vega banjo headstock

Best of luck and thanks for your query, Barry. Jim _Thanks for your query. I have recently acquired from Florida another VEGA Martin VIP model #845, which sounds totally different than the other 2, almost a rich full old timey sound yet with a resonator. I think i’m in heaven. The last one was produced in early 1975 despite being their very first banjo made that year. New and used generic flanges can be found on eBay, but getting one to fit your pot outer diameter and bracket hook sequence is tricky. Just bought a martin-vega banjo from an old man in North Carolina. C.F. Unbeknownst to most 5 string aficionados, the Martin Guitar Company manufactured  Vega banjos from 1970 through 1979. Martin made 101 of the PS-5 instruments which listed for $488 without case in the final V/M price list in 1971. The SN 1456 on the outside of your tone ring is a fascinating and new discovery to me, and we VM banjo owners should inspect our tone rings for this hidden marking the next time a head gets exchanged. It is great to hear from someone who actually visited the Vega factory in Needham Heights, Massachusetts. Vintage 20's Vega No.7 Whyte Laydie Plectrum 4 String Banjo w/HSC-Very Ornate Vintage 20's Vega No.7 Whyte Laydie Plectrum 4 String Banjo w/HSC-Very Ornate Welcome bidders. Barry, Marc- Thanks much for the prompt and telling photos. Your tenor 4-stringer was built in early 1972 per Shop Order 2051. It's a great time to upgrade your home music studio gear with the largest selection at eBay.com. I’m assuming this is the serial number, which would put me right next to Mark, who owned #888 in previous comment 6. built in 1971, my long neck looks like it was built yesterday and all I added was a geared 5th string peg…stuck it in an American Vintage case and screwed a CF Martin brass medallion to the side. The serial numbers for the overseas-produced instruments were in the 2000+ range in sequence with the last official VM banjo manufactured in Nazareth, PA, which bore #1969. Martin historian Mike Longworth. Your slightly blurry photo of the interior of the pot (not included here) show two tubular connecting rods which are left -over parts from the Vega factory in Boston. Good luck with your vintage Seeger long neck and photos of this prize would be most welcome for posting here if you are so inclined. The long neck banjo is less popular nowadays with the surge in Bluegrass music, but I have two of them and value their mellow wife-friendly tone. it has five strings and if you would be so kind let me know something about it and if someone you know wants to play it, I guess it would be better off with them; or I will go take lessons I suppose. vintage, Fairbanks-Vega 5-string banjo… In the final Martin price listed published in 1971, it listed for $345 without case. Martin`s transition from traditional Spanish, Viennese, and Renaissance structural features towards innovating a modern acoustic guitar with a unique cross brace design. The “Pro” model initially featured a “Tube-a-phone tone chamber rim” which evolved into a tone ring with  “exclusively designed audio apertures” machined into a dogbone/barbell configuration. I think I’ll go look up a local banjo instructor and take a few lessons. Make it your own with a custom color. This banjo, #1816, is close to the last Vega/Martin built which was #1974...this is an outstanding banjo. Wim, (Ed.- Note the classic  Tubaphone tone ring. Your instrument is kept safe in drops up to 9 ft. Case maintains a gradual increase or decrease in internal temperature for up to 90 minutes. I have attached photos comparing the label printing difference. He on his banjo and me with my guitar. The VIP-T is a nice mid range banjo model, and I have a VIP-5 which has a pleasant mid range tonal response. Ironically, C.F. Your banjo was built circa 1964, and the “A” pre-fix to the serial number means `adjustable truss rod`. Retail price was $1300.00 ; I paid $900.00 . $4.48. The distinct disadvantage to having a rare banjo is finding replacement parts. Note below the “C.F. I purchased the instrument from a private dealer (Kingsport, TN) for $800. Although it lacks Martin`s identifying features, your banjo looks like a lovely instrument. Thank you so much!! It has the original hardshell case also with no markings. Hope this helps. Can you identify this  rare Vega Martin banjo just by the peghead markings? Martin in the 1970’s (I have sent you the title page illustrating your instrument). Just look at pictures! The Vega line was then marketed in the USA by TMC Company (Targ & Dinner 20 Century Music Company). The Earl Scruggs Deluxe five-string banjo made specifically by Vega in 1960 bore a resemblance to Vega’s ultra-fancy tenor and plectrum banjos, according to Johnny Baier of The American Banjo Museum. from BRC: Wim- Thanks for the great photo of your busy workshop. Your banjo neck is from a Martin Tu-Ba-Phone 5-string banjo as advertised in a Martin flyer circa 1978, and the pot also looks like a left-over rim inherited from the Nazareth, PA, company. The plectrum version was merely called "No.9" At some period every company transitions, and this is what we call a "transitional banjo", meaning it is part Style X9 and part Deluxe Therefore it became dissembled. By early 1971, Martin began to assemble banjos from Boston-made parts in Nazareth using the Vega six digit serial number system prefixed with the letter “M” for Martin and beginning with Shop Order 2001. Vega Martin long neck PS-5 banjo SN 80 is one of eleven Pete Seeger 5-stringers manufactured in Nazareth, PA, in mid 1972 per Shop Order 2098. In May of that year, the newly transferred Vega line was then marketed in the USA by Targ & Dinner 20 Century Music Company. My estimate is that it might fetch $1800-2000 these days. Thanks for sharing your fascinating banjo with the BRC, Barry. In the 1970 VM catalogue, the VIP-T banjo retailed for $556, and the hard shell case was $68 extra. Photos are available. Martin did not develop or cultivate such a banjo line,  a dozen such BJF-5 entries  are recorded in their shop files from 1971-1972. Neck and rim look a lot like made by Martin craftsmen, and it arrived set up perfectly. The Tu-Ba-Phone Deluxe 5-String, Deluxe Plectrum, and standard neck 5-string open back models were promoted through a  flyer published circa 1978. In the Martin price list of 1971, it is listed at $488 without case. It is in excellent condition but missing a resonator thumbscrew with the threaded washer. I bought a Vega Martin 5 string some time in 2000. Note the unique cluster of 3 sound apertures spaced around the  tone ring of the below VIP-5 model owned by the BRC founder (SN 1364). The Vega Banjo Company is one of the oldest banjo companies in the history of the instrument. This instrument was a special order for banjoist, Jack Mistretta, from Grand Rapids, Michigan—who happened to be a friend of Eddie Peabody. sir- need some help. GREAT FORUM. Hopes this helps. Dear Per- In May of 1970, C.F. Your 5-stringer serial #993 is one of six Pro-5`s manufactured per Shop Order # 2211 in mid 1974 by C.F. Joshua, Joshua-Thank you for your kind comments and the very detailed pictures. Martin manufactured 100 Pro-5 banjos including the temporary “Bobby Joe Fenster” variation. Thanks, I have really enjoyed reading the material on this site.RowdyArizona, Rowdy- Thanks for your kind words about the website. Thanks again for your post and pictures and kind comments about the website. If in poor condition, I’ve seen them sell as low as $3000-4000. One thing that I have noticed is that Massachusetts-made resonator banjos generally had a yellow/orange stain. I’m now forced to sell several beloved instruments but have no idea how to price this gem. I’m the happy owner of a Vega-Martin VW-5 “Wonder” 5 string, serial #1516. The long-neck No. The Vega/Martin PS-5 would probably fetch in the $1000- 2500 range these days depending on appointments and condition, whereas the Vega/Boston Seeger banjo seems to be valued more by collectors and would command a higher price. By history, C.F. Steve in Oz, April 24, 2016 at 1:23 pmSteve- Thanks for your post and glad to hear that a `Wonder` banjo made it `Down Under` during the Vega Martin era. My guess is that most of the left-over parts from near your home in Massachusettes were used up over the next ensuing 7 years of production, but there is an outside chance that a few spare parts like an occasional tonering survived and were transferred to Galaxy when it purchased Vega in 1979. Ebony fretboard. i replaced the head but it still sounds the same. Martin Company acquired the Vega rights from the Bostonian Nelson Family in May of 1970 and sold the franchise overseas in March of 1979. Is this an “old” genuine Vega in the lower price class”, Sten- Thanks for your query about the FR-5 banjo. Linda- Thanks much for your query and hearing about your three vintage banjos. Thanks again. I have a Martin Vega Banjo, #324. Do you know how many tenor V41 banjos were made? I would love to be able to date this banjo: SN 999 as a decal under the Martin logo inside the rim with the Martin logo decal on the back side of the peghead as well. The banjo featured a metal tone ring, white fingerboard binding, a heavy notched tension hoop, a 10 ply rim, geared tuning pegs, a 3 piece maple neck, blackwood fingerboard, pearl dots, a resonator, an arm rest, nickel plated parts, and a shaded mahogany finish. Tom- Thank you for the prompt and detailed photos of your instrument. I was fortunate enough to visit the Needham factory (actually a cement-block garage-like building) in the mid-late 1960s and saw some early VIPs under construction. Many thanks to you and your friend Ron for putting me straight. Martin built 55 VIP-T instruments between 1972-79. The Item # was VT2NRC. 28 bracket design. The Deluxe was the later design of what was previously called "Style X No.9" in the Vega line. The smaller one has 2 small set screws installed on either side of the rod to adjust the neck heel . This workshop numbering system continued uninterrupted to #2355 in 1977 when the banjos went overseas for assembly. This model appears in the 1972 and 1976 catalogues. It appears to be serial number 231 (engraved). There were several old tenor and plectrum Martin neck blanksfor sale a few years ago, but it looks to be factory made condition anddoubt that would be likely a source. From the BRC, Barry, Barry, i have an extended neck (25 fretts) Vega/Martin banjo with a serial number of 80. The only Tu-Ba-Phone that appeared in a Vega Martin catalogue was in 1976 when the open back long neck Tu-Ba-Phone XL premiered. Your VW-5 would fetch $700-$1000 these days.

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