Pau ferro

The timber of Machaerium scleroxylon, also sold as morado or Santos rosewood, a dense South American hardwood used as a direct substitute for rosewood.

It is hard and wear-resistant with a colour range from pale tan to chocolate brown, often streaked, and its open grain means it needs no finish on a fingerboard. Its voice is close to rosewood, described by most makers as warm and clear with perhaps a fraction more brightness and snap. Because it falls outside the trade restrictions that apply to the rosewood species, it became common on instruments where rosewood would once have been used.

Example: a bolt-on with a pau ferro board and a rosewood-free specification can be shipped internationally with far less paperwork.

typical use: Fretboards and bridges as an alternative to rosewood.

Pau ferro

See also