Alvarez Banjo Models
Alvarez Banjo Serial Number Lookup
Hi JohnI had a newer Alvarez a couple of years ago. I think the Model number was
4280, but I'm not sure about that. It was made in Korea. It didn't have a
tone ring, just a thin wooden pot assembly. It wasn't a bad banjo, and
probably costs around $350-$400 new. The best thing about it was that it
stayed in tune pretty well and had geared tuners all the way around. The
drawback to the banjo was that it didn't have much bite, which became
obvious when I started playing with other people. It also had a rather fat
neck, especially up the neck. This became more of an issue when I got a
little more advanced and started using my thumb to fret the 5th string.
Nonetheless, the banjo was good enough for me get started on.
The banjo is heavier than a Gibson of the period, which implies to me a bronze tone ring. The owner has not had it apart since 1976 (!). I bought a '74 RB250 new and the bronze ring in it was light, at 2 lb. If there was typical die cast pot metal ring in the Sho-Bud, that ring (and the banjo) would be even lighter, typically at 1 lb. It is an Alvarez banjo. Can't find a serial number or model number. I thought it might be an Alvarez Silver Belle but those seem to have an inlay that says 'Silver Belle' on the 21st fret.
I have also played a few of the Alvarez's from the 1970's. I think they
were all imported from Japan and are essentially copies of the higher end
American made banjos and come with some type of alloy tone ring.
I believe some of the models like the Denver Belle are pretty good import
banjos and may be on the same level as Sagas, Washburns, and Epiphones from
the same era. I'm not positive about this, but I think these banjos come
with dual coordinator rods, planetary tuners and a geared 5th tuner.
The more common banjos with the Alvarez name are probably not as good as the
Sagas and Washburns. They often have the word 'Deluxe' on the headstock.
I've seen several banjos with different brand names including Dorado and
Epiphone that were made by the same manufacturer. These banjos have
friction pegs (undesirable) on the fifth string, which can be replaced for
about $50 by any music store. In my opinion, these banjo are definitely
better than the ones being imported from Korea today. They have tone rings,
pretty nice necks (although they can vary from one model to another), and
they can be set up to sound pretty good, especially if you really crank down
on the head. The link below is an Alvarez banjo that was offered on ebay a
little while ago, which matches the description I've given in this
paragraph. If you do go for one of these, just make sure its got a
straight kneck, and not too much fretware.
John Gadbury <jgad...@mia.net> wrote in message
news:fvbJ4.1284$5b3.387015@homer.alpha.net...
Alvarez Banjo Serial Numbers
> This is a really open ended question, but I'm going to ask it anyway.
>
> What are some general comments on Alvarez banjos? Quality of workmanship?
> Playability (I'm a newbie, playing less than a year, looking to upgrade
from
> a Goodtime)? Tone? Value? Resale? Does the year of manuf. matter? Any
> particular questions I should be asking the seller?
>
> I've seen some very reasonably priced ones around.
>
> Thanks!
>
>