Official Luthiers Forum!

This may seem like a strange post, but I wonder if anyone has tried using Teak for guitars. It's extreme durability comes to mind, and perhaps those natural oils could help keep things lubricated in a way. Just a thought.

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"Preoccupation with an effect gives it power and enhances the error"
from "Your Owner's Manual" by Burt Hotchkiss.

Rosewoods vary pretty widely in density (weight) and hardness. I wouldn't use Indian rosewood for a FB unless a customer requested it, and I would try to talk them out of it unless I knew their playing style was such that they do not put wear on the FB. I, myself, for example, do not put wear on a FB the way I play. I don't push the strings down to the point that they contact the FB, and my fingernails don't either. But, as a general rule, I don't consider Indian rosewood hard enough for a FB on a steel string guitar.

I like the look of a matched FB and bridge. But if I (or a customer) felt that Indian rosewood was the right wood for the bridge on a given instrument, with regard to sound, then I would likely use a different wood for the FB and look for other ways to use the two woods in the decorative elements of the instrument, so that they are visually tied together.

As has been suggested, Madagascar rosewood and Honduran rosewood are good choices for both bridges and FBs, as are some of the other hard rosewoods, as well as some other hard, rosewood-like woods, such as Ziricote. And ebony can work great for both as well.

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Todd Rose
Ithaca, NY

https://www.dreamingrosesecobnb.com/todds-art-music

https://www.facebook.com/ToddRoseGuitars/

I pretty much use BRW exclusively on bridges, and on most headplates, irregardless of the FB wood. Some thought into the choice of piece is required to make things look right IMO, but when its all said and done, I havent had anyone say it didnt look great.

I have used BRW bridge and headplates next to ebony (lots), some EIrw, madagascar rw, HRW.

here is a shot of my Dragonfly neck .. I like the look, and the ebonoid knobs tie the headstock into the FB's black colour. The bridge is a very dark piece, and is far enough away rom the FB end that it could be mistaken for ebony -but if it was lighter, it woudlnt look out of place either.

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Tony Karol
www.karol-guitars.com
"let my passion .. fulfill yours"

Sorry about the mistake Hesh.

Hesh , I will in a short while !! I have a mac fretboard on the way from Watkins and also some matching bridgeblanks that I was planning on using for the one I am building now.

Lars.

I like to use African blackwood for bridges. Oil it and it is as black as ebony, buff and wax it, and it looks like the rosewood it is. It's a little heavy, but I think it is a very musical wood. For fretboards I use ebony or one of the rosewoods generally, but also have used other dark, dense woods successfully.

That's not micro-meshed, but it still got pretty just going to 1000 or so. It's probably my favourite wood cosmetically and working-wise.



I'm a lot better at photography now than I was then, I wish I knew where I put the original (full-size) photo!

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Bob Garrish
Former Canonized Purveyor of Fine CNC Luthier Services