Banjos For Sale

BANJOS FOR SALE

NohoBanjo has been selling banjos locally and on line since the 1990s and banjos have been shipped all over the United States and to Canada, Ireland, England, the Netherlands, Japan, and Australia. Aside from antique or vintage banjos that are unique unto themselves, we offer "NohoBanjos" that are built with top quality new and vintage materials. These are good-looking, good-sounding banjos for the serious student, downtown busker, or anyone who wants a good sounding, decent looking banjo, but who doesn't have a whole lot of money to spend.
We also show and sell at local guitar/banjo shows and swap meets in the Northampton area (check www.millrivermarketplace.com). We also have a few banjos for sale or swap at Banjo Camp North (check www.mugwumps.com) and from time to time on www.craigslist.com.

KEEP CHECKING BACK!

WE HAVE HAD AN EXCELLENT YEAR AND HAVE HAD A FLURRY OF SALES DURING THE PAST COUPLE OF MONTHS. CONSEQUENTLY, WE WILL BE LISTING MORE BANJOS ON THIS SITE--INCLUDING UKES, TENORS,LONG-NECKS, AND FRETLESS--AS THEY BECOME AVAILABLE. IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR SOMETHING SPECIAL, SEND US AN EMAIL AT NohoBanjo@Excite.com.
HOW TO PAY.
OUR PREFERENCE IS TO SEND YOU AN INVOICE THROUGH PAYPAL. PAYMENT MAY ALSO BE MADE BY PERSONAL CHECK, BANK CHECK, OR MONEY ORDER. WE'LL SEND OUR MAILING ADDRESS WHEN YOU MAKE A COMMITTMENT TO BUY. SORRY, WE'RE TOO SMALL TO ACCEPT CREDIT CARDS DIRECTLY. ONCE PAYMENT IS MADE, WE'LL BOX UP YOUR BANJO AND SHIP IT TO YOU.
SHIPPING
WE HAVE SHIPPED A LOT OF BANJOS THIS PAST YEAR BOTH WITHIN THE U.S.A. AND AROUND THE WORLD. NEEDLESS TO SAY, THE COST OF SHIPPING--LIKE ALMOST EVERYTHING ELSE--CONTINUES TO GO UP. ALSO, IT IS HARD TO ESTIMATE THE EXACT COST OF SHIPPING UNTIL A BANJO IS WRAPPED, BOXED, AND TROTTED OFF TO THE POST OFFICE TO BE BOTH WEIGHED AND MEASURED. HERE IS WHAT WE HAVE FOUND TO BE THE EASIEST AND MOST FAIR WAY TO HANDLE THE COST OF SHIPPING: FOR DELIVERY WITHIN THE U.S.A., ADD $45 TO THE PURCHASE PRICE IF THE BANJO INCLUDES A LIGHTWEIGHT GIGBAG, ADD $75 IF IT INCLUDES A HEAVY HARDSHELL CASE. WE WILL THEN REIMBURSE YOU THE EXCESS AMOUNT, IF ANY. FOR SHIPPING TO CANADA OR OVERSEAS, THE COST WILL BE $85 WITH A GIGBAG AND $100 WITH A HARDSHELL CASE. AGAIN, ANY EXCESS WILL BE REIMBURSED. WE SHIP USING U.S.P.S. PRIORITY MAIL (DOMESTIC OR INTERNATIONAL) WITH INSURANCE FOR LOSS OR DAMAGE.

GOLD TONE TENOR, UPGRADED

“GOLD TONE” TENOR
UPGRADED WITH TOP-OF-THE LINE RICHELIEU COMPONENTS

Here is a professional-quality, barely used, 19-fret Gold Tone TS250 tenor upgraded with top-of-the-line Richelieu components. This banjo will hold its own in any jazz, ragtime, mummer, or folk group. It has enough bark to take paint off the walls and enough tonal quality up the neck to make you Harry Reeser wannabees happy.

First of all, there is a maple neck, ebony fingerboard, and cast-brass tone ring. We have added an Oetinger-style finger tailpiece, spare pick holder, Farquhar bridge—all from Richelieu, engraved Gold Tone armrest, and ivoroid tuning buttons. The dark-finished maple neck has fancy hearts and flowers inlay on the fret board and peg head and is trimmed with white binding to match that on the dark brown mahogany resonator.

Sold! Keep checking back for additional tenor, Irish tenor, and five-string banjos for sale.

IRISH TENOR, 12-INCH “YOSCO” DOUBLE RIM, PATENTED 1918

This 4-string tenor has been set up for Irish tuning—GDAE— although you could easily replace the strings with lighter guage ones and tune to the standard tenor CGDA. To assemble this, we started out with with a hard maple double (or doughnut) rim with a patent date of 31 December 1918. made by Lawrence Yosco who built banjos in New York from about 1900 to the 1930s.

The original neck had lost much of its intricately cut pearl and was not quite plumb so we decided to replace this with a brand-new tenor neck with similar pearl work plus a carved heel. The original neck will be included with the sale. We reused the original perch pole.

We then added a new, top-quality goat-skin head, new nickel-plated geared tuners and hook sets, and ivoroid tuner buttons. We were able to buff and reuse the original tension hoop and “No-Knot” tailpiece and reamalgamate the original finish on the rim. This banjo has 19 frets and a scale length of just over 22 inches. The pot is 12 inches in diameter and, because of the internal construction, functions much like an arch top tone ring.

The result of this “resurrection” is a traditional looking banjo with that plunky, old-fashioned sound that makes Irish music so much fun to play and listen to. Asking $695 (original neck included) with a high-quality gigbag. (Note: Domestic and international shipping costs, as described above, apply.)

RECONSTRUCTED WILKES IRISH TENOR, ANTIQUE

Here’s a true piece of banjo restoration/reconstruction. We started with an antique 28-lug, spun brass pot (11-7/8- inch) with a gorgeous, hand-carved resonator back. The back is made of rosewood (with the age and origin of this banjo, probably Brazilian rosewood) with an ivory button at the center. The back is integral with the pot and is not removable. The pot was made by the F.C. Wilkes (stamped on the inside of the resonator) Banjo Company of Manchester, England, and received a US Patent in 1896. The wood resonator had an age crack that we repaired so it is just as solid and resonant as new. We also replaced the missing rim hooks and nuts.

When we got the pot, there was no head or neck with it. So, we added a lovely B&D 19-fret tenor neck fitted with Grover patent tuners. This neck, with a dark mahogany finish that matches the carved resonator, has a bone nut, ebony fingerboard, excellent frets, and nice mother-of-pearl inlays. Some of the pearl work on the peg head overlay was missing so we replaced this with an Edwardian British penny in keeping with the pre-World War One date of the banjo. This is also in keeping with the itinerant banjo players’ tradition that “you can never be picked up as a vagrant as long as you have at least a penny to your name.”

We looked at the patent drawings (US 554,297) as well as pictures of Wilkes banjos on the web and found that the head was pierced by a sound hole topped with a celluloid trim piece. We replicated this with a Remo Renaissance head and trim made of Stew-Mac pick guard material cut in our shop. We added a period-style tailpiece and, of course, new strings and bridge.

The action and tone are quite nice with a bit more sustain than an ordinary tenor banjo—great for either solo or backup playing. This would make a nice, old-timey looking Irish folk banjo particularly—with the Edwardian penny—for you Ulstermen/women out there! Asking $575 with a gigbag. (Note: Domestic and international shipping costs, as described above, apply.)

GOLD TONE TB-100R SHORT-SCALE BANJO, 5-STRING

This banjo is a slightly smaller version of the standard 5-string banjo and is ideally suited for a young person just starting out, a woman’s smaller hands, or a player who wants a smaller-sized instrument for travel. In fact, the Gold Tone designation for this is “TB” for travel banjo. Here is Gold Tone’s description:

The TB-100R (with resonator) is the world's first true miniature 5-string banjo. It has remarkable tone and playability due to a totally unique design. A custom Remo 10" Pre-Tuned head eliminates the need for the normal 24 tension brackets and other parts. The head never needs adjustment which means string action and tone remain consistent. The neck is exactly the same scale as playing with a capo in A (2nd fret) so it feels comfortable. At only 3 1/2 lbs., and 31" it is a delight for traveling, practicing, and for kids.

This banjo is in near-mint condition and has been set up ready to play. There is a heavily padded Gold Tone gigbag that comes with this banjo plus a strap. Asking $255 with gigbag. (Note, because of the smaller size of this banjo, deduct $25 from the shipping costs quoted above.)

5-STRING OPENBACK WITH FLORENTINE-STYLE INLAY

We assembled this openback with an American-made 11-inch rim of blocked three-quarter inch, rock-hard curly maple fitted with top-quality nickel-plated hardware, rolled-bar brass tone ring, and fiberskin head. The Asian-made neck with carved heel is inlaid with mother-of-pearl and abalone in an interpretation of the Gibson “Florentine” style and fitted with geared tuners topped with polished buffalo bone buttons.

The pot and neck have a matching dark mahogany finish that brings out the “curl” of the pot and the carving of the neck.

We set this banjo up with light-gauge coated Elixir strings, an Elite “No Knot” tailpiece, Vega-style armrest, railroad spikes at the 7th and 9th frets, and a compensated “Moon” bridge. The action is set for clawhammer-style play.

This is a brand-new banjo with a great sound that can hold its own on stage or in any jam session—a looker and a player! Asking $795 with a high-quality Featherweight hardshell case. (Note: Domestic and international shipping costs, as described above, apply.)