1890’s fretless Pony Banjo
1890’s fretless Pony Banjo. Here’s a cute small-scale banjo that has a home-made, hand-made vibe to it. Perhaps it is a one-of-a-kind instrument as it has features I have not seen on any other banjo. The fretless neck is made of walnut and decorated with mother-of-pearl shell inlays, including an arrow pointing up the neck. The peghead is very unusual in that it is significantly thicker at the peghead tip than at the nut. The May 8, 88 patent dated original Champion tuners had to be recessed in the back of the peghead in order for the tightening screws to engage. The 8-1/4” diameter nickel plated rim appears to have been made from a section of steel pipe. The 14 brackets all match and appear to be original. The No-Knot tailpiece is a modern reproduction that we modified to fit in the tension hoops tailpiece recess. Though a little heavy for a small banjo (4 lb.), this banjo plays great and tonally has a good midrange and more bass than you would expect with such a small rim. Price is $600.