I have a Martin guitar with a Richlite fretboard. I think it is a little faster than the ebony fretboard I have on my other Martin. Taylor is involved with planting ebony trees. They have their own plantation of ebony and (I think) subcontract the harvesting and processing of the ebony.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
I have had a McSpadden with an ebony fretboard and one with a micarta fretboard. I noticed no difference in the two for how they played. Ebony is more expensive.....micarta is a real nice less-expensive alternative. Micarta is all black, whereas ebony can sometimes have some cool looking streaks in it.
I have no idea about the cost of these materials (I suspect less expensive than ebony...I could be wrong, but I think not) However, my big quibble about the use of such materials (if less expensive) is the price of the instruments using them has not seemed to come down any (and, yes, I'm well aware of the other costs involved in building instruments).
Micarta has been around for a long time. It was developed by George Westinghouse around 1910. You see it used in knife handles because it comes in a great variety of colors and textures. Micarta has been used to make dulcimer nuts and bridges for years. As natural materials become scarce, I think we need to open ourselves to using other materials for instrument making. I was skeptical of doing this for a long time until I purchased a Martin guitar made of HPL (high pressure laminates). That turned me in to a believer. I would not hesitate to use Micarta for a fret board.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Thanks, I do like the Micarta. Even Jim Woods of McSpadden told me that if he were building a dulcimer for himself now, he would go with Micarta. I know Ebony is rare now to get so I didn’t know if I should have it this time around. However, I live in a high humidity area. I have only been playing 3 months. Right from the get go, not only was it smooth, I found myself being able to look away from the fretboard from time to time while flatpicking. Slow, flatpicking, of course, tee hee.
Given that true African ebony is basically impossible to obtain legally these days, more and more luthiers are looking for alternatives such as rosewood or synthetic versions such as Micarta. If Micarta is good enough for a Martin Guitars, it's probably good enough for me.
Basically, you want the fretboard to be really hard and really smooth. I've read reviews that praise Micarta for both of those reasons. According to Martin, Micarta plays faster than Ebony and will never warp. Some people claim that it doesn't feel like genuine wood, that it feels like plastic, but that has not been my experience, and I suspect that the objection to Micarta comes from those who believe for philosophical reasons that fine instruments should just be made of wood with no synthetics anywhere.
How does the Micarta feel to you? If you like it, then stick with it.
Micarta is basically colored to look like black ebony. But I wonder if the stigma against it recedes, will they start making it in different colors? How 'bout a hot pink fingerboard?
I have a Micarta Fretboard on my McSpadden Dulcimer and love it. I am thinking about getting another McSpadden made with some additions and different woods. I was wondering about any experiences of other regarding Micarta versus Ebony for a fretboard in sound, durability and feel. Thanks
