Gold Tone Mastertone OB-12 Top Tension Resonator Banjo #8307

The Gold Tone Mastertone OB-12 Top Tension is a faithful recreation of the late-1930s pre-war Mastertone Top Tension banjos, designed with banjo builder Greg Rich to chase the original, authentic pre-war sound rather than a modern reinterpretation of it. It's built for the serious bluegrass and old-time player who wants historically accurate mass and cut, not just a resonator banjo that looks the part.

The Pre-War Formula brass flathead tone ring under an 11-inch 3-ply maple rim drives an aggressive, cutting attack with real weight behind it — the kind of depth a lighter modern build can't replicate. The top-tension hoop and 24 brackets let a player dial in head tension from the top of the pot rather than flipping the banjo over, so tone adjustments happen in seconds instead of minutes. A hand-selected walnut neck and matching carved walnut resonator sit between mahogany and maple tonally, adding warmth without losing the flathead's clarity.

Vintage touches carry the pre-war look through to the details — the New Vintage script logo on the headstock, Art Deco fingerboard inlays, white-and-black binding, and a Vintage Brown high-gloss finish. A Prucha Presto tailpiece and Gotoh planetary tuners round out hardware built to hold up on the road, and it ships with a hard case. For the player chasing an authentic 1930s Mastertone voice without hunting down a vintage original, the OB-12 delivers it.

Serial #22608307 — this listing is for the exact instrument shown in the photos above.