I do believe I've read every post here. I hope so.
I've been working on banjos for 50 years. So my obviously-sideways reply to this thread is that I like coordinator-rod banjos.
Perch-pole (or "stick", "dowel", whatever) banjos are a pain to maintain and service. I bet I reset 50 of the dang things when working in the shop. And on a few others (including my all-time favorites - the old Whyte Laydies), I heat-warped the stick back into some sort of decent action.
I prefer the tube-and plate Gibsons and the older shoe-and-hook Gibsons (with the leftover resonators and flanges thrown in an ancient Paisano orange crate under the overhanging side of the bench). My absolute favorite is a converted early Gibson Pyramid model 2 sans reso and flange, but alot can be done with TB-1s, RB-170s, and Orioles as well.
Lots of players opine that the sound of a perch-pole banjo is distinctly different from a coordinator-rod banjo. I believe a dead-on match of tone can be achieved by my choice of strings, head, tone ring, bridge, tailpiece, neck construction, wood selection, and head tension.
For long-necks, I'll take an RB-175, though the old Vega Seeger gets the majority stamp of approval.
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