Grain-Filled Rosewood - ID & Frequency?

[Silence Kid]

I know filling the fretboard edges/slots is pretty common for Rosewood - But what is the likelihood that if you encounter a cheap-ish Squier or similar-level guitar with an eerily smooth fretboard, that the board itself was grain-filled? Is it that common of a practice on any particular level of guitar? How would you detect grain-filled fretboards if so?

Background - I really dislike very open-grained Rosewood. A lot of higher/US Fenders and other instruments have very smooth boards where *some* grain is still evident. A lot of MIM/MIJ mid-level instruments seem to have very porous Rosewood, but it's pretty uniform that when I pick up a Squier or cheap guitar the board is quite smooth (talking real Rosewood when it was used, not laurel etc.)

 

[dystrust]

Re: Grain-Filled Rosewood - ID & Frequency?

I've played a few Epiphones that had probably been grain-filled, but I'm not 100% sure the boards were rosewood. It looked like rosewood, but maybe a litlte too shiny while feeling very plastic-like. Whatever is was I hated it, and I won't buy a guitar that feels similar.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Grain-Filled Rosewood - ID & Frequency?

Yeah, I am thinking it might not even be rosewood. I think a lot of woods that are close to rosewood get rounded up to rosewood. Rosewood isn't a smooth as ebony, but I have seen some that were suspect- a little too smooth, and a little too dark.

 

[AlexR]

Re: Grain-Filled Rosewood - ID & Frequency?

Grainfill by itself would fall out......or be pulled out by play very quickly
You would need a sealer coat over it