The rim is three-ply maple with an uncut Mastertone label and a high-profile twenty-hole flathead tone ring.
The original Grover tuners have been replaced by Waverly V2s on the first and fourth strings and Keith tuners on the second and third strings, while the fifth-string peg is the original friction type. The hardware is nickel-plated and the tailpiece is the original Grover Presto. The wood is mahogany, with two white/black/white purfling rings on the back of the resonator and single white binding. Early Monroe banjo player Rudy Lyle played an RB- 3 identical to this one.Īside from the inlays and tone ring, this banjo conforms to standard catalog specifications for the style 3 of the period. It has been speculated that this small run of wreath-inlay style 3s was prompted by Gibson’s desire to use up inlays left over after the discontinuation of style 5, on which wreath inlays had been standard. The majority of 1930s style 3 banjos had leaves and bows inlays, while a few featured the flying eagle pattern and a handful were made with the wreath pattern. This is one of the most sought-after of all prewar Gibson banjos -an original flathead five-string RB- 3 Mastertone with a one-piece flange and the rare wreath inlay pattern. Crowe and Sonny Osborne are among the legendary players who established their reputations on flathead RB- 3s from the 1930s. All rights reserved.The prewar flathead five-string RB- 3 could be considered the classic bluegrass banjo Rudy Lyle, J.D. Shipping: Shipping $45 to continental U.S. If you prefer, I can substitute another older case that appears to be of higher quality and condition. The included original Gibson case is entirely serviceable, though definitely well used. There are a few very minor dings and light resonator buckle rash, all normal for its age. There is also a small area behind the neck where the finish has been worn off where your thumb would rest. Naturally they could be re-used if a sliding capo was installed again. I've tried to show them in one of the photos. The holes from the sliding capo have been filled, but are still visible. There was a Shubb 5-string sliding capo installed at one time, which was removed and spikes installed at frets 7, 8, 9, and 10. Included are both the original clam shell tailpiece and a newer Gibson brand Presto tailpiece, so you can use whichever you prefer. It also has D-tuners for the 2nd and 3rd strings and an excellent Snuffy Smith bridge. Like many of the original ESS models, the Stewart MacDonald tone ring was replaced by an excellent Huber ring. This banjo is the original Earl Scruggs Standard design, with the brighter "honey" maple colored resonator, which I personally much prefer over the current dark "sunburst" pattern. This banjo is loud and definitely has that characteristic Gibson sound, thanks no doubt to changes Greg made at Gibson at that time. This is a beautiful and great sounding Gibson Earl Scruggs Standard built in 1988, a year after Greg Rich took over production at Gibson, and one of the last to actually carry Earl's signature rather than a printed version. SCHMICK (1) Wyatt Fawley (1) Zach Hoyt (2)įor Sale: Gibson Earl Scruggs Standard, Greg Rich Era (sold) (1) Mitch (2) Mullins (1) Mulucky (1) No Name (3) Parts Banjo (2) Penco (1) Powers (1) Rochester Banjo (1) Ron Coleman (1) S.S.Stewart (5) Sagmoen (1) Schall (1) Sloan Fold-A-Jo (1) Soveriegn (1) Stone Banjo Company (3) stromberg (1) Stromberg Voisinet (1) Tim davis (1) Tokai (1) Tone King (1) Vance (2) Vega Artist (1) Vintage (3) Washburn Lyon-Healy (1) Watson (1) Werco (1) William Talley (1) Wm. (1) Melody-Jo (1) Merlin (1) Mike Ramsey (1) Mill Creek Banjos.
(1) Longneck Custom (1) LouZee (1) Ludwig (2) Majestic (1) Maybell (1) Melodier (1) Melody Plus 5-Strin. (2) Gretsch (3) Home-made (1) Janish (1) Janzinger (1) Jason Michael (1) Lakeside (1) Lange (2) Leon E. (1) Dogwood Banjos (2) Don Kawalek (2) Dopera Original (1) Encore (1) Farland (1) Flatiron (1) G.
(1) custom built (1) Dale Evans (1) Dale Small (2) Davis (7) Ditson / Victory ma. (1) Conqueror (1) Conrad (1) Criswell Classic ". Lennox (1) Clifford Essex (1) Colin Vance (1) Companion (1) Companion Custom Ba. (1) Belltone (1) Buckbee (1) Buckbee ? Your gu.
? (12) Andy York (1) Antique English Tun.