ellobo does anyone know if my banjo came from the factory this way or is the tone ring an add on.it is a 1957 rb 100 gibson with a heavy duty 20 hole tone ring.
The tone ring is an add on. RB 100's only had a hoop ring on top of the rim.
I have always thought that part of the appeal of the RB-100 was the fact that the tone hoop made the banjo much lighter in weight than if it had a full metal tone ring. This same reason is why the Fender Allegro appeals to me; albeit that both of these banjos are/were intended to be "economy" or "entry" models. To me, adding a tone ring would defeat the purpose of owning an RB-100.
Robert
I think in the Future the more sought after RB100’s will be the ones that haven't been butchered and are still the original spec as they left the factory.
No one is planning for 40 years down the road when they try to improve something. It happens to everything and why antiques can bring more than altered/refin etc.
folks redid bikes, musclecars, banjos, guitars, chopped up historical homes to make weird apartments, sawed tips off bang things back prewar to “hip shoot” birds, etc. people have ruined rifle stocks shortening them, etc. rare to find old long guns that haven’t been improved through a couple reruns and home bluing attempts.
you’ll find tons of old amps and cases painted over from beautiful tweed or brown tiles vinyl that “wasn’t the latest style”. People are just trying to make something fitting with the times that they perceive is a good idea. Who really knows what will be coll3xtible or not in 50 years.
Don’t let the fact that something has been modified ruin your ownership of it. It’s hard for things to make it through time unchanged. Accept it, move on, and don’t sit around wishing someone hadn’t done something to alter your banjo, or modified 32 Ford or whatever.
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