Vega Little Wonder Special Model Guitar Banjo (1926), made in Boston, Mass., natural lacquer finish, laminated maple neck and rim, ebony fingerboard, black tolex hard shell case.
Here is a great playing and sounding Vega Little Wonder Banjo-Guitar from the mid-1920's. Although a relatively inexpensive model in the Vega Professional line the Little Wonder is a robust high-quality instrument, lacking only the fancier tone rings and bracket band of the White Lady and Tubaphone. This banjo features a heavy laminated maple rim and neck and a very thick ebony fingerboard with pearl dot inlay, simple sheathed brass wire tone ring, and bracket shoes mounted through the rim.
The neck has an ebony heelcap and headstock facing with a "Vega" engraved inlaid pearl star and a bone nut. The rim edge is bound in tortoise celluloid with the bottom edge lacquered black. This banjo is fitted with a close-fitting (Vegaphone style, but mounted on this larger rim with no flanges) pie-section maple resonator; this was a higher-priced original equipment option by 1926 carrying the "Special" designation and costing an additional $15.00. We rarely find Vega banjo guitars with resonators; the vast majority are openbacks .
These fairly rare Vegas are some of the best guitar-banjos ever built, and sound great for everything from New Orleans Jazz ("Play that thing, Mr. St Cyr!" - with Louis Armstrong's Hot Five, Johnny St Cyr used a six-string Vega) to Old-Time Country. This is very good-playing example freshly set up ready for the next 80 years or so, sporting new Five-Star Planet geared pegs with vintage-style buttons (the originals were straight friction pegs) and a plastic head as the only concessions to modernity!
Overall length is 35 1/2 in. (90.2 cm.), 11 13/16 in. (30 cm.) diameter head, and 2 3/4 in. (7 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 25 in. (635 mm.). Width of nut is 1 3/4 in. (44 mm.).
Well-played but not abused; recent refret and set up put this in perfect playing condition. Visible holes on rear of peghead from previous guitar-style tuner installation, a couple of plugged holes on neck heel and one on resonator rim from strap buttons. Set up with a plastic head, silk-and-steel strings, and a carved ebony bridge, this is one very powerful instrument, fully capable of driving a jazz or dance band. Generally Excellent Condition.
