Takamine "Lawsuit" F330 D-18 copy bridge wood.

[mike carne]

I bought one less than a week ago and am delighted -gigged and sessioned already.The only thing I
don't like is the "ebonised" bridge(gloss black painted).
Does anyone know what wood is under there?I rubbed down a Fender 12 string and found decent rosewood underneath.Why PAINT IT?I've also seen an Everly Bros copy.totally black and someone had sanded the bridge revealing white wood?!?!

[Mike Kolb]

Hmmm... one way to check it out might be to pull the one of the bridge pins and nose-around in the hole. Maybe take a sharp scribe and see what's lurking on the wall of the hole. Or maybe nudge the saddle out and see what's underneath. Sounds like an adventure!

[mike carne]

Saddle slot filled with paint and a change of strings revealed the bridge wood to be too red for rosewood.
So I'm going to leave it alone-all original!
Thanks,
Mike.

[Greg Mirken]

FWIW, over the years I have gotten many replacement bridges from Takamine, and they were always Indian rosewood. Top surface stained very dark, of course, but the underside was always clearly rosewood, if not the choicest visually.

Greg Mirken

[mike carne]

Thanks Greg,but this is an entry-level laminate guitar,but seemingly iconic, collectible etc...
I'd love to put better machines on it,a torty pickguard,a push-in endpin,but for once in my life-
Let it be!!!