What about Katalox for a fretboard?

[Zeegler]

Last time I was at my local wood store, I impulse bought a gorgeous piece of Katalox that should be big enough to get at least 2 fretboards out of. It's super hard and dense. I briefly sanded a small portion, and it sands to a very shiny non-porous surface. Seems like it will be a good alternative to ebony.

Anyone tried Katalox for a fretboard?

 

[ARandall]

Yep. Works well

 

[LtDave32]

Katalox; AKA "Mexican ebony".

Hard. Sustainable, plentiful and cheap. I use it often.

Very hard. Dark cocoa color, but very uniform in color. If you want it jet black, you'll have to dye it.

Takes India ink well.

 

[LtDave32]

LMI has a shit-load of it, BTW.

 

[DaveR]

I bought this last year. It’s big enough for a single Fender style neck and maybe a couple of fretboards or I could just resaw a bunch of fretboards from it and skip making a whole neck. Haven’t decided yet but it’s awfully pretty and Dave’s recommendation about katalox is what made me look for it in the first place.

 

[LtDave32]

Man, that's a curly one!

Never seen Katalox with that much figure.

They make a great FB. A bit hard on the tools, and it takes a little bit more effort to sand a radius in. But most ebonies are like that anyway.

But I always wondered why companies like Gibson come up with crap like "richlite", when they can use this, and it's real hardwood.

It takes about a third more effort to sand in a radius. Not "that" hard, it's quite do-able. Like I said, no more than any other ebony.

Names include Katalox, Mexican ebony, Mexican Royal ebony. Entirely sustainable and there's tons of it in Mexico. Prices stay down.

For those looking for just a singular fret board size, LMI has tons of it, and it's really quite flat. I've never received a shitty board.

I found out about it when LMI sent me a couple for sample. They'll do that; just throw it in there on an order. " hey, try this! Tell us what you think.. "

They did that with some Grenadillo too. I've got two boards they kicked down to me for free.


I love my LMI. Real service, always available, nice folks, knowledgeable.

 

[DaveR]

I’m a little nervous to make a neck out of a piece that figured, but man what a pretty neck it could be. It’s also perfectly quartersawn which is why I bought it. I’m sure it would be fine for fretboards, I’m just worried a neck might get wonky after carving. I suppose I’ll just have to make a decision and go for it. Got it for just under $100 so I think I made out pretty good on this piece.

 

[LPTDMSV]

I’m a little nervous to make a neck out of a piece that figured, but man what a pretty neck it could be. It’s also perfectly quartersawn which is why I bought it. I’m sure it would be fine for fretboards, I’m just worried a neck might get wonky after carving. I suppose I’ll just have to make a decision and go for it. Got it for just under $100 so I think I made out pretty good on this piece.

As to whether to make it a neck, it's going to be a lot heavier than mahogany, or even maple, from what I know? So that might be a significant factor, will change the balance of the instrument and may not be so resonant. But does look a good candidate for fretboards.

@LtDave32 >>But I always wondered why companies like Gibson come up with crap like "richlite", when they can use this, and it's real hardwood.

I've had this thought too - I don't doubt that Richlite and baked maple are perfectly functional, but alternative hardwoods seem to me much more attractive and appropriate to the Gibson tradition.

 

[ARandall]

^ Its mainly the colour thing.

I mean people buying Customs with richlite think they're entitled to a hefty discount on the guitar because one $10 part of the guitar is replaced with a different $10 part of the guitar.

So you can imagine the opportunistic outrage if the colour was different.
I mean Fender gets a lot of whingers with Pau Ferro being the rosewood substitute....despite it being close to the colour in many cases.

 

[LPTDMSV]

^ Its mainly the colour thing.

Fender gets a lot of whingers with Pau Ferro being the rosewood substitute....despite it being close to the colour in many cases.

That Pau Ferro colour looks great against a lot of those Fender finishes … and it’s the Stevie wood!

 

[ARandall]

Yeah, but try telling that to someone who thinks only rosewood is capable of making iconic Strat tones.
I mean luthiers and rational people will listen. Trolls or the blinkered simply cannot.

 

[LtDave32]

That Pau Ferro colour looks great against a lot of those Fender finishes … and it’s the Stevie wood!

Pau Ferro; AKA Bolivian Rosewood.

Here it is on an SG neck, one of my builds as it was in progress:

The diff I have witnessed in PF (other than the vast-ranging colors) is that it is very tight grained. Unlike other rosewoods.

 

[LPTDMSV]

Pau Ferro; AKA Bolivian Rosewood.

The diff I have witnessed in PF (other than the vast-ranging colors)

interesting! I associate it more with that orange-red tone but the book does say “Color can be highly varied”

 

[LtDave32]

It can be all over the place, regarding color. Even streaks of white, sometimes.

At Rocler store, I dig through the bins until I find stuff like this: