Is it just me or do maple fretboards *feel* different?

[astrozombie]

I was playing a stratocaster that i own which has a rosewood fretboard, and it felt nice and easy.

i played my tele with a maple one and it felt tight and with good tension.

am i imagining this?

 

[phil_104]

Re: Is it just me or do maple fretboards *feel* different?

No. I have always felt that maple requires more ''work'' if that makes any sense. That's why I like rosewood better overall, but prefer maple for slow blues or jazz.

 

[Bludave]

Re: Is it just me or do maple fretboards *feel* different?

Tele's I Strat's................ Very different guitars!

 

[Atomic Chameleon]

Re: Is it just me or do maple fretboards *feel* different?

A poly finished 1pc maple neck & fretboard (e.g. stock Fenders) will be more glossy and thus sticky than an unfinished rosewood board. An unfinished or oiled maple board will be more slick than rosewood or even an ebony board.

Me, I prefer scalloped necks so I don't *feel* any wood.

 

[rashayritto]

Re: Is it just me or do maple fretboards *feel* different?

i think the difference youre observing is between strats and teles in general, fretboard wood doesnt affect tension but it will change your guitars acoustic qualities a bit. for me the difference is so nominal that i only care if the fingerboard wood looks good with the guitar finish. but im not a nuance player so its probably my loss.

 

[daemon barbeque]

Re: Is it just me or do maple fretboards *feel* different?

I prefer the feel of ebony over rosewood ,maple over ebony and rosewood.

 

[scottish]

Re: Is it just me or do maple fretboards *feel* different?

i think the difference youre observing is between strats and teles in general

Id agree with this 100%. Teles always felt tight to me compared with strats. I own both maple and rosewood strats but only a maple tele.

 

[Vasshu the humanoid typhoon]

Re: Is it just me or do maple fretboards *feel* different?

I always strips away the clearcoat, on the fingerboard of a mapleneck.
Only a few have I tried where it was of no consequence, without the coat maple is nice

 

[astrozombie]

Re: Is it just me or do maple fretboards *feel* different?

So the whole "tension" thing is actually the difference between a strat and tele? does that sound like a typical tele? I only have one so.. lol

 

[JB_From_Hell]

Re: Is it just me or do maple fretboards *feel* different?

I think that the tension thing has something to do with the stupid clear coat on the maple board. It obviously doesn't make the strings tighter, but it just feels that way. Kind of like the more gain you use, the "smoother" the guitar plays, ya know?

The reason I think this is my strat has a maple board, and had a bunch of gloss. After I steel wooled the clear coat off, it felt much slinkier. Same strings, same tuning, no change in the setup, just the removal of the clear coat.

 

[astrozombie]

Re: Is it just me or do maple fretboards *feel* different?

how do you remove the finish on a maple fretboard? and what care does the bare maple need?

 

[pinto79]

Re: Is it just me or do maple fretboards *feel* different?

I stripped the finish on my Tele's maple board. I experience a similar feel differentce. The hard finish held onto my fingertips.

So I stripped it and oiled it. So much better.

 

[ibanezrocks]

Re: Is it just me or do maple fretboards *feel* different?

+1 to the comment that oiled maple feels even smoother than rosewood. I thought I just hated maple fretboards until I tried one that didn't have that thick sticky finish on it (i.e. not a fender) and then I finally gave them a chance.

 

[Philcguitars]

Re: Is it just me or do maple fretboards *feel* different?

I've often been told that Maple with a gloss coat is a faster playing medium than Rosewood.

To this day I have no evidence in my own experience.

I prefer rosewood, as when it wears it's not so visible aesthetically . That said I have a couple of Gloss finished maple necks planned for projects.

Give me 10-20 years and I may have an answer!

 

[Hellion]

Re: Is it just me or do maple fretboards *feel* different?

i think the difference youre observing is between strats and teles in general, fretboard wood doesnt affect tension but it will change your guitars acoustic qualities a bit. for me the difference is so nominal that i only care if the fingerboard wood looks good with the guitar finish. but im not a nuance player so its probably my loss.

+1. Tele's feel a considerable amount "tighter" than Strats for me, regardless of the fretboard.