B&D Silver Bell Special No.1
The Bacon and Day company are universally known for their craftsmanship and exceptional build quality of prewar tenor banjos. The Silver Bell with its tremendous cutting power is highly ranked in the Irish banjoist ‘sought after’ list. In my opinion the Silver Bell model is the zenith of craftsmanship and offers great value for money. Although this banjo is not original to factory settings it is the marriage of a 1928 B&D Silverbell pot and 1938 B&D Special No.1 neck. The finish is original, It has no breaks, damages or repairs. I have recently stripped the banjo down for polishing and rebuild and have to say that the nickel plating throughout is in exceptional condition as you can see from the photos. I have fitted a new clear head to project the fine sound from the Silverbell tonering and to show off the inner pot design details. New nickel strings fitted gauging 12,18w,28w,36w, and action set low. There are some scratches to the back of the resonator but this is only common to an instrument of this age. These instruments sell for £1500+ and sometimes in poor condition, this beauty is one to be owned and played. Here is an example of a B&D No.1 for sale in the USA
- The pot assembly built in 1928 (SN: 20500)
- The Neck built in 1938 (SN: 38520)
- 19 fret ebony fingerboard with standard cut circular pearl inlay position markers.
- maple neck with 3 ply veneers, rim and resonator with dark stain finish.
- Fancy design pearl inlaid head-stock.
- Triple nickel plated Presto tailpiece
- Origanal ‘GROVERPAT’ geared tuners with ivoroid buttons.
- Nickel plated flange with composite circulars designs.
- Comes with a vintage vega case in usable condition.
Banjo is now sold
