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I dunno ... [about] the third post down on this page https://www.banjohangout.org/group/deeringownersclub/blog/8397 makes me wonder.
Uuck, those plastic anchors hurt my sensibilities. It looks like that Gumby had wood threads that stripped. The resonator on my Gumby has unplated-brass-threaded-octagonal-lugs on the resonator and plated thumbscrews. I would imagine that some of the Goodtime banjos have threaded metal inserts in the resonator as an option?...
I’ve never seen that on a Goodtime, and I had a first run Goodtime resonator model over 20 years ago, with the original factory, hex shaped brass threaded fittings… the same thing they still use today. That’s either an after market repair, or an off brand resonator fitted to a Goodtime… I DID own a Gold Tone CC100R in the past, and it did have glued in blocks such as show by the op, but it DID NOT have drywall anchors, it had threaded brass inserts in the blocks.
Wouldn’t it work better if you removed the blocks and glued in new blocks made of drywall? At least then the anchors would be in the material they were designed for! ??
On a more serious note, I’ve recently made some anchors by threading fiberglass rod. It takes a thread well and it glues well with epoxy.
I’d be happy to send you some if you’d like to try them. It would be a tiny step toward paying you back my debt of favors.
After discussion and looking more at this, it did look like these were a factory thing. I don't think that it was a good idea but I did leave them since they were original to the banjo. I did scrape off the old glue, glue with Titebond, and reinstalled them. The reason that the blocks popped off seems to be that the hole was partly into the block and partly the resonator so over tightening into the insert put pressure on the block which separated it from the resonator. If this continues to be an issue, I'll probably remove the blocks and put in standard mounts (or similar).
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Originally posted by euler357After discussion and looking more at this, it did look like these were a factory thing. I don't think that it was a good idea but I did leave them since they were original to the banjo. I did scrape off the old glue, glue with Titebond, and reinstalled them. The reason that the blocks popped off seems to be that the hole was partly into the block and partly the resonator so over tightening into the insert put pressure on the block which separated it from the resonator. If this continues to be an issue, I'll probably remove the blocks and put in standard mounts (or similar).
I seriously doubt that Deering would ever do something like that in their factory. This 'repair' is too amateurish for a prestigious brand such as Deering. Some previous owner has done thing without really thinking about what they were doing.
I was in Winfield Ks when Deering unveiled the first Goodtime to the public, and I bought one of their earliest Gumby resonator models a few years later. I’ve followed them from the beginning, and have owned four of them. I still own three, and my favorite is nearing 30 years old. I have NEVER seen this kind of resonator anchor on a Goodtime, or any Deering banjo. As I mentioned before, I have seen this on a Gold Tone CC100R. Someone has fit an off brand, poorly repaired resonator, onto a Deering banjo. That is not factory.
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Originally posted by Dean TI was in Winfield Ks when Deering unveiled the first Goodtime to the public, and I bought one of their earliest Gumby resonator models a few years later. I’ve followed them from the beginning, and have owned four of them. I still own three, and my favorite is nearing 30 years old. I have NEVER seen this kind of resonator anchor on a Goodtime, or any Deering banjo. As I mentioned before, I have seen this on a Gold Tone CC100R. Someone has fit an off brand, poorly repaired resonator, onto a Deering banjo. That is not factory.
Yeah, I would think that this wouldn't have been their solution. I am fairly certain that the blocks that the anchors are now mounted in are original because of how the black paint from the resonator matches perfectly on the ones that weren't obviously re-glued. I don't see how the standard hex mounts/inserts would have been installed given that there no holes for them so I'm not sure what was originally there. Maybe just a hole in the wood for the screws (without inserts)? I did find that the resonator / rim have changed enough over time that the original blocks "popped off." The inserts would give it a bit more play. Does anybody have photos of the inside of a Goodtime Resonator banjo from the 1st generation / Gumby? All of the ones that I find have the threaded inserts / hex mounts in them which weren't installed in this one (since there are no holes in the resonator for them). This is kinda OBE now since I kept them installed and gave it back to the owner. If there are more problems, I'll install another mounting method.
After going through some old photos, and looking at some old resonators for sale on eBay, I’m going to retract my statement about the Gold Tone CC100R resonator having blocks. All the photos I saw on eBay, shows Gold Tone resonators using the same hex shaped anchor hardware, as Deering.
I did have an old beater no-name bottle cap resonator banjo, which had the blocks with brass inserts. I’m sure now, that’s the memory I was thinking about. I had that and the Gold Tone over 20 years ago, so memories are fuzzy. But looking at some eBay adds, I saw the brand names Dean, Stagg, and Rougue as having resonators with the block/inserts.
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Originally posted by euler357I got a response from Deering. They confirmed that this was the original method that they used on the Goodtime resonator models and that their method evolved to the thumbscrew and stud method that is common now.
That's really interesting! I've never seen it, and couldn't find any photo history. It must have been very early and in low numbers. My first Gumby resonator model was from the early years, and already had the hex studs.