1920 Gretsch® No. 786 Guitar Banjo natural, Very Good, $1,150.00

An interesting guitar banjo from what we believe to be the Fred Gretsch Mfg. Co., although it has some of the hallmarks of a Slingerland made instrument.  The Gretsch catalog no 36 shows a very similar instrument but with a different tailpiece.  A partial description from that catalog:  "Laminated rock maple lining and rock maple built-up neck with reenforcing strip through center.  Natural finish, 30 hexagon brackets."

The five-piece neck is three parts maple and two parts ebony. The long heel is capped in Brazilian rosewood. The head stock is also capped with Brazilian, with an inlaid ornament. The two 'diamonds' are later additions, and add just enough glitz and camp to earn their keep. The original tuners are a cut above 'plain' and function well, although someone previously had soldered some tips on the ends to reduce 'play' in the inner holes. The nut appears original, as does the tailpiece, but we're not 100% sure. All the brackets appear original, but the head was recently replaced with a new skin head. Based on the 'witness' mark it appears that at some time the stick was adjusted to reset the neck angle. Frets are good, and the fingerboard shows some divots in the lower position. There is some wear and finish loss on the back of the neck as well, but the neck has a nice feel to it. The metal parts still gleam but show tarnish and loss in some areas.

The head measures 12 1/4" across. Scale length is ~24 1/16". The neck measures 1 11/16" across at the nut and string spacing is 2 1/4" across at the bridge. Action is set at 8/64" and the guitar banjo plays well with its smooth, 'C'-profile neck shape.

This is one of the best sounding guitar banjos we've played. It has a pleasing, plunky sound, not too bright and not too much 'thud', perfect for ragtime and old time blues. Check out the sound clip!

No case presently.