Eagle Brand 5 String Resonator Banjo, made by Stewart-Macdonald (1970s), black hard shell case.

Eagle Brand Model 5 String Resonator Banjo, made by Stewart-Macdonald (1970s), made in Athens, Ohio, natural finish, aluminum rim, mahogany neck with rosewood fingerboard, black hard shell case.

Decades ago in the 1970s there weren't all that many options for a good-grade resonator banjo at a reasonable piece. Lutherie suppliers Stewart-MacDonald offered these "Eagle" 5-string banjo kits in several different variations that users could assemble themselves. The Eagle series (and higher grade Diamond Eagle variants) gained a solid reputation among players wanting a pro-quality instrument without paying factory-built prices. Of course the final quality of the product depended heavily on the skill of the assembler, but this is a very nice example well put together.

This Eagle features a heavy sand-cast one-piece aluminum archtop rim very similar to that developed for the early ODE banjos, with a separate 4-piece oval-hole Mastertone style flange. This is coupled to a laminated mahogany resonator with the edges bound in tortoise celluloid. The mahogany neck has a rosewood fingerboard with shaped pearl inlay on the board and headstock in a modified hearts-and-flowers pattern. It is carved to a fairly Gibson like contour if a bit chunkier back-to-front.

The hardware is very good quality Stew-Mac parts with a single Gibson-style coordinator rod in the rim and truss rod in the neck, geared Planet tuners and a sliding 5th string capo. This banjo was very nicely assembled and finished in a quite a professional manner, and represents an excellent value in an American made 5-string of its period quite superior in both sound and playability to the common imported Mastertone copies that were in its price class when new, and even now.

Overall length is 37 1/8 in. (94.3 cm.), 11 in. (27.9 cm.) diameter head, and 2 3/4 in. (7 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 26 1/4 in. (667 mm.). Width of nut is 1 7/32 in. (31 mm.).

This banjo shows some light general wear but overall does not appear to much played over the decades. There is some minor play wear overall and a small chip in the nut that is nor causing any issues. It appears all original as assembled in the '70d, plays well with a bright but full sound and resides in an older HSC, worn but serviceable. Very Good + Condition.