(Serial #81123004) Excellent plus condition. Other than some wear on the gold plating of the armrest, the banjo is mint. The RB-800 was the fancy top of the line banjo for Gibson from 1937 until the Granada was reissued in 1986. It has a curly maple one-piece resonator, three-piece curly maple neck with a large center stripe, a 20-hole flathead tone ring, a fiddle-cut headstock shape, alternating black and creme rectangular purfling around each side of the resonator which continues up each side of the 22 fret fingerboard and three concentric circles of creme-black-creme purfling around the back of the resonator. Tuners have large pearloid buttons and the fifth string tuner is geared in the manner of a Kroll. Other features include a 5-ply maple rim, an 11 inch head diameter, and good quality tuners. All hardware is gold plated and heavily engraved. Nut width is 1 3/16th inch and the scale length 36 3/8 inch. The banjo was just set up by noted banjo luthier Richie Dotson of Acoustic Box LLC in Chesterfield, VA, and it has a new head, a new Dotson bridge, and is fully spiked. It has a big driving bluegrass sound. Here is a short video clip of this instrument played by Richie. Comes with the original hardshell case.
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