Goose Acres Model E Model 5 String Resonator Banjo (1978), made in Cleveland, Ohio, serial # 171, natural mahogany finish, laminater maple rim, mahogany resonator and neck, ebony fingerboard, original hard shell case.
Goose Acres was the family business of Bob Smakula and his father Peter H. Smakula, two names often spoken with a distinct reverence within the world of banjo lovers. After humble beginnings building dulcimers in the 1970's, a teenage Bob enlisted the aid of his father Peter, a German immigrant and all-around steward of American folk music. The pair grew a small repair operation and their "Thumb Piano Factory & Dulcimer Works" into the Goose Acres Folk Music Center. More than just a store to share the fruits of their own lutherie, it was a repair shop and a vital meeting ground that served all manner of local pickers and folkies all the way up to the likes of Norman Blake and Doc Watson. While Bob continues to this day to build and preserve fine folk instruments under his own name, Goose Acres ceased operations in 2006 and Peter passed shortly after in 2008.
This closed-back Bluegrass oriented 5-string is built around a standard pattern Mastertone-style maple rim and cast flange with a shallow-arched flathead tone ring, dual coordinator rods and laminated mahogany resonator. The neck and headstock are more in the classic Vega pattern than exact Gibson style, made of laminated mahogany with a thin center strip of rosewood and topped with a more Gibson-esque inlaid ebony fingerboard with "Goose Acres" engraved on the 21st fret block. The Vega-pattern headstock is faced in ebony with pearl notched star, circle and "GA" logo inlay. It carries Grover-style tuners with pearloid buttons. The tailpiece is a Presto style and the bridge is a Grover. This is a very good sounding banjo, with plenty of volume but a warmer tone than some, offering a nice ringing but never brittle sound.
Overall length is 37 in. (94 cm.), 11 in. (27.9 cm.) diameter head, and 3 1/32 in. (7.7 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 26 1/4 in. (667 mm.).
Overall this banjo remains in very fine condition, looking only lightly used over the past several decades. There are some surface marks to the metal hardware but very little actual playwear, just signs of careful use over the years. There is a small bit of visible, but not palpable, wear around the first fret where it may have hung or rested in a soft stand consistently over a long period. It plays very well and resides in what is presumably the gator skin hardshell case it left the Goose Acres shop with. Excellent Condition.
