Thanks for the continued good advice, everyone. Sorry about this thread's weirdness and the resultant confusion; the Mudcat Forum was having a technical problem yesterday (according to a thread in the Help Forum, one of the server computers had an incorrect setting for the day's date). Thank you, JoeClone, for copying-and-pasting my original request back up at the top of the thread. At first glance (until one reads the fine print) it looks as if Rick Fielding was the one asking about the banjo, but if he isn't having an identity crisis over it, I certainly won't! *G*

Back to banjos: To answer Charley's question, yes, the Gold Tone MM-150 that I'm borrowing does have an arm rest (no key for the tone ring, though, and no strap). I don't have to fly anywhere with instruments, but a hardshell case is a good idea for storage anyway. I don't really have room to lay the gig bag flat, and I'm leery of standing it up on end and putting the weight of the instrument on the bottom of the tone ring inside the gig bag.... or am I worrying about that needlessly?

Good point about the warranty, Steve. So far, we've been doing price comparisons between this instrument and new ones on the 'net, but this instrument is not new – just not played very often. Bear in mind, too, that in addition to the Shubb 5th-string capo, it's been modified with Waverly tuning pegs (so it tunes from the back of the headstock instead of from the sides as in pictures linked from this thread); does that add to or detract from the value of this instrument?

Still curious about that resonator, too. I'd certainly like to do a lot of jamming with other instrumentalists (how else will I learn to play the banjo along with everybody else?), so eventually, when I'm good enough at it, I'd like the instrument to be heard in a jamming situation! On the other hand, my interest is in learning frailing and clawhammer; I can't imagine that, with lupus, my hands could handle Scruggs-style picking. Anyway, just in case I do decide I want a resonator somewhere down the line, I'm still wondering: can one simply go out and buy a resonator separately and expect it to fit a traditional banjo, or does one have to buy a bluegrass banjo with resonator in the first place and then take it off when one wants to play open-back?

One more technical question (for now): the MM-150 has multiple truss-rods; the MC-150, the Saga SS-10 that Steve mentioned, and others I've seen on the 'net have a single truss rod. Is it preferable to have more than one, or isn't it that big a deal?

Anahootz, thanks for the link. Fortunato, I'm glad to hear that I'm not the only banjo-shopper here at the moment! Hope you know more about 'em than I do.

BTW I went to the library last night and borrowed a copy of the Pete Seeger instruction book for 5-string banjo (third edition revised). What a joy to read!

Sharon