Gibsn Banjo Mandolin,Help identify/select replacement fingerboard

[Wrnchbndr]

I got this Banjo Mandolin. It belongs to a friend. I'd like to know the model and year. It is totally devoid of any decoration. There is a batch number of 11529-3 in the hoop. I need to replace the fingerboard due to a severe ramp upwards at the end of the fingerboard. I can't really identify the wood used on the fingerboard unless its ebony that has faded a lot from exposure and age. It has a slight grey brown color but really busy wavy-ness in the grain which is closed. The grain does not have color variations but you can see the wavy-ness in reflected light. The head is 10.5" wide and there are 24 lugs. The very basic tailpiece hangs on the tension ring. I am missing the tailpiece cover which I assume had "The Gibson" logo. If you have a picture of what I should be looking for as a tailpiece cover it would be great. I don't have any back or resonator -- did it have one originally?

[Jim Garber]

I believe it is circa 1922 MB-Junior.

You can download a pdf of the Junior series of instruments from the Archive here.

[Scott C.]

I think that you have an MB0. I have one just like it. Yours has the thin rim like this one. It did not have a trap door. I have one that is a trap door model also. You can see pictures of it in my profile. The sticker inside of a junior says junior on it.

[pfox14]

The fingerboard is possibly "ebonized" maple. Basically, maple dyed black to look like ebony. I would try to sand out any ramp or variations in thickness, rather than replace it. According to Spann's Guide it would be an early 1922. Gibson's price lists from this era don't jive with their catalogs. I don't think they made an MB-0 in 1922, so I think Jim is right and it's an MB-Jr.

[Wrnchbndr]

Ebonized maple fits what I see. I'm going to try to use heat to bend the wood back where it should be along with filling the 12th fret slot, cutting a new slot thin, and then reinstalling the fret. It all depends on the health of the wood and if it will endure the process.

There is so much conflicting info about these mandolins. Looking at 1922 MB-JRs (Google image search) I typically see two metal coordinator rods while mine has a stick and one metal rod. My head is a 10.5" while the JR is supposed to have a 9". I came across an auction on the internet for a 1924 MB-JR that seemed to match mine but the batch number was 114XX-X and mine is 115XX-X. The oval lable in mine does not say "The" Gibson... but rather it is the lable as seen on all of other banjos that says THIS GIBSON IS HEREBY... and it doesn't say anything about it being a Mandolin Banjo, a JR or any other thing than the guarantee. I'm going to settle for it being manufactured in the early to mid 20s. It could be a Jr or it could be an MB0??? In any case its cool.

[mandroid]

Rather than select a fingerboard , select A Luthier to do the Job , and let them sort out the details.

[Joe Spann]

These early Gibson banjos can be very confusing. The FON (Factory Order Number) in your banjo indicates that it was manufactured about mid-year in 1921, say June or July. The main problem with pre-war Gibson banjos is that they can be easily disassembled. The body of your banjo conforms to the factory specifications for a model MB-3, but the neck appears to be from a model MB-0.

Joe Spann