Gibson rumours about new fretboard woods

[Kiaser Sohsai]

So I've heard grumbling about what Gibson is going to do to make up for the shortfall in rosewood for their fretboards. Some are coming out with baked maple already, how does baked maple compare with rosewood?

[Jondog]

I haven't played one yet, but appearantly you get a different tone...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qf61M3lBraY

[jason41224]

a lot of people are out there saying that it sounds/feels like ebony. too bad it doesn't look like it, but that video posted above mentions that using lemon oil really darkens it up and makes it look better.

[cheacher]

ive heard about people using lemon oil on them too, strange because on my little bottle of lemon oil it says "not for use on maple fretboards".

what would be the issues using it on a maple board? and would the baking of it change its characteristics much? i thought the reason for baking was purely for "the look".

[jason41224]

like the video points out, Gibson says lemon oil is safe to use on baked maple. baking it apparently changes the density of the maple to something more like rosewood.

[Dark Helmet]

torrefaction makes the maple safe for lemon oil. "raw" maple is still a no-no.

I'm picking up a baked maple Gibson later this week, and I'll have the board oiled the first time I take the strings off.

[cheacher]

yes sorry, i should have watched the video before posting. very interesting. i would like to try 1 of these, to see how it compares to my trad.

[Citrus Monolith]

They aren't rumors, they're using all kind of different substitutes already. They just changed the SG Standard to katalox and they're also making a "limited edition" SG Standard with baked maple. They have a semi-hollow with richlite.

[cheacher]

interesting what they said about the brightness of the baked maple. having owned a chambered studio i would say the chambering has more to do with the tone than the fretboard wood. although the studio and trad have different pickups...... who knows

[Wendigo]

Pffft ..."Richlite", "Baked maple"....

Tear down the rainforest I say. Next thing you know they'll stop using bristlecone pine as budget caskets.

[Neiloler]

So are ALL rosewood fretboards going to get rare? Should I rush to buy all the rosewood-equipped necks I can find?

Seriously though, should I?

[Jondog]

My Brother is a woodworker, so I asked him about Rosewood. He says it's legal in Canada still, I don't understand why Gibson doesn't just get them made here? It's all becaue theres no trade agreement on it between the U.S. and India or wherever it's from.

[jason41224]

So are ALL rosewood fretboards going to get rare? Should I rush to buy all the rosewood-equipped necks I can find?

Seriously though, should I?

nope. the gov is only going after gibson, though they get their rosewood from the same factory that both fender and taylor get theirs...which is why it's so fishy. seems all political to me.

[OrangePaul]

I would think it's only a matter of time before they do the same to the other manufactures. Don't they have to at least show they are being consistent?

[Randy Bass]

I would think it's only a matter of time before they do the same to the other manufactures. Don't they have to at least show they are being consistent?

Oh, sweet OrangePaul. That really was adorable .

We have plenty o' shameless corruption just like every other country. Gibson is only unique because it is a non-Union shop, which has made it a political target. It's a shame, considering that they make so many traditional / reissue models that need to be made like the originals. It wouldn't be such a big deal for someone like B.C. Rich to start experimenting with modern materials.