Dark fretboard.
- Thread starter solspirit
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GuitarStv
Sock Market Trader
Natural ebony can be completely pitch black. Usually it's black with very dark streaks of brown though, and is treated with dye to make it evenly black. If you look at many higher end modern Taylor guitars they stopped dying their ebony and let the grain show through, which looks cool to me:
Here's a picture of a bunch of raw ebony fretboards where you can see how much the colour can change:
I think that's your darkest natural wood. Other than that there are a variety of completely black synthetic fretboard alternatives available though.
Here's a picture of a bunch of raw ebony fretboards where you can see how much the colour can change:
I think that's your darkest natural wood. Other than that there are a variety of completely black synthetic fretboard alternatives available though.
Securb
One of Jerry's Kids
Richlite fretboards are totally black and play amazingly. They are so smooth, the only way I can describe it is like skating on ice. My carbon fiber fretboard on my Parker is also very nice.
GuitarStv
Sock Market Trader
Depends what you mean by 'highest grade'. The properties of ebony with lighter grain are the same as darker ebony. Since it's a very easy to dye wood, the worst looking pieces tend to get dyed completely black for a uniform finish (something Gibson, along with most other instrument manufacturers have been doing forever). If you have a completely black piece of ebony on your instrument, the odds are very high that it was dyed that way.
JMP/HBE
Well-known member
"Dyed" boards make your fingers black. Legit black ebony does not.
The reason they use "streaked" is because the black boards are in short supply.
And alot of dyed boards aren't ebony at all.
By your logic you're trying to say any black ebony including violins, violas, cellos and the black keys on AAAA grade concert pianos is all dyed and thats not the case.
Only cheap-azz guitar manufactures dye FB's because they're trying to fool people.
And Gibson uses "Richlite" as a substitute because of ebony shortages.
You can have ebony thats not dyed but you'll pay for it.
Its not that the black ebony has changed its that manufactures standards have to be "cheap".
You'll never see a streaked ebony board on a 50/60/70/80 Gibson LPC.
My FB is not dyed because its "Ebony".
Would you give your wife "lab grown" diamonds or natural ?
The reason they use "streaked" is because the black boards are in short supply.
And alot of dyed boards aren't ebony at all.
By your logic you're trying to say any black ebony including violins, violas, cellos and the black keys on AAAA grade concert pianos is all dyed and thats not the case.
Only cheap-azz guitar manufactures dye FB's because they're trying to fool people.
And Gibson uses "Richlite" as a substitute because of ebony shortages.
You can have ebony thats not dyed but you'll pay for it.
Its not that the black ebony has changed its that manufactures standards have to be "cheap".
You'll never see a streaked ebony board on a 50/60/70/80 Gibson LPC.
My FB is not dyed because its "Ebony".
Would you give your wife "lab grown" diamonds or natural ?
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GuitarStv
Sock Market Trader
No, this isn't true at all. Properly set dyes will not come off on your fingers.
I can't speak for every type of instrument out there, but using dyes on ebony to blacken it has been common since at least the 60s with guitars - and there wasn't a short supply of ebony back then. Both Gibson and Martin regularly dyed their ebony fretboards.
True . . . because streaking was seen as a colour defect to be corrected by dye. It has been a common practice for ages to make the ebony seem more uniform. Look, I'm not saying the wood is like maple coloured under the dye - especially older ebony is probably 95-98% black. But it has always been very rare to have completely black ebony, hence the dying. When your luthier pulls the frets from your guitar and refinish the board and sands it down, you'll likely see some slightly lighter and darker patches in the wood, unless it gets re-dyed.
No, of course not. But the odds are very high that it has been dyed if it is completely jet black with zero variation in colour.
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Agreed, and they feel fantastic. I don't have many boards that aren't scalloped, but a few are Richlite (and one is generic 'phenolic' ) and they feel fantastic. No grain of any kind, and a dark, deep black blacker than any ebony I've ever seen.
ICTGoober
New member
Nope, you're just wrong. Martin admitted decades ago that they dyed their ebony black because they thought the public demanded it. The public was actually programmed. Bob Taylor did more than anyone in promoting the idea that streaky ebony was as acceptable as jet black ebony. He went over to the Asian forests and found all these ebony trees just lying on the ground, and asked WTH? The natives told him the trees weren't perfectly black, so Constantine, Martin, Gibson, and the other wood importers would leave them after cutting. Bob asked if they were still available for sale... the answer - "HELL, YES!". Taylor now leads the way with replanting of ebony trees in the forests so that there will be ebony in the future and for that - he gets my full respect. I'm not crazy about his guitars, but if I ever get the chance I'll shake his hand and thank him for really looking after the future instead of just giving lip service to the problem. The man is not afraid to get his hands dirty, and that is a righteous attitude to have.
Chistopher
malapterurus electricus tonewood instigator
Man, I remember when a 28 year old Gibson meant it didn't have pickups.
Chistopher
malapterurus electricus tonewood instigator
Not really, I was not around yet
beaubrummels
Well-known member
I don't know what the darkest is, but I don't care either. I only care what it feels like under my fingers. For me, the best feeling is rosewood, but I'll play anything.