Gibson Banjos
We stock a wide range of Gibson banjos, including pre-war, vintage, and relatively recent styles through the very last of the Gibson banjos produced in 2010.
As the quality standard, Gibson banjos were played by nearly all the top players, including Earl Scruggs, J D Crowe, Ralph Stanley, Sonny Osborne, Bill Emerson, and many others. More recent top banjoists who play Gibson banjos include Bela Fleck, Noan Pikelney, Jim Mills, Bill Evans, and Kristin Scott Benson.
Give us a call if you have any questions. We love to talk about banjos. Keep in mind that we nearly always have several Gibson banjos in stock that haven’t yet made it to our website listings.
This Stelling Masterpiece 10th Anniversary Banjo was manufactured between February 4 and February 21, 1986. It's a striking art piece and a powerful instrument with a breathtaking tone. This is the ninth and final Masterpiece made by Geoff Stelling for his company's tenth anniversary in 1984. In total, Geoff made 100 Masterpieces during his illustrious career.
The early Rich and Taylor-era instruments from 1993 are arguably the best-sounding banjos made in the last 35 years. The company was a collaboration between Greg Rich and Mark Taylor, son of famous Dobro player Tut Taylor, that formed shortly after Rich left Gibson (the Rich-era banjos that he made at Gibson from 1987-1993 are highly regarded as well).
This Stelling Bill Emerson Red Fox banjo came from a private collector and is in excellent condition. The gold plating looks almost brand new, and there is virtually no wear on the edge of the armrest where a banjo player's forearm usually touches. The engraving also looks fantastic. I especially love the holes in the flange that are engraved on the edge.
The Calico is one of my favorite Deering banjos in this price range. It has an attractive blonde curly maple neck and resonator with nickel plated metal parts including a full-weight brass flathead tone ring.
This Huber VRB 3 Banjo was manufactured in 2016 at their factory in Nashville and has the same features if you bought a new one today from Steve: an engineered rim, a Huber HR-30 tone ring, and a mahogany neck and resonator.
RK’s Songster shows its roots with time-honored components that give a nod to bluegrass history right down to the original RK hex-stamped flange design. The mahogany resonator and neck combine with the rolled tone ring and classy gloss finish for true banjo tone and vintage bluegrass authenticity players won’t often find at this price.
"Pre-war" style, at a price anyone can afford, AND authentic tone and superb playability describe the OB-150. This Bluegrass banjo sports a three-ply maple rim and one-piece flange (just like the megabucks originals), a maple neck inlayed in authentic style, a brass flathead tone ring, and a smooth satin finish. The OB-150 is professionally set up in our Florida shop and comes with TRANSFERRABLE lifetime warranty.
We set about creating a worthy modern evocation of this tremendous old banjo: the Gold Tone OB-2 Bowtie. The feature set resembles the original banjo: a mahogany neck, maple resonator, beautiful golden sunburst finish, and even a nineteen-hole flathead tone ring. Updated features include superb-quality Gotoh machine heads, the renowned Dotson bridge, a Presto-style tailpiece, and dual coordinator rods for precise adjustment.
The Sullivan Deluxe Banjo sounds incredible and gives you more bang for your buck than instruments that cost three times as much. The neck and resonator are mahogany with a rosewood fingerboard and attractive inlays. The Sullivan Deluxe has a three-ply hard rock maple shell, a powerful Sullivan full-weight flathead tone ring, and professional keys. The frets are in excellent condition with little to no wear. This banjo was thoroughly detailed, and the metal was shined in our shop so it gleams.
This longneck openback RB-175 Gibson banjo is from the late 1960s or early 1970s. It has three extra frets which allow banjoists and singers to play in open E.