EBONY - FOR MASTER CRAFTSMEN ONLY
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EBONY - THE WOOD OF M Y T HS A ND LEG EN D S
The extraordinary strength and deep black
colour have made ebony wood often the topic of
myths and legends. It has been used to repel evil
spirits. Even drink glasses have been made from
ebony wood to protect the user from being
poisoned.
For master craftsmen only
Various species of ebony trees grow native on
dry and intermediate zones in Western Africa,
Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Southern India and
Indonesia. Historically, this exquisite wood was
available only to master craftsmen because of the
nature of the material and its great expense. The
use of it has a long history of use in cabinetwork,
decorative items, crucifixes – and in a wide array
of musical instruments.
A wood species that does not float
Ebony is one the very few wood species that
does not float on water, but sinks to the bottom.
It is heavy, dense and has superior bend strength
As a result of unsustainable harvesting, many
species yielding ebony have become endangered.
Africa, as one example, has had most of its
indigenous ebony cut down illegally over the
past centuries.  hardest ever – for the human kind to learn.
Hard to replace
The use of ebony in certain parts of high end
musical instruments has proven to be extremely
difficult to find a substitute for. The search goes
on. We take part to research projects trying to
find new, sustainable materials, and use local
wood as much as possible in whichever guitar
parts it is suitable for.
A hard lesson for us all to learn
The true solution to the exploitation of our
forests and other natural resources of our planet
ALDER
EBONY
NUT
ROSEWOOD
VALVEBUCKER®
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HARVIALAN KARTANO 34, 13330 HARVIALA, FINLAND
as compared to any other wood species. Ebony
finishes extremely smooth and it is very durable.
It is the only fingerboard wood that can take
decades of wear and tear in violins and other
fretless instruments.
Whereas a fretted instrument doesn’t necessarily
need a fretboard material so extremely resistant
to wear, ebony does have unique qualities that
make it a fantastic material for fretboards and
certain other guitar parts.
Responsiveness needs to be controlled
Certain wood species, such as spanish cedar, are
extremely responsive and vibrant.
Responsiveness is a great thing, but in certain
parts of the guitar – such as neck – it needs to be
controlled, too. The fretboard (regardless if it’s
made of ebony, rosewood, maple or birch) adds
a laminated structure to the length of the neck
and makes the neck stiffer.
THE P ARADOX OF GROWT H
is obviously to consume less. Changing from one
material to another doesn’t help as long as the
total amount of consuming keeps on growing. It
will be a hard lesson – perhaps one of the
The individual luthier can show an example
In this regard, I believe our tribe – the individual
luthiers, living simple lives, making small
numbers of high quality musical instruments to
be loved and played by their owners and
bringing joy over generations – can show an
example.
Forest Stewardship Counsil
With careful planning and responsible actions,
ebony can remain in our choice of wood options
for years to come. We buy tropical wood only
ARCTIC BIRCH BRIDGE TALK
FRETWORK GUITAR FINISH
PICKUPS PLAYABILITY
SPANISH CEDAR THERMAL AGEING
FOLLOW RUOKANGA S
Yes please!
TEL: +358 40 501 4296 | juha@ruokangas.com
Not just for the looks
There is another part in my guitars where ebony
serves well. See, the headstock of a guitar
vibrates, too. Perhaps you’ve noticed that all my
spanish cedar necks have a thick ebony overlay
on them. In this particular use, ebony does
miracles to even out the resonance peaks of the
neck by adding bend strength and density to the
headstock. So, the ebony headstock overlay is
not there just for aesthetic purposes – it serves
an essential structural function.
The tone of ebony?
When compared among our choice of fretboard
materials, an ebony fretboard could be described
as slightly brighter sounding than rosewood, but
not quite as bright as maple or arctic birch.
How to clean an ebony fretboard?
Check out our online Maintenance Guide for
detailed instructions how to clean and maintain
your ebony fretboard in good condition.
from FSC (Forest Stewardship Counsil) certified
suppliers, with whom we’ve worked with since
the 1990’s.
A warm welcome for CITES
All the ebony parts of Ruokangas guitars are
made of FSC certified African ebony (Diospyros
Ebenum). Ebony wood does not yet require
CITES documentation, but this is expected to
change.
We, among our peers give a warm welcome for
this change. Ebony, just as all the other
endangered tropical wood species, need
protection – and we want to take part in
protecting whatever little is left of our beautiful
planet.
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