Gibson Gibson may refer to: People * Gibson (surname) Businesses * Gibson Brands, Inc., an American manufacturer of guitars, other musical instruments, and audio equipment * Gibson Technology, and English automotive and motorsport company based * Gi ...

manufactured banjos in the years before

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

. They are differentiated from later Gibson banjos by their scarcity. Banjo sales plummeted during the Great Depression, for lack of buyers, and metal parts became scarce into the 1940s as factories shifted to support the war. As parts became scarce, non-standard versions came out, made from a variety of leftover parts, called floor sweep models.

Terminology

Although this term normally refers to World WarII, when used to describe Gibson banjos, the term ''prewar'' operationally refers to banjos made prior to 1947. Production of metal banjo parts was suspended during World WarII. However, small numbers of Gibson banjos continued to be constructed and shipped during the war years using stocks of metal parts remaining in factory bins. Production of metal banjo parts resumed in late 1946; however, it is commonly believed that the metal composition of foundry products delivered to Gibson after World War II was inferior to that of parts produced prior to 1940. On April 12, 1947, the Gibson Instrument Company changed their corporate logo from script lettering to the use of block letters, and this change occurred sufficiently close to resumption of banjo output to allow easy identification of ''prewar'' and ''postwar'' Gibson instruments.

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Chronology of Gibson Banjos

Gibson Brands Banjo family instruments {{Musical-instrument-stub

Terminology

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Further reading

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