Ebony headstock veneer - 2nd quality African Ebony
Excellent quality ebony with some grey striping

Minimum Dimensions - 80mm x 2.5mm x 190mm (3 3/16" x 3/32" x 7 1/2")

African Ebony is the preferred timber used for guitar fret boards for many years. This material is dense, hard, stable and heavy, although it is brittle and may crack with age. It is also used for headstock veneers, bridges, tailpieces and finger rests on acoustic and arch top guitars.

Quality - Suitable African Ebony should be a uniform dark grey to black colour, and should be free from cracks and knots. Quarter sawn material is preferred by many luthiers, however not completely necessary. We only stock the best quality ebony.

Look - The most Desirable Ebony should be black in colour. A small amount of light streaking is generally considered acceptable as it becomes barely visible once the board has been treated with oil or wax. African ebony is very dense and has a fine grain.

Price - Good African ebony is reasonably expensive per weight. However, as the fret board stock is not large, an African Ebony fret board will normally not break the budget and makes a nice final touch to a handmade guitar.

Availability/Renewability - Excellent quality ebony logs are still available in the size needed to make guitar components like fingerboards and tailpieces.