Black Bean anyone?

[jeffhigh]

An Australian manufacturer has recently started proclaiming it's environmental credentials for using "sustainable" Black Bean for fretboards.

My limited exposure to this species used for fretboards on 50's and 60's Matons was not positive, deep divots with the wood sometimes feeling spongy.

Anyone else had any experience, positive or negative

[DarwinStrings]

Yep Jeff you would want to watch out for those spongy pockets it gets and it ain't no fun to cut with that stench it has. It is a nice looking wood though.

[kiwigeo]

Yep Jeff you would want to watch out for those spongy pockets it gets and it ain't no fun to cut with that stench it has. It is a nice looking wood though.

Stinky fretboard...perfect for stinking hot riffs!!

[kiwigeo]

From the mystery maker's website:

"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."

Anyone care to comment on this statement?

[jeffhigh]

BS
I also liked there spokesman at NAAM complaining that wage rates are very high in Australia.
Have the Cnc's become unionised now?

[DarwinStrings]

Anyone care to comment on this statement?

Nope, best to just let them keep talking.

[ozziebluesman]

Yep, I agree with Martin. It makes sense that the strings vibrating over the surface of the fingerboard and what ever that surface is effects the tone of a guitar big time. This discussion has come up with different Reps from wholesale music companies when I worked in the music trade. At least three respected Reps have made the statement that the neck and the fingerboard material contributes to at least a third of the tone of a good acoustic guitar. I have taken lots of notice to these opinions with my own building 90% of my guitars I use Indian Rosewood for tone, good weight, wear, work-ability, great ascetics and stability it has all the requirements you need for a great fingerboard.
Cheers
Alan

[curly]

It's a funny thing the whole fingerboard influence on tone . I can't claim any great knowledge of the topic as a maker . As I supplier I get a bit of a different perspective which probably just verifies how subjective makers opinion of the tone of their instruments is .
I supply gidgee and other high density arid zone timbers for fingerboards in reasonable quantities , plenty of makers use nothing but . That particular manufacturer swears black and blue that gidgee fingerboards ruin their tone .
I am not the supplier of the black bean though I do commend them trying to get away from less ethical timbers . At 3500 instruments a year that's an impact . Indian rosewood is to some extent plantation grown though the quantity I have handled ( contract drying other people's stock ) was plainly , clearly old growth .
Pete
Curly timbers

[jeffhigh]

I'm just surprised to see Black Bean reappearing as a fretboard timber, when it proved to be lacking in durability when Maton used it half a century ago.

[curly]

I entirely agree that black bean seems an odd choice . The open pore structure combined with a low janka seems risky to me . I prepared a list a ways back of suitable native species for fingerboards based on the technical data , castanospermum australae didn't make the list .
That much said , I'm only an amateur maker and the subtleties of tone are beyond the scope of conventional timber technical data .
Pete
Curly timbers