Locating the Serial Number of your Gibson Banjo
If your banjo has a wooden back, or resonator, you'll need to remove it to get to the serial number. Don't worry. . . removing the resonator is no more invasive than raising the hood on a car. The resonator will be held in place by three or four large screws that look like the one in the middle of this photo:
On some earlier Gibson banjos, the screws will have small hex-shaped heads instead of the large round heads.
These screws can just be undone with your fingers and once the back is removed, you will likely see a serial number in three places. . .
stamped into the wooden rim:
and written inside the resonator, both in large chalk numbers in the center, and in smaller red or brownish numbers near the edge:
You can also look for one of two types of decals inside the wooden rim. . .
the "Mastertone" guarantee label:
or the smaller "The Gibson" label:
If there is no serial number inside the rim or resonator, it could be hiding on the back of the peghead, above the tuners:
If there's no serial number anywhere, that's not necessarily a bad sign since some prewar Gibson banjos were shipped out without numbers.
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