Facts

Sitka Spruce:
Cream color with a wide range of grain lines per inch. A nice mid-range to start, with great punch and depth of tone. Starts to mature after, or around, 50 hours of play.

Engelmann Spruce:
Generally a very light color with clean, tight, straight grain. Bright and crisp tones with mid-range and bass developing with play. Takes any color with nice consistency. Moderate play in time.

Red Spruce:
Cream and light red staining with a wide range of grain patterns. As the instrument matures it develops a great complexity of tone with great volume. Continues to mature over the life of the instrument. Takes color well and can have a vintage look.

Cedar: 
Wide range of color usually reds and browns with some streaking. Light open-cell structure, nice throaty tone, and woody bark. Sounds great first time out of the case and matures the quickest of our top woods. Takes color in a unique pattern that gives the instrument a vintage look.

Curly Maple:
Dense tight cell structure with varied grain and horizontal banding or flame. Great crisp projection with punchy volume and tone continues to mature with age.

Quilted Maple:
More open grained than curly maple.  Quilt has unique watermark-like flowing lines that lends itself to one piece backs and more vibrant colors. More relaxed tones than curly maple.

Mahogany:
Light open grained wood ranging in color from light tan to dark brown with some figure. Warm tones with great projection.

F-Holes:
Great focused projection which equals volume. Size can be adjusted to type of setting and music most played. Good for stage work, and being heard above other instruments in a band.

Oval Hole:
A little broader projection than F-Holes that mellows the instrument.


D-Hole:
Very broad projection that gives the instrument qualities desired in Celtic and Folk genres.


Oval and D-Hole instruments while having volume, blend well with the other instruments in a band or orchestra and the instruments will, of necessity, have X-Bracing.

X-Bracing:
An "X" created by two braces intersecting directly under the  bridge. Gives the instrument a great punchy chop right out of the box with great volume as the instrument matures.

Tone Bars:
Two braces running from the head block somewhat following the angle of the sound holes to the tail block. Has a great bell-like sustain, and takes longer to mature than an X-Braced instrument, but develops incredible depth of character and tone with play.