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I think that using "collector" to refer to the preponderance of those who own these instruments is a misnomer. It's been my experience that most of the owners of these instruments own them for the purpose of playing them. They're non-professional players who just happen to have the wherewithal to afford them, so they buy them. and they play them.
It has been said that a cynic is someone who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing.
Edited by - RB3 on 08/21/2024 07:59:45
quote:
Originally posted by RB3I think that using "collector" to refer to the preponderance of those who own these instruments is a misnomer. It's been my experience that most of the owners of these instruments own them for the purpose of playing them. They're non-professional players who just happen to have the wherewithal to afford them, so they buy them. and they play them.
It has been said that a cynic is someone who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing.
Agree totally ..... same experience with people who own these things ..... and most likely many of the same people you know.
"It has been said that a cynic is someone who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing."
Yep ...... I run into a lot of these folks too!
I will add my 2 cents to this thread ! - : the far majority of the prewar flathead one piece flange Gibson banjos were indeed tenors and plectrums. Original five string versions were very rare indeed, and usually fetch in the 100K + price range, (mainly because they are so rare). And that price is for the style 3, 4, 75, and the top tension style 7, 12, and 18. Try to buy an original five string one piece flange Granada, and you're looking at 300 to 350K or more...! Even at that, the demand for the prewar flathead far exceeds the supply. So naturally they command a very high price. In many ways it sure is a shame that a banjo that 85 to 90 years ago cost only a few hundred dollars at best and less than 400 or so for the Granada... is so expensive today. But it is what it is. As Jim Mills and many others have said, "IF you want one badly enough, you will figure out a way to get it." I also think it's somewhat of a shame that a fair number of these banjos are in fact in collections of folks who by any standard "might" be considered relatively wealthy, and some of those are usually kept in a safe or something like that. If one owns something, of course they may do with it as they wish. I also firmly believe that most of these instruments are owned, and played, by banjo players, and many of those are professional musicians, or play well enough that they could be considered professional level musicians, (but in fact have chosen another profession as their main means of income.) I can tell you for sure, positively 100% that after playing many of these instruments, NO modern banjo can touch them. NONE, NADA, ZILCH, ZERO. Of course this is simply my opinion, but it's shared by many! This argument has been going on for decades. It may be likened to the cost of nearly any very old, or very high end instrument of about any sort - The prewar D 28 and D 18 Martin guitars, (Try to buy a prewar D 45) A Lloyd Loar F 5 mandolin, A Strad violin.... and others. Can it be argued that a very large number of deserving musicians SHOULD have access to one of these instruments? Of course it can! But as with most other things in life, the instrument owned by a musician is in large part mostly dictated by what he/she can afford. Most of us reach a point of maturity and wisdom that we realize life many times is not fair... and I challenge anyone to define fair as used in this context. Nuff' said!
Edited by - GStump on 08/21/2024 08:34:45
I think a lot of people severely underestimate the number of "normal everyday folks" that can afford to drop $100k on a fun toy without even thinking about it.
As a hobby, my brother buys/sells classic cars and motorcycles. Most of them are high 5-figures. Some of them have values that exceed $100k. He's not a "wealthy collector", he's not a racecar driver, he's not a mechanic, and he doesn't have any expectations of profit when selling. He doesn't have a lot of technical knowledge about them. He just likes them and has the means to buy them, so he does. If he was into banjos, he could easily make the short drive to Elderly and buy this one. There's a lot of people out there just like him.
When you've got a few million bucks in the bank, spending $90k on a toy isn't something that causes the consternation exhibited by some of the comments in this thread. I know it bothers a lot of people to hear this, but it's really not that much money.
I sure wish more millionaires thought 90k isnt a lot of money. I deal with the pretty darn rich every other day in my construction business. Never met one that doesnt argue to the hilt to get that last 500 bucks off the price.
Middle class folks finance and dont haggle so much because they know roofers and framers are one of them. If you dont think 90k is a lot of money, then donate 90k to a good charity. Ooops, then its too much money right?
There are a lot of people who can afford or finance 425k as shown by the housing markets avg home, but i challenge the motivation to say they can to others.
I will agree that 60, or 80, or 90K is certainly NOT a huge amount of money for many folks, even folks that would be considered solidly middle class. BUT the reasons that many don't feel they can spend 60 or 80 or 90K on a banjo, for perfectly good reasons, are many and varied! One thing is for sure, 90K certainly isn't today what it was 20 or 30 or 40 years ago. And another thing (most likely!) is for sure, that same 90K today won't be worth nearly as much in 20 years from now!
We have this discussion every few months. There's a certain level of collectible where you not buying a depreciating toy but just converting your savings from one asset class to another. How many of us are not rich but do have 80,000 in our pension pots or other savings ? Much more fun to own an appreciating (or not) banjo than to own an appreciating (or not) stock portfolio.
Edited by - AndrewD on 08/21/2024 11:58:29
quote:
Originally posted by Keith Billikquote:
Originally posted by tdennisThis sale has nothing to do w/ a musical instrument & it's merits or age. This plectrum is being sold as if it was a work of art w/ a special provenance. A fantasy price was created out of thin air for a fantasy buyer, in hopes that it will pass as a Tony Trischka relic.
I assure you that Elderly does not create prices out of thin air, with no regard for what an instrument is, or its merits or age. What an outrageous thing to say.
LOL....LOL....that cracks me up!
Nothing outrageous about it. It happens all the time in the vintage instrument world. What is outrageous is to assume that the folks who create those prices are so much smarter than the average player/collector/investor!
Edited by - Mark Douglas on 08/21/2024 19:45:40
quote:
Originally posted by Keith Billikquote:
Originally posted by 550Spyderquote:
Originally posted by Keith Billikquote:
Originally posted by tdennisThis sale has nothing to do w/ a musical instrument & it's merits or age. This plectrum is being sold as if it was a work of art w/ a special provenance. A fantasy price was created out of thin air for a fantasy buyer, in hopes that it will pass as a Tony Trischka relic.
I assure you that Elderly does not create prices out of thin air, with no regard for what an instrument is, or its merits or age. What an outrageous thing to say.
I've sold instruments through Elderly many years ago, on consignment at 15% (yes, that long ago). Elderly came up with a price but the seller always had the last say on a price.
If they still have that policy or even if they don't, I can't imagine that Elderly had anything to do with setting the price on this one. It seems very likely that TT set the price considering consignment fees, etc. and simply asked Elderly if they were interested, or not.
However, they don't just allow owners to set whatever price they want, in a way that would result in an unethical asking price.
Of course not....they would never allow an unethical asking price to be associated with a their business! Potential buyers would immediately know it was unethical and the damage to their credibility would be irreparable!
Thank goodness this doesn't happen in the real world!
frank had this banjo for sale in 81 so he could expand his shop, although it listed as a pb (also on banjophiles) it is a tenor. i seen the original neck and case. the neck had the s/n penciled in the heel. just wanted to set the record straight, btw, he offered it to me for $3500. kick myself to this day for not buying it
quote:
Originally posted by bluegrassboybtw, he offered it to me for $3500. kick myself to this day for not buying it
If it makes you feel better, $3500 invested into the S&P Index fund $SPY, in August 1981, would now be worth $415,000.
Using the two data points available to us, assuming it was actually worth the $3500 they were asking (and it may not have been, considering you didn't buy it) we can conclude that this banjo has fallen to less than 25% of its value in the 80s.
QED: banjos are a terrible investment.
Edited by - KCJones on 08/25/2024 05:07:20
415k assumes 11.63% annualized return vs the actual 10.26%. Also, prior to the online trading one would need to hire a broker which drew up to 30% back in the old days of the 80s and 90s. It also does not include fees and taxes if you sold. I doubt these banjo selling guys pay taxes even though legally they should.
So you case hinges on way more variables than raw gains, but I see your point. I would counter that if you sold in 2002, your banjo investment wasnt bad. Even today, not bad provided you played it for 40 years.
First pre-war flathead was from Mandolin Bros. Bought it in 1978 sold it in 2007 to eliminate my twin girl's college debt. Yes, a terrific appreciation on my investment, although my broker said he could have done better. But, I would not have had the pleasure I received from playing and owning that banjo. When I sold, I had decided I could be satisfied with a 30's Gibson parts banjo I got from Chris Warner in the mid '70s. That sufficed until 12 years ago when I met Gregg Stump, went to Banjothon, actually met Oldtwanger (we knew of each other since '78) and was re-infected with the remarkable tones of the old Gibsons. I'm but an adequate player but the happiness I know from playing old Gibsons, and the personal relationships I've kindled from like minded banjo obsessives - cannot be valued in dollars.
Tony tells a little back story on this banjo on the Fretboard Journal Podcast he was on promoting Earl Jam. Basically how he was blown away by how into his own PW Granada Sonny was. That after all those years of playing lots of banjos, he really got off on that special PW Granada. And that Sonny found it for him about a year later and set him up with it.
fretboardjournal.com/podcasts/...trischka/
quote:
Originally posted by KCJonesWould this make a good first banjo?
I've been considering a Vangoa "Remo" Professional Five String Banjo, or possibly a Gold Tone OT-2 "Mastertone" for slightly more, but this one looks good too. Both this and the OT-2 are Mastertone banjos, so that means they're pretty much the same thing. But the Vangoa seems like a much better deal.
What does this banjo offer over a similarly built Gold Tone or Vangoa?
It offers alot better resale value than the other 2 banjos your thinking about buying.
Another BHO thread devolves into judgment and squabbling. Could have been an opportunity to point out the great recordings TT did with this banjo, or a comparison of its tone to other 30s PBs, or a discussion of the banjo's setup, or some discussion of why TT wants his Deering more than this PB after having the PB for 40 years.
But why would we waste our time on banjo talk? There is a hypothetical high-level amateur player out there who has been blessed with a day job that gives them enough financial freedom to enjoy and seriously study banjo in the evenings and on weekends! We need to focus on criticizing them for where they spend their money! And also the reputable small business that is serving as the intermediary, they are going to take a cut of the sale! What monsters!
I may be taking a curve in the thread here but I’ve been waiting for a decent time to interject some 2 cents worth for what 2 cents is worth, about aspirations and criticisms regarding your competency as a player and what banjo you deserve to own – or, as regarding ‘pre-war snobs’.
In my opinion, what Page said above about his first pre-war flathead >
….“ I would not have had the pleasure I received from playing and owning that banjo.”
…. (and)
….“I'm but an adequate player but the happiness I know from playing old Gibsons, and the personal relationships I've kindled from like minded banjo obsessives - cannot be valued in dollars.”
In my thinking, Page, in a few good words sums up a certain personal joy, quiet pride, appreciation for, emotional comfort, [etc.], for owning specific banjos - pre-war Gibson's in particular.
I’ve heard but never held, played, or necessarily aspired to own any ‘respectable’ pre-war Gibson banjo but from time to time on BHO, those folks that do are ridiculed as ‘pre-war snobs’ who are chasing after a sound that doesn’t exist.
But my point of this post (the 2 cents worth) is that one’s ‘certain personal joy, quiet pride, appreciation for, emotional comfort, self-entitlement, [etc.], of ‘owning’ or being the ‘caretaker’ of anything (tangible or otherwise) is entirely sufficient to just do it if all the other relevant stars are in alignment.
Have at it and enjoy your banjo, your family, your Porsche, your downtime, your home, your work, quality preferences, as much as you can – perhaps restricted only by restraining order, parole, resources, guilt, etc.
Another spin on this whole conversation. A question: Tony prefers to use his current Deering over this one? If I was thinking about this, I would want to try the Deering to compare, given its cost is a whole lot less. The provenance is certainly a significant value but as a player this should be a consideration.
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