Marvel Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 Can you tell me the difference between Brazilian Rosewood and other kinds of Rosewood as small as frets on a guitar? I doubt if a "G" man can. The actual frets are usually made of stainless steel wire. The fretboard is the wooden part and it is big enough to examine, although I don't know if a simple visual exam can prove the wood's origin.As for paperwork, used guitars, unless they're very valuable for one reason or another, often come with no paperwork at all. Trying to prove the age of an old guitar, which may have obscured or altered serial numbers, or whose manufacturer has gone out of business, could be difficult. Fret wire is usually nickel-silver (18% silver). There are newer models made with ss frets, but ns is still the more widely used.Most rosewood guitars made after/about 1970 will be made of East Indian Rosewood. Rosewood fretboards are softer than ebony (also less expensive), giving different tonal qualities. Bruce Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fini Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 Bruce, what would you figure is on my '73 D-28? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fini Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 Sides and back, I mean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark1101 Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 Hey all you guys with the exotic wood veneers on your Klipsch speakers.............just don't take them out of the country. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 Bruce, what would you figure is on my '73 D-28? Gregg,I would call them up and ask if they can tell you from the serial number. I had a '63 D-28 that was definitely rosewood. A friend of mine still has it. He droped it off at the Martin factory a few years ago, to have them do some fret work and so on. When he went to pick it up, the guy who brought it out to him offered him $6000 in cash. He politely declined the offer. I think I sold it to him for $350. Bruce Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Richard Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 One of the Biggest Lies - "I'm from the Government, and I'm here to help". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fini Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 Bruce, I just sunk about $800 into my guitar having the neck reset. I'll have to give Martin a call. Edit: Looks like late '69 was when they switched to Indian rosewood: After the introduction of the D–35, Martin was faced with a dwindling supply of Brazilian rosewood and a quickly growing guitar market – folk music was booming. The newly imported Indian rosewood required more seasoning before it could be used. Consequently, Martin began cutting their remaining Brazilian rosewood logs differently to obtain more usable wood out of each log. By late 1969, the change to Indian rosewood was complete, with D–21 #254498 having the distinction of being the first official Indian rosewood guitar. http://www.martinguitar.com/history/dreadnought.php?chptr=5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 Wish I had a D-21... rosewood back and sides with black binding. My buddy spent about $1500 getting the neck reset and the fretwork. btw, if you get a guitar through Mandolin Bros. on Staten Island, your ca get custom guitars for about 25% off. My buddy now has two 7/8 size D-28 (they only made about 100-150 of them), a custom 000-28 (awesome sound) with a sunburst top and square cut peghead... and others. Bruce Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Invidiosulus Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 Can you tell me the difference between Brazilian Rosewood and other kinds of Rosewood as small as frets on a guitar? I doubt if a "G" man can. The actual frets are usually made of stainless steel wire. The fretboard is the wooden part and it is big enough to examine, although I don't know if a simple visual exam can prove the wood's origin. As for paperwork, used guitars, unless they're very valuable for one reason or another, often come with no paperwork at all. Trying to prove the age of an old guitar, which may have obscured or altered serial numbers, or whose manufacturer has gone out of business, could be difficult. Fret wire is usually nickel-silver (18% silver). There are newer models made with ss frets, but ns is still the more widely used.Most rosewood guitars made after/about 1970 will be made of East Indian Rosewood. Rosewood fretboards are softer than ebony (also less expensive), giving different tonal qualities. Bruce There are some excellent 50's Fender and Gibson replicas being made in Israel by a guy who insists on using period correct wood including Brazilian rosewood for the fretboards when applicable. An esquire obviously gets a maple 1 piece neck. He has the CITES paperwork for all the wood he uses but it would still be awful to have the Feds come knocking at your door if you had purchased something like that. http://destroyallguitars.com/gil-yaron/3540-gil-yaron-1958-1960-burst-replicas I hope they don't come asking about the baritone Uke, I don't even know what sort of wood it's made out of. -Josh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldtimer Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 The marimba I used to own was a seventies model, offhand I'm not sure if it was Brazillian or Honduran or other... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Groomlakearea51 Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 The drums are beating.... Someone who just got out of a big black SUV is at the front door. Wearing an earpiece, dark suit, shades and wants to see my digeridoo.... [H] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Invidiosulus Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 You should never let a stranger handle your digeridoo. If you know what I mean... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fini Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 But once they've handled it, they're no longer a stranger... "You can't HANDLE the digeridoo!" --Jack Nicholson in A Few Good Gropes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Groomlakearea51 Posted August 31, 2011 Share Posted August 31, 2011 Way to go Invd and fini, way to go... The temptation to carry on further.... So many possibilities..... The temptation is there.... The lure is almost overwhelming.... Fortunately however, my wife spoke to him and told him I was imagining things and the only wooden instrument I owned was a thoroughly domesticated flute...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldtimer Posted August 31, 2011 Share Posted August 31, 2011 "flutes are categorized as edge-blown aerophones." Not only that but the earliest known flutes were made of (and I'm not making this up) bone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigStewMan Posted August 31, 2011 Share Posted August 31, 2011 sure doesn't take long for a thread to go into the sewer around here [] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldtimer Posted August 31, 2011 Share Posted August 31, 2011 Dog days of summer and all that, innit? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.