Jump to content

Bamboo. The new tonewood!


Frets99

Recommended Posts

And it's good for the ol ecosystem!!

 

http://www.enn.com/top_stories/article/33410

 

"Boston-based First Act, which built an environmentally friendly electric guitar for Guster's Adam Gardner, is rolling out its Bambusa line of electrics to instrument stores this year. The $399 guitar, currently available via firstact.com and at the company's retail store in Boston, is made of bamboo and covered with a water-based finish, rather than traditional polyurethane.

 

Rather than a reaction to diminishing wood supply, First Act marketing VP Jeff Walker says that "this is more of a charge led by our head of product development for guitars, who was seeking alternative ways to come out with an exciting new product."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

Wow! Couldn't find any info on their website. A quick google search returned a Yamaha acoustic from 2000. Bambo makes sense as it's such an regenerative (invasive) species. However, I don't think it grows big enough to make a 3 piece body versus other regenerative species wuch as Paulwnia. We'll see, bamboo has caught on in the flooring industry...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

Most likely put together like the bamboo baseball bats. Thousands of 1/4" by 1/4" strips glued together.

 

I'm skeptitcal though. Bamboo has some interesting properties such as the ability to flex and return to shape without residual oscilation. They've been making primo fly fishing rods for years out of this stuff for this reason. I would suspect that this would be a tone killing quality, but I guess time will tell.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

You know, it's absolutely tragic that a company and website gets a mention in the NEWS, and you go to their site and there's not 1 single thing about it.

 

The only article on green guitars is an old one that does not concern bamboo.

 

What a massive missed opportunity for them :(

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

 

Most likely put together like the bamboo baseball bats. Thousands of 1/4" by 1/4" strips glued together.


I'm skeptitcal though. Bamboo has some interesting properties such as the ability to flex and return to shape without residual oscilation. They've been making primo fly fishing rods for years out of this stuff for this reason. I would suspect that this would be a tone killing quality, but I guess time will tell.

 

 

 

Perhaps the glue or resin is what gives it stiffness.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You know, it's absolutely tragic that a company and website gets a mention in the NEWS, and you go to their site and there's not 1 single thing about it.


The only article on green guitars is an old one that does not concern bamboo.


What a massive missed opportunity for them
:(

 

True!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

You know, it's absolutely tragic that a company and website gets a mention in the NEWS, and you go to their site and there's not 1 single thing about it.


The only article on green guitars is an old one that does not concern bamboo.


What a massive missed opportunity for them
:(

 

Yep. I looked. Nothing.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

It's going to have to be plywood made from bamboo, and not solid blocks like we've all come to expect from our guitars.

 

That said, would you like to buy a plywood guitar made from a less interesting wood? say in alder or maple? I think the intrigue is that it's made from bamboo, and environmentally concious. I mean, a thicket of bamboo can grow back in 3 months; my "old-growth, dredged from the bottom of a river, hand selected from rotten and imperfect pieces to optimize tonality and a pleasing grain" Swamp Ash guitar isn't exactly renewable, or quickly producable.

 

With a plywood bamboo guitar, you chip it up, glue the pieces together, and paint it. Who knows?:confused:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...