Rainsong/Emerald Ekoa Guitars

Rainsong, Emerald, and Blackbird have all been highly exploratory in their development of carbon fiber instruments. They've learned from one another and each company has pursued its own unique shape, style and so forth.

Blackbird has stepped out of the carbon fiber line and introduced a new material that has many of the qualities associated with carbon fiber, Ekoa. Having extensive experience with CF instruments and recent exposure to Blackbird's Ekoa Savoy I think Rainsong and Emerald might do well to consider the use of Ekoa in their fine instruments.

I find Ekoa to be more resonate than carbon fiber while maintaining the same durability and flexibility in shaping & coloration.

Just a thought.

[mountainmaster]

I am all for eco-friendly materials but there may be more to the equation than simply replacing carbon fiber.

Epoxy gives the material its stiffness. Carbon fiber serves as the reinforcing material. This leads me to believe that the type of epoxy makes up a very important part of the sound.
Ekoa is a combination of flax and bio-resin. I suppose there are other materials that could be used for reinforcement? Or other types of epoxy? Or is it possible to create a guitar out of pure epoxy without any reinforcements?
Questions, questions...

But anyway, perhaps more important is the weight of an acoustic guitar. In general I have noticed that the lighter a guitar, the better it sounds. It must be why air guitar always sounds great to the player.

All kidding aside, with their soundboards Blackbird seems to have found the right balance between lightness and stiffness. In addition the hollow neck reduces the weight even more and enhances the resonance.
I believe this is where Emerald and Rainsong could really learn a thing or two from Blackbird. Especially when it comes to nylon string guitars.

Mountain;

I think you mention a critical factor in lightness. Much of that probably comes in the thinness of material needed: I was really surprised when I looked through the sound hole of the Savoy and could see light through the face of the guitar.

What does bio-resin mean? Is it more environmentally friendly than epoxy?

[Captain Jim]

I've enjoyed following along on your journey to find the nylon guitar that is the right combination of size/comfort/sound/projection/playability. You've made a few "asks" that didn't always make a lot of sense to me, but you have been unwavering in your quest. Asking RainSong and Emerald to switch to ekoa, or add it to their line may be another tough ask.

I think we all agree that carbon fiber guitars are a niche market, but have proven to many of us that it is a viable guitar-building material. With the exception of McPherson, we aren't seeing any of the mainstream (read:wood) guitar builders showing any interest in adding CF to their line. As of now, ekoa is an even smaller niche within a niche. It is the one thing BlackBird offers that differentiates them from the other composite builders. Maybe the sales numbers are there and we just aren't hearing about them... or maybe each composite manufacturer has found "their thing" in this niche market?

[mountainmaster]

Originally Posted by EvanB

What does bio-resin mean? Is it more environmentally friendly than epoxy?

Yes, Blackbird explains it in their blog: https://www.blackbirdguitar.com/blog...why-it-matters

Jim;

Some of my asks have made little sense to a lot of people, including Alistair-- He has told me "no" a few time. In retrospect, some of my asks make little sense to me.

Suggesting that Emerald and Rainsong give Ekoa a try is not a far reach since I think some of the involved processes for CF and Ekoa are essentially the same. As Mountain suggested earlier, Ekoa might move Rainsong and Emerald to a better nylon string guitar than they currently offer. McPherson, too, would be a good candidate for a nylon string Ekoa guitar. All of those suggestions might be prefaced with "in my dreams."

Mountain;

I don't think Blackbird's explanation of "bio resin" is very explanatory. Is the explanation saying that the resin is recycled plastics? Is the bio resin plant derived? I find it unclear (unlike the Savoy which I find very clear).