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Fender no longer using rosewood ?

#103
smithcreek said:
Just wait until someone tries to explain that to the customs agent at the Canadian border! Which is why I said earlier, putting Indian Rosewood, when much of it is plantation grown, on the CITIES list doesn't make sense. US teenagers have bagpipes seized at Canada border after competition

And yes, that is a sweet parlor isn't it. Hans was an excellent mandolin builder also, but like me he quit making them.
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It is going to be a bit of a nightmare expecting customs and border agents to be able to tell Brazilian (a definite no-no trying to cross borders) from pre 2017 Indian from pau ferro etc.
As for the bagpipes, well the young men really should have realized that they were courting danger with the ivory parts. Apparently the agents themselves didn't even clue into the fact that the pipes themselves are made from African Blackwood which is in fact, you guessed it, a Dalbergia.
 
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#104
We can argue aesthetics all day long, but a typical pau ferro board is resistant to abrasion, has good compression strength and modest dimensional change with changes in relative humidity. From an engineering perspective, not too shabby.
Here is my pau ferro board:
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#106
FingerDub said:
Well, good for you. Glad you like it.

Still doesn't change the idea that lighter fret boards look cheaper to some. Personal experience is no substitute for logic.
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Since logic has nothing to do with subjective opinions on cosmetic appearance, i'm struggling to understand how logic even enters into this.

"Based on personal experience, pau ferro fretboards look fine to me."

"Logic dictates that because i prefer something else, pau ferro makes instruments look cheap."

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#108
I have a P bass with a neck from Warmoth made with pau ferro. I have a copy of the invoice in my gig-bag and PDF on my phone to show customs that it is, in fact, NOT rosewood. Why? Do you really think these nitwits are going to know much less care if it's rosewood or pau ferro? Let's put it this way, if they wants to be dicks then they will be exactly that. Sound alarmist? You obviously don't travel much . . . :p
 
#111
BrotherRay said:
ALL my Peavey G-V basses?:wideyed: How many you got? No wonder I can't find one! :mad::D

PS. Had one. One of the few basses I bought new. Now I think if I has swapped out the aluminum bridge, I could have made it work for me.
Ah well. My AM DLX Fender has a Pao Ferro board, I prefer it to Rosewood and it DON'T LOOK CHEAP:spit:!!!.
Dadgum rassa frassa call my bass cheap lookin' why I oughta that's what you are, you grumble grumble fuss swear complain....

:bag::rolleyes::laugh:
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Five, currently.

Sunburst, stock pre
Pewter, stock pre
Holoflek, stock pre
Pearl black, millenium pre
Blue, millenium pre
 
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#114
I have to agree that I think PF looks cheap. It reminds me of all of the cheap, cookie cutter Chinese necks I've seen on sub $200 basses over the years. Not to say that it makes for a bad instrument, but I associate it with something of inferior quality, so I personally tend to shy away from it.
 
#116
FingerDub said:
Well, good for you. Glad you like it.

Still doesn't change the idea that lighter fret boards look cheaper to some. Personal experience is no substitute for logic.
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In this case, logic has nothing to do with it. It is personal preference. Your (clearly minority) opinion is that pau ferro looks cheap. No logic there, just opinion.
 
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#117
Fender_Bender said:
The main thing I don't like about maple boards, and I have two of them, is that the high gloss finish on them feels a little sticky or grabby under my fretting hand. No doubt I'd get used to it if it was all that's available. The roasted maple sounds very promising as I understand that it doesn't require a finish on top. If it can also accept stains or dyes then you could end up with something visually and physically similarly feeling to ebony or dark rosewood.
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yes my URB has an "ebonized" maple fingerboard, which, to quote the Stones, is essentially to paint it black. It's worn through in a few places.
Personally I like the look / feel of rosewood, and in acoustic applications, its far more than hype. But nonetheless I do poke some fun at the marketing/exotic aspects of instrument-making when so many good domestic wood is available in people's yards.
 
#119
guy n. cognito said:
In this case, logic has nothing to do with it. It is personal preference. Your (clearly minority) opinion is that pau ferro looks cheap. No logic there, just opinion.
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Because you are clearly behind in reading posts, I'll clarify for you. ;) The persons post I quoted "I've got a parts jazz bass with an MIM deluxe neck with a pau ferro board and it looks fine to me.", was basing his opinion on his own love for his pau ferro boarded bass, as have others in this thread. That is also no substitute for whether or not pau ferro looks cheap, it serves a purpose as a fretboard material, even a good one, still the perception is out there whether you like it or not. That's a fact (logic). And I've just seen a 4th pipe in with his opinion that it looks cheap. Anyway, you are probably right, we may be in the minority. But it's still may be a problem for Fender and other manufacturers replacing rosewood with a lighter board. Do you really think that Mexi's are going to get hand selected boards? (back to my original comment).
 
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