Why do some makers still use ebony whilst others don't?

[fartamis]

As some people have mentioned, richlite is more environmentally friendly, easier to maintain, stronger and more stable than ebony. In 35 years of playing I have owned rosewood, ebony and richlite and have never felt a better feel on either one and I very much doubt that the material used for the fingerboard can change. the sound of a guitar.

[jimmy bookout]

Don't MOST Gibson acoustics have rosewood (or some other wood like walnut) fingerboards?
And hasn't that ALWAYS been the case?

[Scotso]

Originally Posted by jimmy bookout

Don't MOST Gibson acoustics have rosewood (or some other wood like walnut) fingerboards?
And hasn't that ALWAYS been the case?

j-60s had ebony
j-45 deluxes have ebony
but ya...generally it is a good bet

[jimmy bookout]

Originally Posted by Scotso

Last time I checked ( it was a few yrs ago) Ebony finger board blanks were much cheaper that Richlite.

They are about the same price these days.

[Goodallboy]

Originally Posted by fartamis

As some people have mentioned, richlite is more environmentally friendly, easier to maintain, stronger and more stable than ebony. In 35 years of playing I have owned rosewood, ebony and richlite and have never felt a better feel on either one and I very much doubt that the material used for the fingerboard can change. the sound of a guitar.

Why would you believe fingerboard material can't affect sound? I recognize you weren't declaring it to be a fact.

I disagree merely because I think every component in a guitar can affect the tone. Like you, I'm not declaring it as an established fact, it just seems more plausible, and I've read that same belief in comments by multiple luthiers.

Perhaps the word "change" should be defined. I'm defining it as affecting the sound in some slight way, not making a dynamic alteration of the guitar tone.

[27R]

Originally Posted by ewalling

So you think Taylor may have refused to sell to some companies, which is why these companies produce nothing anymore with ebony?

No, if anything quite the opposite - that the companies refusing to use ebony are refusing to buy it from what is otherwise a competitor. I think Taylor will sell to anyone - but anyone who buys is increasing Taylor’s bottom line.

[jimmy bookout]

Uh...where did you guys get the impression that Taylor controls ALL the ebony in the world now?
BTW, they don't.

[27R]

Obviously they don’t have all of it, but they probably have the majority of it. And it’s all documented and easy to move.

[Tannin]

It isn't a question of ebony vs synthetic. There are many, many different timbers suitable for making fretboards. From this continent alone we are seeing common use of Mulga, Gidgee, River Sheoak, Drooping Sheoak, Satin Box, and two or three I forget, and these are just a handful of the thousands (yes, thousands) of species available. Acacia and casurinas alone number well over 1000 species, and some are available in quantities the entire world guitar industry would struggle to dent - I'm thinking of Mulga in particular here, but also River Sheoak, and neither one is used for anything else much. And we haven't even touched on the eucalypts, the corymbias, the grevilleas, or the callitrises.

Originally Posted by Taylor Ham

[Taylor are] also trying out stained eucalyptus.

They are actually using Blue Gum, which is a weird choice for a fretboard timber. You'd think something hard and dense and naturally stable would be far better - for example, Red Gum or Spotted Gum if we are talking eucalypts. But presumably they know what they are doing.

For acoustic guitars, the fingerboard timber is a significant contributor to the tone, or so the makers tell us. Essentially, the harder the timber, the more treble response the instrument has. There are any number of hard, stable timbers to be investigated.

[Tannin]

Originally Posted by fartamis

I very much doubt that the material used for the fingerboard can change. the sound of a guitar.

Actually, it does, quite a lot.

Originally Posted by Cole Clark

The harder the finger board the less bass you have and the more top end you get. Fingerboards have a very big effect on the sound of an acoustic guitar. - https://coleclarkguitars.com/about-c...uitar-timbers/

[charles Tauber]

Originally Posted by ewalling

Okay, so you're saying such as Godin and Gibson could use ebony but choose not to because of the hassle of obtaining it legally and the practical issues that arise with preserving and working with dense woods.

I didn't mention either Godin or Gibson.

You asked why manufacturers would chose one over the other. I attempted to answer that general question and provide reasons why manufacturers might want to use alternatives to ebony.

I have no idea of the specifics that went on behind closed doors at Godin or Gibson that resulted in their discontinuing the use of ebony.

What still seems a little odd, though, is how these two companies changed almost overnight to a complete conversion to Richlite. I would have thought that a changeover like this might be more gradual, with ebony being kept for certain models and Richlite used for others.

Clearly, they made a business decision to do so. It could be economics, it could be supply, it could be price...

Gibson and Martin are the two big boys of American acoustic guitar making. It seems a little odd that they should be so diametrically opposed in their attitudes to fretboard material and the relative importance of sticking with a traditional material as opposed to striking out with something new.

I can't speak for either Gibson or Martin. However, Martin's business is very heavily based on tradition, Gibson's business less so. Continuing to use ebony would likely appeal to traditionalists.

[dnf777]

Having owned ebony, rosewood, and several other species of fretboard, i can say that Richlite is preferable to any of the non-ebony woods, in my hands. Ive had a Martin Jeff Tweedy 00 (richlite) thats been strung in tune and played for 10 years, that has no signs of wear or needed any work. And it looks good after that time with no treatments.

[Rudy4]

Originally Posted by Scotso

Last time I checked ( it was a few yrs ago) Ebony finger board blanks were much cheaper that Richlite.

They are. Ebony blanks are cheaper still than the Rocklite product that I like a lot.

Luthier's Mercantile is now selling torrified purpleheart fretboard blanks and will soon also supply headstock overlays, bridge blanks, and other sizes of this material. This looks to be promising as an ebony substitute.

[fartamis]

Originally Posted by Goodallboy

Why would you believe fingerboard material can't affect sound? I recognize you weren't declaring it to be a fact.

I disagree merely because I think every component in a guitar can affect the tone. Like you, I'm not declaring it as an established fact, it just seems more plausible, and I've read that same belief in comments by multiple luthiers.

Perhaps the word "change" should be defined. I'm defining it as affecting the sound in some slight way, not making a dynamic alteration of the guitar tone.

No I am not declaring that it is a fact but I have serious doubts.

Of course to prove my point of view it would be necessary to do a test with two identical models, one with richlite and the other with ebony, but I very much doubt that the difference would be audible.

I've played richlite guitars that sound amazing, and I've played ebony guitars with poor sounding, and the reverse is also true.

You know on this earth there are people who believe that gold-colored tuners will make the guitar sound better than silver, or that a beige binding will sound better than a white binding, luckily I am not there in my passion for guitars.

But the beauty of this world is that we are free to think however we want and I respect that.

[Chas007]

Originally Posted by jimmy bookout

I'll assure you that musical instrument production barely REGISTERS in the world's use of timber.

Are you kidding? You have half a rain forest listed in your signature.... :-)