Fairbanks/Vega Tu-Ba-Phone Guitar Banjo (1920)
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Fairbanks/Vega Tu-Ba-Phone Model Guitar Banjo (1920), made in Boston, Mass., serial # 47716, natural varnish finish, laminated maple rim and neck, ebony fingerboard, black tolex hard shell case.
This is a relatively rare Fairbanks/Vega Tu-ba-phone Guitar-Banjo, absolutely one of the best "Guit-jo's" ever made. Vega in Boston built these from the mid-1910s into the late '20s (initially under the Fairbanks name) but only in fairly small numbers compared to 5 and then 4 string banjos. This 1920 example was made a couple of years before the Fairbanks name was discontinued so the dowel carries the "Fairbanks Banjo made by the Vega Company" marking as well as Vega star stamp, with three patent numbers below. The side of the stick has the "Tu-Ba-Phone" marking along with the serial number, which is duplicated inside the rim. The worker doing the die-stamping initially missed a number on the dowel and then overstamped it, but the parts have matching original numbers.
Although a fairly high-end instrument in the Fairbanks line the Tu-Ba-Phone guitar banjo carries less ornamentation than many of their models. The heavy laminated maple rim is finished in natural maple, fitted with the patented Fairbanks bracket band, tortoise celluloid edge capping and of course the incomparable hollow square tone ring that lends the model its name. The natural-finished laminated maple neck has a medium-chunky round backed profile topped with an ivoroid-bound ebony fingerboard inlaid with dots, small diamond and oblong shaped pearl pieces. The dyed pearwood headstock facing has a single a star inlay and is fitted with rare original spring loaded Grover friction tuners, only made for a few years before geared banjo tuners were available.
The original Tu-Ba-Phone is always a very classy instrument; this fairly early 1920 example is a relatively rare find. These original Vegas, particularly the top-of-the-line Tu-ba-phones, are as fine a openback banjo-guitar as has ever been made and great instruments for just about anything. "Play that thing, Mr. St Cyr!" while with Louis Armstrong's Hot Five, Johnny St Cyr used a six-string Vega very similar to this one, as did New Orleans great Danny Barker for much of his career. This one has all the sound needed for everything from solo fingerpicking to Old-Time country styles to small-group ragtime to vintage jazz stylings.
Overall length is 36 3/4 in. (93.3 cm.), 11 3/4 in. (29.8 cm.) diameter head, and 2 1/2 in. (6.4 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 26 in. (660 mm.). Width of nut is 1 11/16 in. (43 mm.).
This "Git-jo" shows some wear for its over 105 years on the planet but remains all original, a rare find in unaltered condition. There is some general wear overall, most notably to the finish on the back of the neck especially in the lower positions with the thin varnish worn down to the maple. The plating has average corrosion and light clouding overall, with heavier wear down to the metal on the top of the wire armrest.
The hardware remains all original including the special 6-string stud tailpiece, Vega armrest, a full set of hooks and nuts and even the 4-footed maple bridge. The fingerboard and frets show light wear with a couple of shallow divots in the ebony in the first position but the instrument plays very well and sounds great. The original spring-loaded tuners take a bit of getting used to but once mastered hold tune better than the earlier straight-shaft style. The banjo is one of the nicest of these we have had, set up with a period skin head which is a bit dirty but completely solid and sounding great. It includes a 1980s era hard shell 5-string case. Overall Excellent - Condition.
This is a relatively rare Fairbanks/Vega Tu-ba-phone Guitar-Banjo, absolutely one of the best "Guit-jo's" ever made. Vega in Boston built these from the mid-1910s into the late '20s (initially under the Fairbanks name) but only in fairly small numbers compared to 5 and then 4 string banjos. This 1920 example was made a couple of years before the Fairbanks name was discontinued so the dowel carries the "Fairbanks Banjo made by the Vega Company" marking as well as Vega star stamp, with three patent numbers below. The side of the stick has the "Tu-Ba-Phone" marking along with the serial number, which is duplicated inside the rim. The worker doing the die-stamping initially missed a number on the dowel and then overstamped it, but the parts have matching original numbers.
Although a fairly high-end instrument in the Fairbanks line the Tu-Ba-Phone guitar banjo carries less ornamentation than many of their models. The heavy laminated maple rim is finished in natural maple, fitted with the patented Fairbanks bracket band, tortoise celluloid edge capping and of course the incomparable hollow square tone ring that lends the model its name. The natural-finished laminated maple neck has a medium-chunky round backed profile topped with an ivoroid-bound ebony fingerboard inlaid with dots, small diamond and oblong shaped pearl pieces. The dyed pearwood headstock facing has a single a star inlay and is fitted with rare original spring loaded Grover friction tuners, only made for a few years before geared banjo tuners were available.
The original Tu-Ba-Phone is always a very classy instrument; this fairly early 1920 example is a relatively rare find. These original Vegas, particularly the top-of-the-line Tu-ba-phones, are as fine a openback banjo-guitar as has ever been made and great instruments for just about anything. "Play that thing, Mr. St Cyr!" while with Louis Armstrong's Hot Five, Johnny St Cyr used a six-string Vega very similar to this one, as did New Orleans great Danny Barker for much of his career. This one has all the sound needed for everything from solo fingerpicking to Old-Time country styles to small-group ragtime to vintage jazz stylings.
Overall length is 36 3/4 in. (93.3 cm.), 11 3/4 in. (29.8 cm.) diameter head, and 2 1/2 in. (6.4 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 26 in. (660 mm.). Width of nut is 1 11/16 in. (43 mm.).
This "Git-jo" shows some wear for its over 105 years on the planet but remains all original, a rare find in unaltered condition. There is some general wear overall, most notably to the finish on the back of the neck especially in the lower positions with the thin varnish worn down to the maple. The plating has average corrosion and light clouding overall, with heavier wear down to the metal on the top of the wire armrest.
The hardware remains all original including the special 6-string stud tailpiece, Vega armrest, a full set of hooks and nuts and even the 4-footed maple bridge. The fingerboard and frets show light wear with a couple of shallow divots in the ebony in the first position but the instrument plays very well and sounds great. The original spring-loaded tuners take a bit of getting used to but once mastered hold tune better than the earlier straight-shaft style. The banjo is one of the nicest of these we have had, set up with a period skin head which is a bit dirty but completely solid and sounding great. It includes a 1980s era hard shell 5-string case. Overall Excellent - Condition.