Well, for years I kept a spreadsheet of Osbornes that turned up, and I got up to around 10 of them documented. Word was no more than 12 or 15 were made.

I found photos of one of them with the same label you show with a "B" prefixed serial number. I don't know the official explanation of what the "B" stood for, but the other one I found went direct from the factory with a guy who wanted a HIGHLY customized. Gold binding, white paint finish, gold carved/painted filigree on the resonator, lots of "extra" little filigree pieces of inlay added to the peghead and fingerboard -- slightly reminiscent of the little short "vines" (?) around the 1st and 4th pegs on hearts & flowers Gibson inlay. It was gold plated, and it had an entire additional metal ring of some kind under the rim and flange with big holes drilled in it all around. Dangedest thing I ever saw. The label had handwritten "Osborne Americana" or something like that.

I did think to post some of those photos here on BHO years ago, I'll see if I can attach them here.

Sorry but the computer I had this all on, including photos, had hard drive crash that completely wrecked it. Ka-PUT. So I can't link you to any of that stuff now.

Your banjo is a previously unknown example to me.

Someone who might know more is Lincoln Hensley in E. Tennessee. He has access to several of Sonny's Vega banjos and might know about these "B" serial numbers.

I for one would love to see more photos! What a find!

I do still have a photo labeled "Sonny's Own" that perhaps I got from Lincoln H.

Here is a photo of the extra metal on the bottom of the rim of the Osborne Americana.  You can just see that it has the white label like yours plus the typical Vega yellow tape.

Let me add that in 1970-71 Bill Emerson published a detailed review in Bluegrass Unlimited of the the 4 or 5 leading American made bluegrass banjos. RB 250, Baldwin/Ode C, Vega Osborne, Vega Scruggs Soloist, and Fender.

He liked the Osborne but found it much too expensive (the most expensive model he reviewed), with a too-soft finish that wore off the neck very fast. He liked the use of the Whyte Laydie arches tone ring. He criticized the new Scruggs for high price, but he praised the new inlay designer. He dismissed the rest of the banjo as just a facelift on the Vega VIP shoe bolt banjo pot.

He ranked the Fender #1 and switched to that model for his own banjo for years. He named the Baldwin/Ode #2 and a very solid value. Vegas were at #3, and the "new" RB 250 (with RB 75 style neck, sort of) as the worst.

I owned an Osborne model myself after a long search.  It was extremely expensive but I loved it.  To sit in the house and play it along with the Foggy Mtn Banjo LP was extremely satisfying - sounded just the like banjo in the stereo speakers to me.   But jamming at a festival, a friend told me it didn't have the "carrying power" of a Gibson arch top.  I eventually traded that banjo after several years, for a prototype Gibson Mac Crow banjo which I still have, and love.  I also owned a Vega Scruggs Mark II at the same time and the Osborne beat the pants off it for depth of tone and "sonority".

The Vega Sonny Osborne model is one of the rarest banjos made. It's interesting that Sonny played Vega banjos for about a decade, but he seldom played his Osborne model. Most footage from the Osborne Bros. shows of that era show him with a standard model. There are few pictures and videos of him playing the Osborne. He later had it fitted with a six-string neck and played it that way for some years.
The label shows the Needham Heights address which is the last address where Vega banjos were made before being sold to Martin. The eagle decal in the resonator is interesting. I don't know if it came from the factory that way, or it was put in after-market. I know that clear heads became a novelty for some years starting in the early seventies. It wasn't uncommon for banjo players to decorate the insides of their banjos for that reason.

quote:

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Originally posted by Culloden

The Vega Sonny Osborne model is one of the rarest banjos made. It's interesting that Sonny played Vega banjos for about a decade, but he seldom played his Osborne model. Most footage from the Osborne Bros. shows of that era show him with a standard model. There are few pictures and videos of him playing the Osborne. He later had it fitted with a six-string neck and played it that way for some years.
The label shows the Needham Heights address which is the last address where Vega banjos were made before being sold to Martin. The eagle decal in the resonator is interesting. I don't know if it came from the factory that way, or it was put in after-market. I know that clear heads became a novelty for some years starting in the early seventies. It wasn't uncommon for banjo players to decorate the insides of their banjos for that reason.

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... and also after being sold to Martin.

?

quote:

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Originally posted by The Old Timer

Let me add that in 1970-71 Bill Emerson published a detailed review in Bluegrass Unlimited of the the 4 or 5 leading American made bluegrass banjos. RB 250, Baldwin/Ode C, Vega Osborne, Vega Scruggs Soloist, and Fender.

He liked the Osborne but found it much too expensive (the most expensive model he reviewed), with a too-soft finish that wore off the neck very fast. He liked the use of the Whyte Laydie arches tone ring. He criticized the new Scruggs for high price, but he praised the new inlay designer. He dismissed the rest of the banjo as just a facelift on the Vega VIP shoe bolt banjo pot.

He ranked the Fender #1 and switched to that model for his own banjo for years. He named the Baldwin/Ode #2 and a very solid value. Vegas were at #3, and the "new" RB 250 (with RB 75 style neck, sort of) as the worst.

I owned an Osborne model myself after a long search.  It was extremely expensive but I loved it.  To sit in the house and play it along with the Foggy Mtn Banjo LP was extremely satisfying - sounded just the like banjo in the stereo speakers to me.   But jamming at a festival, a friend told me it didn't have the "carrying power" of a Gibson arch top.  I eventually traded that banjo after several years, for a prototype Gibson Mac Crow banjo which I still have, and love.  I also owned a Vega Scruggs Mark II at the same time and the Osborne beat the pants off it for depth of tone and "sonority".

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Actually, your post on here from around 2009 about documenting them was one of the few things I found online! 

That's neat! I'd like to find those reviews! Have you heard/seen what Vega priced these banjos when new? Since I have no plans on selling, I don't mind sharing that I paid $3k for this one. I'm not sure what it's worth, but I don't think I'll ever find another for that. I'm sure Bill would've had an easier time overlooking the price if he knew that some Tennessee hillbilly would fork over $3k for one that's got a good bit of wear on it in 2026 lol!

I haven't spent a lot of time playing it yet, but I did pick for a minute after I got it all cleaned up with fresh strings this afternoon. It has more sustain and volume than I expected it to have...but maybe that's a result of all the playing that it's had in its life! 

I appreciate you chiming in! I love soaking up all the knowledge I can get, so hit me with any you have! 

quote:

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Originally posted by Culloden

The Vega Sonny Osborne model is one of the rarest banjos made. It's interesting that Sonny played Vega banjos for about a decade, but he seldom played his Osborne model. Most footage from the Osborne Bros. shows of that era show him with a standard model. There are few pictures and videos of him playing the Osborne. He later had it fitted with a six-string neck and played it that way for some years.
The label shows the Needham Heights address which is the last address where Vega banjos were made before being sold to Martin. The eagle decal in the resonator is interesting. I don't know if it came from the factory that way, or it was put in after-market. I know that clear heads became a novelty for some years starting in the early seventies. It wasn't uncommon for banjo players to decorate the insides of their banjos for that reason.

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I've been hunting for footage of Sonny playing one for a bit now. I think the FMB video is the only footage I've found so far. I'm sure there's more, but I haven't found any yet!

I knew the production numbers were low, but I spent about a month considering buying it because I wasn't sure how easy it would be to resell if I decided I wasn't happy with it. A buddy of mine who is a BIG Osborne Brothers fan convinced me when he told me he had never seen one in person, but had always wanted to. He gets to meet it this Tuesday!

I thought about the clear head craze when I saw the decals...maybe I'll put one on it and show the decals off one day!

The clear head will show every scratch if your fingerpicks hit it. That's why I quit using one. That may be why they eventually went out of style.

The circa 1976 "Spirit of 76" decals were very unlikely to be from Vega.

Banjour, I'll look for those old issues of Bluegrass Unlimited with the banjo reviews. As I recollect Emerson criticized the "overpriced" Vegas for being in the range of $650 or so, circa 1970.

quote:

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Originally posted by The Old Timer

Banjour, I'll look for those old issues of Bluegrass Unlimited with the banjo reviews. As I recollect Emerson criticized the "overpriced" Vegas for being in the range of $650 or so, circa 1970.

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In 1969 the Osborne model was $720 +$68 for a case.  In the 1970 (and later) catalog the Osborne is gone.

I recently put up all the catalogs, now we no longer have to speculate. 

Thanks Joel.

quote:

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Originally posted by Culloden

The clear head will show every scratch if your fingerpicks hit it. That's why I quit using one. That may be why they eventually went out of style.

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You're right! I've had to use pick-ups in my banjos to play in theaters in Pigeon Forge for about 10 years now...I like the feel of HEAVY strings, so I've had to slap some clear heads on to help clear up a couple banjos before. They never look good for long, and I never really liked the sound acoustic, but there was something to using that set-up with the Fishman pick-up that worked really well! 

quote:

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Originally posted by Joel Hooks

quote:

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Originally posted by The Old Timer

Banjour, I'll look for those old issues of Bluegrass Unlimited with the banjo reviews. As I recollect Emerson criticized the "overpriced" Vegas for being in the range of $650 or so, circa 1970.

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In 1969 the Osborne model was $720 +$68 for a case.  In the 1970 (and later) catalog the Osborne is gone.

I recently put up all the catalogs, now we no longer have to speculate. 

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Thanks, Joel! Google says that's about the same purchasing power as $6,500 today...I guess Bill Emerson was right! 

OK I found Part II of Bill Emerson's article reviewing the current state of bluegrass banjos. Nov 1968 Bluegrass Unlimited, Vol 3 No 5. Part I was two months earlier in Sept 1968, but I can't lay hands on it right now. Part II includes a table summarizing Part I and II. I'm sorry I can't upload scans because of file format issues.

Bill wrote this article specifically because he had seen Sonny Osborne's own Osborne Vega at the South Mountain PA festival.

Bill calls it "sturdy and well made". He compliments the peghead shape and new inlays. He speaks positively of whoever at Vega is redesigning inlays, although he finds them still a bit "crude". (The Scruggs Soloist had been mentioned earlier and it too had new inlays.) Like earlier Vegas, Bill thought the finish looked "plasticky". Sonny told him the model comes with a Kroll geared 5th peg standard.

Bill mentions he "was never able to figure out all of the Allen screws, nuts and bolts, steel rods and aluminum tubes", although he concludes they seem to be highly adjustable and secure. He naturally criticizes Vega's replacement of two tension hooks with the posts that hold the armrest on. (Note this was soon eliminated in favor of the typical Gibson style armrest connection I think).

He mentions the Whyte Laydie tone ring and he thinks it makes the banjo sound "fine". He speaks well of the metal parts on the banjo for strength (unlike Gibson tension hooks which had a tendency to break off).

As for sound, Bill finds the Osborne to be much better than the earlier Scruggses and VIPs and Pros. "Deep tone." "Good and loud". "Not particularly keen or sharp". He concludes the paragraph on sound with an odd comment "I still can't overcome the feeling that this banjo is made out of plastic and isn't really playable. This probably because of the weird colors and high gloss of the finish."

Bill it's hard to make detailed comparison of this banjo to others in the market because Vegas are "very different". Bill felt the banjo had to be a compromise between what Sonny wanted and what Vega was willing do. Bill says at least Sonny plays his model, where Earl Scruggs gave up on his.

Comparison wise Emerson says the Osborne is a very good instrument and in its own way equal to or better than most of its competitors. "Price-wise, it is not." List price then was $640 which was $200 above its competitors. Bill says "For the life of me I can't see what they've done to it that makes it cost $200 or more than a Vega Pro II." Noting for that kind of money you can get the gold plated Baldwin Style D. But, "I like the heck out of the banjo. It sounds great...It'll last you the rest of your life, and if they'd put on a carved resonator or gold plate it would be well worth $640."

The rating table shows Fender Artist with overall A-. Baldwin C gets B+. Osborne gets B. Gibson gets C.

Fender beat Osborne's neck feel, inlay and finish (A instead of B). Overall appearance Fender got A instead of B. Tonewise they both got A but Emerson listed tone clarity as a separate item where Fender got A instead of B. Volume, both got A. Price/value Fender got a B but Osborne got a D! The Baldwin/Ode C got the A for price/value. Gibson also got D on price/value even though their price was lower than the Vega, but Gibson got a number of D scores on the particular ratings.

Of course we know that Emerson soon switched to performing with the Fender Artist.

I note that no one ever did another such rating in BU on the leading brands of bluegrass instruments. There were plenty of articles describing individual instrument models, no more head to head comparisons.