NOTE: I cannot advise you on age or value of your banjo. If you need this sort of information, contact George Gruhn.

• BACON & DAY
• BALDWIN / ODE
• OME
• BUCKBEE
• DEERING
• COLE
• FAIRBANKS
• GIBSON

  Gibson open backs were of three sorts:

  RB 170 (22-fret neck, brass hoop "tone ring"), introduced 1960, discontinued 1973. Retail price in 1967 was $250

  RB 175 (25-fret ("long") neck, brass hoop "tone ring," usually Elton tuners, unbound neck)), introduced 1962, discontinued 1973. Retail price in 1967 was $260

  RB 180 (25-fret neck, Mastertone flathead tone ring, Kluson tuners, white neck binding), introduced 1961, discontinued 1967. Retail price in 1967 was $355
  
  

• GRETSCH
  

  
  
  
  
  
  
  Gretsch bought out Bacon & Day in the mid 1920's. I do not know if the Bacon serial numbers are included in the Gretsch sequence, nor do I know the pattern for the numbers. These are what I have.

  Interestingly, even though the names "B&D" and "Bacon and Day" are in common usage, there never was a "Bacon & Day Company" or a "Bacon & Day" banjo. It was always the "Fred Bacon Company" who made the "B&D" banjos.
  
  

  More Information at:

  • http://www.mugwumps.com/BaconSerialNumbers.html
  • http://4shelties.com/banjos/bdserial.htm.

  GRETSCH
  
  #293 ....................Orchestrella ................1926
  #374 ......Orchestrella (banjo mandolin)..............1926 
  #446 ....................Orchestrella ................1927
  #1143  .................. Broadkaster ................19??
  #4780 .................... Style B ...................19??
  
  BACON
  
  #9349............... Bacon Senorita ................1956 
  #6-1041 ...............(Bacon long neck)...................19??
  #1608 ................  (Bacon long neck) ..................19??
  #4484 ................  (Bacon long neck) ..................1961
  #5126 ................  (Bacon long neck) ..................1962
  #5298 ................  (Bacon long neck) ..................1962?
  #5764 ................ (Bacon standard neck) .............. 1962?
  #9887 .................(Bacon tenor)...........................19??
  #10124...........(Bacon Peerless).........................19??
  #MO19354...........(long neck)........................196?
  #51902 ...........(Bacon long neck)........................196?
  #51998 .............. (Bacon standard neck) ................196?
  #62293 ....................(Bacon long neck)  ................196?
  #62258 .............. (Bacon Belmont 5-string 25 fret open back) ............196?
  #65610 .............. (Bacon standard neck, plain) ...... 196?
  

• LUDWIG
• ORPHEUM
• ODE

  ODE serial numbers

  #00   ................................................1961
  #48   ....(5th peg at seventh fret, standard neck) .......
  #181 ...... Style B? ............
  #769 ................  (long neck) ..................1963
  #1487 .............. (Grade 2 33R long neck) ...........196?
  #1499 .............. (Grade 2 33B long neck) ...........196?
  #1632 .............. (Model 42, Grade 1)  .................. 196?
  #1674 .............  (Ode-Muse Folklore) .......... ????
  #1830 ............. Custom Grade 4 ................... 1964
  #1845 ............. Model 33 Grade 2 ................. 1964?
  #93 ................Ode model C 5-string ............. 1965(?) STOLEN!
  If found, contact Robert H. White
  
  #3380 ................Baldwin-Ode
  
  

  
• OME
  

  I have been promised more info on Ome / Ode banjos. Until then, here's what I have.

  "Charles Ogsbury began rebuilding old banjos in 1960. Discovering the sound quality of these relatively expensive banjos was not worthy of the price, Ogbury designed a cheaper and better sounding instrument with an improved pot assembly made out of aluminum. These sold for a reasonable $72.00 and by 1961 the demand was such that Ogsbury established ODE Company. By 1966 ODE Company was sold to Baldwin (Ogsbury's designs were continued by Baldwin until 1982). Unable to leave banjo making for long, Charles Ogsbury created OME Company in 1971 in a partnership with three other banjo enthusiasts. Today, as president and founder of OME Company, Charles Ogsbury continues to design and refine the widest selection of Traditional, Jazz, and Bluegrass banjos."

  Sean Barry says:

  History of ODE/OME

  1961 ODE Banjo company founded by Charles Ogsbury in Boulder, Colorado--Chuck produced a new line of aluminum rimmed banjos that plugged a market gap for well-made, economically priced folk-style (including long-neck) banjos. ODE achieved what amounted to a reasonable following in what was then an extremely limited market. ODE Banjos were available by mail order only, but most of the ODE models were available under the MUSE label in certain music stores.

  1965 ODE expanded its line to include wood-rimmed Mastertone-style banjos with solid resonator flanges and arch- or flat-head tone rings. These were some of the very best Mastertone-style banjos ever produced by any factory. These were also by far the best bargain in a professional banjo--a style F, which featured Brazilian rosewood neck and resonator, elaborate leaf inlays, carved neck heel, and gold-plated, exquisitely hand-engraved metal parts (including the tension hoop and flange), sold for about $600. Compare that with the Gibson RB-800 of the day, which sold for over $800 and which was.... well, ugly. I've not heard of any of the Mastertone-style ODEs with a MUSE label but wouldn't be surprised if I did.

  1966 The Baldwin piano company, which was trying to expand into other realms of the instrument business, purchased ODE, including all fixtures, leftover parts, tooling, and the services of the ODE craftsmen who cared to relocate to Nashville. Part of the sales contract with Chuck Ogsbury was that he could not manufacture banjos under any name for five years from the sale, and that Baldwin could not use the ODE name externally on its banjos or in its advertising for those same five years. Baldwin modified the ODE line to just three models (there had been eight at the time that ODE was sold), and increased prices dramatically. From 1967 through 1971 these banjos carried the metal "Baldwin" banner on the peghead, but NOT the ODE letters. However, most are stamped "ODE, Boulder Colorado" inside the wooden rim, which suggests that most were made with rims remaining from the original Colorado operation. The top of the Baldwin line was the Style D, which featured walnut neck and resonator and the identical leaf-style inlays that had been featured on the ODE style D, E, and F (ODE had also offered "scroll" inlays in those models, but very few instruments with that pattern were produced in Colorado and to my knowledge none were produced by Baldwin). Quality on 1967-71 Baldwins is very high, much better than Gibsons or Vegas of the day, perhaps better even than the Fenders of the day which were attracting a fair amount of attention from the bluegrass world. Baldwins were especially favored by the melodic crusaders, notably Bobby Thompson and Larry McNeely. Baldwins were available only through authorized Baldwin dealers.

  1971 Five years to the day after the sales contract was executed, Charles Ogsbury opened the OME banjo company, also in Colorado. OME banjos were obviously inspired by the same creative gift that brought ODE to us, but they were in every design respect quite different from ODEs, and considerably more expensive. Early OME's were not based on Mastertone designs, but in later years some of these were and are produced. All OMEs are some of the greatest banjos ever made, just like their ODE predecessors.

  meanwhile, back in Nashville (and later, in Arkansas).....

  1971 Five years to the day after the sales contract was executed, Baldwin added the ODE letters BELOW THE BALDWIN BANNER on its pegheads. Baldwin banjos from late 1971 through at least 1974 carry BOTH the Baldwin banner and the ODE letters. Baldwin also reintroduced engraved parts, so gold-plated engraved Baldwin style D banjos from that era are not uncommon. Quality on these banjos is also quite high--they were by far the best factory banjos other than OME produced during that era.

  1976 Gretsch, another Baldwin subsidiary, took over manufacture of Baldwin banjos, and they reintroduced the (ODE) Style C, which was for a time their top of the line (the original ODE style C had snowflake or block inlays, and the Gretsch-ODE Style C featured redesigned inlays that vaguely resemble Gibson Hearts and Flowers). The most important change from the unwary purchaser's point of view was that the "Baldwin" peghead label was discontinued, so that Gretsch-ODE banjos carry just the ODE label, just like the original Colorado ODEs. None of these are stamped "Colorado" (to my knowledge). Quality was generally good to very good, better by far than the Gibsons of the day, and most of these banjos are more than worth the $900-1400 that they bring today. Just be very careful not to buy a Gretsch-ODE thinking that you are buying an original Colorado ODE, which is destined to be one of the most collectible of banjos.

  1980 Gretsch folded, and the last banjos with ODE labels were produced.

  Today--interest continues to grow in the original Colorado ODEs, very few of which are offered for sale, an indication that the original owners are still happy with what was one of the wisest banjo investments of all time.

  Meanwhile, back in Colorado....

  OME banjos are still being made, some of the best banjos ever, having survived by 20 years every and all manifestations of Baldwin-Gretsch ODEs. Long may Charles Ogsbury live, prosper, and make great instruments.

  Sean Barry continues:

  "MUSE banjos were the retail store brand of banjos produced by the ODE banjo company of Boulder, Colorado, which was in business from 1961 through mid-1966. As you say, they were lovely, very well made banjos with typically nice tone and a lot of originality and character. The MUSEs had aluminum rims with integral tone chamber, and the higher-level ODEs had Mastertone-style maple rims and tone rings. The ODE Company was started by Charles Ogsbury, who wanted to make a better banjo than was available at the time (Gibsons and Vegas at the high end, Harmonies and Kays at the low). He succeeded, and at quite reasonable prices. In 1966 the ODE style F, which featured Brazilian rosewood neck and resonator, nice inlay, carved neck heel, and gold-plated hand engraved metal parts retailed for about $550, at a time when the Gibson RB 800, in every way a lesser instrument, retailed for over $800. Ogsbury was very successful--he sold every banjo he made, and apparently did well enough as a company to attract the acquisitive attention of the then-mighty Baldwin piano company. Baldwin was seeking to diversify, and they made Ogsbury an offer he didn't refuse. He sold out the factory, the fixtures, the tooling, the materials stockpiles, and the (voluntary) services of the employees to Baldwin, who moved the operation to Tennessee and later to Arkansas. The Baldwin banjos resembled ODEs (and in fact were known by the same model numbers but with disimilar materials), but were labeled "Baldwin" (later they evolved to "Baldwin ODE" and later still to "ODE" when Gretsch took over). The original Baldwins and Balwin ODes were actually pretty decent banjos, superior to the concurrent Gibsons, though no better than the new Fenders then on the market (VEGA was never a real player in the bluegrass banjo market, despite its best efforts at famous player endorsements). The later Gretsch ODEs were nice enough, but not the equal of the earlier Baldwins and definitely not of the Colorado ODEs (if you are looking at an ODE banjo with intent to buy, be sure of its provenance before you spend Colorado ODE-level money for a Gretsch ODE). The Ogsbury-Baldwin agreement included a non-competition clause which kept Ogsbury out of the banjo business for five years after he sold ODE. Five years to the day later, Ogsbury started the OME banjo company, also in Colorado--OME is still going strong, and still owned by Ogsbury. OME's are some of the best banjos ever built, in every way equal to the original ODEs. They are expensive, but comparable to Stellings, Gibsons, and high-end Deerings."

  "I've seen a few MUSE banjos for sale over the years. The thing to do is to contact all of the vintage instrument dealers you can (these days there are many, in and out of the woodwork), check out their inventories, and make sure they know what you are seeking (they might even contact you if your intended banjo appears). Don't pass up a look in any and every music store you pass along the way--few normal music store owners will have heard of MUSE (or ODE, most likely), and might have a secondhand gem available for a very nice price. As always, check the classifieds, the garage sales, and other highly unlikely but not impossible venues. MUSEs are very lovely banjos, but they lack the mystique of some of the other brands, so IMO you stand a pretty good chance of success."

  "Brittles" says:

  My limited understanding is that the "Model 30", or "30 series", was the third revision of the ODE rim.

  The original run (of 50? 100?) simple cast aluminum rims, that Chuck Ogsbury made (around 1960), were basically the the Model 1.

  When he made improvements to the rim, he came out with the 2nd model, that he called the "Model 20", or "Series 20".

  The Model 30 had the addition of a brass tonering (archtop)to the top of the aluminum rim.

  There was also a later Model 40 that was still aluminum - but had a more refined brass tonering (or maybe it was a flat-top/archtop choice?)

  The next rim was the wood-rim - developed just before the sale to Baldwin. To my knowledge, Baldwin only produced it in the flat-top form (although a wood-rim archtop model was made.)

  The Model 40 is the aluminum rim that Baldwin eventually used for their lower models (A&B models)

  The second digit of the "20", "30", and "40" Series Models referred to the neck type.

  I don't have my catalogs right in front of me, but it's something like:

  • "– 2" was a standard 5-string
  

  • "– 3" was a long-neck (Seeger-style) 5-string

  • "– 4" was a tenor

  • "– 5" was a plectrum

  • "– 6" was a guitar-banjo

  The "Grade" referred to the level of ornament -

  • #3 had more pearl, and was engraved

  • #4 was engraved and carved

  • #5 was gold plated
  
  

  ---

  I'd -love- to get my hands on one of those old Ode aluminum pots. They were terrific! I own an Ome Triple-X model (#25!), and regard it as better than ANY other banjo I have seen and/or played.

  OME serial numbers
  
  #00 ................................................1971
  #25 ................................................1972? (Triple X)
  #407 ...............................................1973
  #800 ...............................................August, 1974 (Double-XX)
  #1020...............................................1976 (Triple X)
  #2876...............................................???? (Long Neck)
  
  

  The Ome Banjo Company Home Page
  
  
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• STELLING
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• WEYMANN

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