A significant achievement for the sustainable production of guitars
A Canada-based luthier made a major ecological breakthrough for the guitar industry by making the very first acoustic guitar from the most durable woods on the planet: hemp.
This ambitious project was masterfully led by Reuben Forsland of JOI Guitars, who previously created a guitar from boards from Jimi Hendrix's childhood home.
A press release describes the painstaking process involved in creating the guitar, with Forsland having to experiment extensively with bending and sanding hempwood to ensure it could be used to make a guitar.
Due to the tendency of hemp wood to become soft and shatter when cut thin, Forsland had to employ gentle tooling methods and used a kevlar honeycomb core and fiber. carbon to strengthen the guitar, which took about eight weeks to finalize.
Compared to other tonewoods Typically used to build guitars, hempwood, made by combining compressed hemp fibers with soy-based glue, is one of the most durable materials it is possible to work with today.
It is capable of absorbing up to four times more carbon over its lifetime compared to other forest areas of similar size. It is 20% stronger and grows almost 100 times faster than oak, allowing it to be ready for use in months instead of decades.
A statement from JOI Guitars describes Forsland's hopes for the guitar to inspire others in the industry to rethink the possibilities of using sustainable materials.
“When you have the opportunity to work with something new, to challenge yourself, expand your skills and abilities, while making a beautiful guitar - this experience makes me grateful to be a part of the community of people. visionaries who combine sustainability and working together, ”he says.
