Ash

A hard, ring-porous hardwood of the genus Fraxinus, used above all for solid electric bodies.

Ash grows across Europe and North America and was the timber that made the solid-body electric commercially practical. It is stiff for its weight, works cleanly and takes both opaque and translucent finishes, so makers can leave the ring pattern visible. It is usually described as having a firm, dry low end, an articulate midrange and a snappy top end that flatters clean playing and light overdrive. Boards vary a great deal in mass, and dry-land ash is noticeably heavier and denser than the swamp ash cut from wet ground, so body blanks are commonly graded by weight before a build is planned.

Example: A telecaster-style instrument in northern ash has the bite and attack the design is remembered for, at a visible weight penalty over the same shape in swamp ash.

typical use: Solid bodies, and occasionally necks and the backs and sides of acoustics.

Ash

See also