2005 Crafters of Tennessee Maple Classic 5-String Resonator Banjo, Curly Maple Flathead

The Crafters of Tennessee Maple Classic is a handmade American flathead banjo, and this one was built in 2005 in Mark Taylor's shop outside Nashville. If you want a professional bluegrass banjo with genuine American craftsmanship behind it, and you would rather spend your money on the instrument than on the name, this is the kind of banjo that gets overlooked and should not be. A Gibson built to the same specification would cost you at least twice as much.

Mark Taylor is the son of Tut Taylor, the dobro player and vintage instrument collector. Mark built under the Crafters of Tennessee name with a small crew, one instrument at a time, until the shop wound down around 2012. He also spent several years building alongside Greg Rich as Rich and Taylor, the same Greg Rich who ran Gibson's banjo department through its strongest modern years.

This is a used banjo and it has been played. It is in excellent condition for a 21 year old instrument, all original apart from a replacement tailpiece. There is honest wear on the resonator, a few finish marks and scratches, all shown in the photos. Nothing structural. The frets have been freshly dressed and the metal cleaned. The interior label reads Model TBC-MP, serial number 191805, signed by Mark Taylor.

This instrument receives a complete professional setup by our banjo tech Tara at Banjo Warehouse in Yellow Springs, Ohio before it ships, and it comes with a functional hardshell case.

• Brand: Crafters of Tennessee
• Model: Maple Classic, label reads TBC-MP
• Year: 2005
• Serial number: 191805
• Country of origin: United States
• Neck: curly maple
• Resonator: curly maple
• Tone ring: flathead
• Hardware: nickel
• Handedness: right-handed
• Originality: all original except a replacement tailpiece
• Condition: excellent for its age, with honest wear on the resonator
• Included: hardshell case
• Setup: complete professional setup by our banjo tech Tara

Geoff Hohwald is the author of The Banjo Primer, the number one rated beginner banjo method, and has been selling fine banjos since 1980, now based in Yellow Springs, Ohio.

Free shipping. 7 day satisfaction guarantee. Call Geoff at 404-218-8580.