Description
Exc condition / SN: 063950
Brass bead tone ring
This old Gibson RB-170 from 1967 is a great banjo. These have always been one that fell into the cracks between bluegrass banjo and open-back frailing. The neck is a standard banjo neck and the pot is made with all good parts. But there is the thought that the banjo makes too “bright” or too “stark” of a sound to use as an open back banjo, while at the same time being “not enough tone ring” for many bluegrass players. Four original Grover pancake tuners with a Waverly 5th string tuner installed.
* These photos were taken before we professionally installed a hide head. Yes, the plastic Remo did work ok… But we had another customer send us his RB-170 to install a hide head and the result was quite better tone, especially for frailing or clawhammer styles. We promptly put one on this banjo… and it sounds great.
Comes with a period Hard Case.
