews because he doesn't get the attention he used to.

I never named my first banjo, don't know why.

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So men can't be beautiful? :(

My banjos are named "1925 TB-5 Conversion", "1998 Earl Scruggs Standard", and "1970s Univox/Kasuga". Pretty creative, I know...

Personally, I never thought of naming them. And then there would be the issue of pronouns - I would need to let them make their own decisions about that, I guess.

Maybe if I was a better player, I would have an emotional attachment. I do vaguely remember naming my children and dogs.

I had a Harmony bakelite many years ago.  I started calling it Li'l Buddy, but it told me it identified as a 1934 Gibson RB-4 and preferred to be called Duke, in fact, "Mr. Duke."

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Originally posted by Owen

One of my banjos is "The Morgan Monroe." The other is, "The Gold Tone." 

I do have a third one that's more-or-less assigned a more-or-less permanent spot in the back of a clothes closet.... it's the one I got [read: overpaid] at a pawn shop to begin my banjo "journey" [cough, hack, splutter].  It has "Austin" on the headstock, but if/when I refer to it, it's usually, "that el-cheapo* one I got at the pawn shop."

* = that's not saying either of the other ones are expensive. 

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Originally posted by gcpicken

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Originally posted by Texasbanjo

When I first got my Stelling, I fell in lover with her. She was beautiful, so I ended up naming her Beauty. Why a girl's name? Because of all the gold and bling she had and because she could be a little bit temperamental sometimes.

The little banjo that Dale Small made for me I ended up calling Shorty. Why? because he made the neck 3" shorter, thinner and narrower so my arthritis would allow me to pick. Worked for several years until I got my Stelling. Now Shorty sits there and stews because he doesn't get the attention he used to.

I never named my first banjo, don't know why.

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So men can't be beautiful? :(

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Men can be handsome and good looking, masculine and a bunch of other words, but beautiful..... I'll save that for females.  No offense to you males, some of you are gorgeous!

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Originally posted by gcpicken

Have any of you named any of your banjos?

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No names. Just descriptors. I have "the Janzegers" (50 years my partner in a few weeks), "the Gibson" (newest member of the family),  the archtop" and "the walnut" (also known as "the RK" but only because it has an RK no-hole tone ring. It's a parts banjo. There's also "the Rover," bought to take on a schooner cruise this past October.

In 2001, I had First Quality change the "Mastertone" block and Gibson script in the Janzegers to "Mazeltone" and my name. I suppose this banjo was briefly "the Mazeltone" but now the archtop and the walnut have that block, too. 

I didn't know my banjo had a name in the beginning.
I'd seen it hanging in Woodsound Studio for 23 years with its truss rod cover showing simply solid white.
I had it at home for a year and took the tenor to Jimmy in '99.
When he called 8 weeks later saying "Your banjer's done" I hit the road.
When I got there he handed me the new banjo with the old t rod cover on the new walnut FE neck.I said "I like that new cover" and he said "That was on the tenor neck...it was just turned over."

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Originally posted by Bill Rogers

Never have; never will. I don’t name my cars either.

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Yet one more reason (along with being from Lodi and respecting what you do as a moderator for BHO) why I like you!

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Originally posted by steveh_2o

I usually name the ones I build, but I'm not very original with many.  Like this one I call "Woody".  

 

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I am sorry, fellow BHO member, but the moniker "Woody" is already in use, as evidenced by the truss-rod cover on my Deering "Boston" banjo.  I am quite certain that you can find another handle for your five-string, yes?  Thank you very much.  

And if any of you wise guys were thinkin' 'bout namin' yer banjo "The Big Kahuna," well, it's already in use.  So, so... there! 

Dang you kahuna grande ! Lol.