Rich & Taylor: J.D. Crowe

Submitted by banjo-gord on 8/2/2008

Where Purchased: Private Sale

Year Purchased: 2008
Price Paid: 1500 ($US) (bought USED)

Sound

1995 JD Crowe with the 20-hole (Tennessee?) tonering. SS bridge, Weatherking head, Presto tailpiece. Mahogany resonator and neck. The sound of this banjo is warm and crisp.

Sound Rating: 9

Setup

The setup was perfect. The guy I bought it from is a talented non-pro who uses a drum torque wrench for the head, and had a small metal shim added to lift the neck up just a little. The tailpiece is set parallel to the head. I like to tinker, but I'm not going to touch a thing because the sound and playability are right where they should be.

The spacing on the neck is wider than was on my Deering Boston or my OME Juniper. But I quickly adjusted and now it feels normal.

Setup Rating: 9

Appearance

The appearance is great. This one has been well played. New professionally installed frets. Slight checking in the nitro finish. Very worn head. The metal is all good with no major corrosion.

The inlays are and unusual pattern from the 1920s re-discovered by Greg Rich. Gibson uses the same pattern on the Blackjack. They remind me of the original Atari Space Invaders game. Very well done.

Looks like a Cox 3-piece rim. The fit to the tonering is perfect.

Overall appearance is simple and traditional. Not too fancy, but not plain either. Just right.

Appearance Rating: 9

Reliability

If properly maintained, I expect this banjo to last 100 years or more. Why not? The old Gibson's are still making great music.

Reliability Rating: 9

Customer Service

N/A

Customer Service: not rated

Components

Nothing cheap, nothing needs replacing. Standout to me is the neck and the inlay pattern.

Components Rating: 9

Overall Comments

Absolutely would recommend this banjo to anyone who likes mahogany banjos. I got this banjo for not much more than some of the new imports. Enough said.

If it was stolen I would try to replace it with something similar, but these are hard to find, expecially at this price. There are lots of nice banjos from many different makers. I would try to find another that sounds, feels, and looks right. I'm not married to any brands.

Overall Rating: 9