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I want to use Macassar ebony for the fingerboard on my next project, but I want it to be black. How can I dye it black? Would it be better to have this done for me?

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"An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is an adventure wrongly considered." G. K. Chesterton.

Why not just buy a gabon ebony fretboard? That's the obvious solution...

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

I agree, get a black ebony board and save the nice streaky one (if that's the issue) for a project where that's an appropriate aesthetic.

I dug through some stock the other night looking for a piece of black ebony to make a fingerboard exactly like one on a matching uke. I found it and slotted it. Later I looked at the first uke carefully and it had a macassar fingerboard that had turned very dark with play. It has a nice and subtly figure. I may not be as picky in the future.

I agree with leaving it as is, but the guy that wants to buy the guitar when done wants Macassar, but black.

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"An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is an adventure wrongly considered." G. K. Chesterton.

[QUOTE=SteveS] I agree with leaving it as is, but the guy that wants to buy the guitar when done wants Macassar, but black. [/QUOTE]

Then he's just a tad clueless...

You shure he maybe just want ebony? It makes no sense whatsoever...

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

[QUOTE=Hesh1956] LMI has a black fret board dye that will cover any thing. Many factories use this same stuff with Huss & Dalton being one of them.[/QUOTE]

Hesh, I have used that and it dose work well, but it has an artificial look to it.

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Lance@LuthiersForum.com

If the customer wants black, black, then he probably has Macassar confused with the Gabon ebony. I have had a few that were dark, however very few to none that were black/black.

I agree with Lance, the dye does look artificial

The Macassar does get darker with play

Good Luck!

Mike
White Oak, Texas

Personally, I find Gaboon has a lot of color variation (in the lots I have bought). Some of it has a real mottled appearance. Not something I particularly care for. I am always careful to ask for BLACK boards when I buy Gaboon.

IMHO, the really good stuff is the Madagascar ebony. That stuff is much blacker. It is a little more expensive, but in my mind it is worth it.

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Brock Poling
Columbus, Ohio
http://www.polingguitars.com