Gibson TB-1 #3-21
photos above by Jillian Pilch; photos below by Greg Earnest
The style 1 of the 1930s was a non-Mastertone model and therefore had
no true tone ring--only a small-diameter brass hoop on top of the rim. It did,
however, feature the same pot metal one-piece flange and three-ply maple rim as the
Mastertones of the same period. Style 1 had nickel-plated
hardware and a dark-finished maple neck and
resonator, with white binding on the neck and both edges of the resonator. The fiddle-shaped peghead was retained on the
style 1 even though the
Mastertone models had by this time gone to the double-cut peghead shape. The
rosewood fingerboard was normally inlaid with a fleur-de-lis inlay pattern which is also known by
such varying names as "bats" and "flying birds";
however, other inlay patterns are sometimes seen on
style 1 banjos and this instrument
features the "diamonds and squares" pattern that had been used on
style 3 banjos from 1925 to circa 1932.
Style 1 banjos have an oval "The Gibson" label inside the rim which is similar to the Mastertone label found on the higher models. This style 1 tenor banjo is in excellent original condition with its original hardshell case; the only alteration it has seen since leaving the Gibson factory is the addition of the rose decal to the back of the resonator, which apparently was done early in the banjo's life. A matching rose decal is found on the case lid.
I acquired this banjo in February 2007 from the family of the original owner in Montana. The banjo was reportedly bought new in Seattle as that was the location of the nearest Gibson dealer in 1935. #3-21 has now been converted to five-string with a neck by Frank Neat (pictured below with the banjo in his shop in Russell Springs, Kentucky), a no-hole unplated flathead tone ring by Bill Blaylock, and a setup by Charlie Cushman:
