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bamboo basses and related.

pierce

pierce

freethinker
May 25, 2000
649
9
San Francisco, Ca
www.myspace.com
#1
i have been looking at skateboards lately, and the new thing this year is bamboo. apparently its extremely strong, and less ecologically damaging to harvest (with exception). i know that skateboards and basses are in no way similiar in nature or output, but it made me start to wonder about the possibility this wood might have in instruments.

i found this thread from last year, but no futher input on the forum

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=188763&highlight=bamboo


some of the possible uses could be (i am considering it whole, in laminate, and as a composite with other material)
* ebg and abg bodies, fingerboards, nuts, bridges, frets, and pickup covers
* upright bodys, fingerboards, bridges, end pieces, and possibly even bows
* speaker enclosures.
* rigid softcases and hardcases
* other

please discuss. :)
 
#2
Considering it's a grass and not a wood, it grows much quicker.

However, on that note, that leaves you with much smaller workable area, certainly not enough for a bass body, and I'm pretty sure I wouldn't want a bamboo fingerboard, bridge, certainly not frets.

Not sure how workable it is, but it doesn't seem like a great idea.
 
#4
well, it can be used in a laminated form

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this board is 38"x9". and you can see how tough it is...

loaded-flex-picture.jpg
 
#5
pierce said:
well, it can be used in a laminated form

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

this board is 38"x9". and you can see how tough it is...

loaded-flex-picture.jpg
Click to expand...
I'm not arguing the rigidity and strength of it. I'm all for trying new materials, but I'm not sure bamboo is one of them that would be successful.
 
#10
accident

i was 9 and was playing in a park and fell off a bench only to land on a stalk of bamboo. for some reason, it had been sharpened and left a nice hole in my leg. we didnt know though that the top 4" of the stick had broken off in my leg, and 2 weeks later i had to have surgery to get it out. on top of that, for it to heal properly they couldn't stich it up. i had to spend all summer in bed with a huge gash in my leg while it slowly healed.

i hate bamboo.
 
#12
rykn0w298 said:
accident

i was 9 and was playing in a park and fell off a bench only to land on a stalk of bamboo. for some reason, it had been sharpened and left a nice hole in my leg. we didnt know though that the top 4" of the stick had broken off in my leg, and 2 weeks later i had to have surgery to get it out. on top of that, for it to heal properly they couldn't stich it up. i had to spend all summer in bed with a huge gash in my leg while it slowly healed.

i hate bamboo.
Click to expand...

That is awful.
 
#17
pierce said:
but what if you could make an abg that was LOUD, and dang near indestructible.

what if it was tonally superior to pernambuco.

i doont know, im just asking what for opinions. i have found no research on acoustice propertieds of bamboo.
Click to expand...
I'd think you could make a darn near indestructible, but I don't know loud. Loud acoustic instruments are all about the surface area-to-mass ratio of the top, while maintaining the necessary stiffness to withstand the string pull.

That stuff does look tough and cheap, but the laminated skateboard deck looks too springy to have the right kind of stiffness.
 

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