The El Capitan from Blackbird Guitars is innovative for a few reasons:
- Made from a new composite of linen and industrial resin — called Ekoa
- Molded uni-body and neck construction
- Hollow neck
- Composite fingerboard with stainless steel frets
The company started out making travel guitars out of carbon composite, and I like the idea, though the travel body styles are not my style (I much prefer the older Steinberger GL models, but it is comparing electrics to acoustics). I really like the use of new materials and how they mold the body and neck at once, then glue the top on. It’s so light and stiff, like carbon fibre, that you don’t need elaborate bracing. I don’t see any on the front or the back, allowing both to vibrate freely. Also love the composite fingerboard and stainless steel frets. You still don’t see the latter much on acoustics yet like on electrics, but I believe they will soon be standard on many instruments.
It’s clear that a lot of guitar players prefer the look and feel of real wood, and would love to have the reliability and sturdiness of carbon composite without sacrificing sound or looks. Ekoa tries to achieve that.
They’re also located in a great area in one of my favorite cities in the world. Hope they can survive this competitive area and still stay in San Francisco.
