Top: Port Orford Cedar - Despite its name, Port Orford Cedar is actually a member of the cypress family and not a true cedar. It falls tonally between spruce and cedar, leaning toward a warm spruce top in sound and stiffness. This tone-wood has virtually no "break-in" period, and sounds like a guitar that has already aged.
Back and Sides: Hawaiian Koa - A member of the acacia family, Koa grows only in Hawaii. Flamed (or Curly) Koa is a gorgeous tone-wood displaying some “Mahogany like” properties. Clean and bright with a rich low end. Acacia koa is most often found growing in the acidic soils on the slopes of extinct volcanoes at altitudes of 1,500 to 6,000 feet – land that was once covered with molten lava. Acacia koa grown at lower altitudes and in drier soils does not produce the same type of wood that is found in the trees grown at higher elevations, which displays fibers that have a luminescent quality that gives a hologram effect. The color of koa wood ranges from blonde to a dark chocolate brown, with the most common color being a reddish brown. Koa wood that has a wavy grain pattern is called flamed or curly koa, and is the most rare grade of koa, but also in highest demand. The curly grain is produced in part by the genetics of the tree and also by stress on the wood as it grows. The extra waviness brings out the shiny fibers of the wood, and highlights the extra depth that koa seems to have once it has been finished. Given this is also a protected species, guitar makers have to wait for one of these logs to fall naturally, then hope that the family who's land it is on wants to sell it to them. It is not uncommon for Koa logs to fetch a quarter of a million dollars or more. Another challenge is that the people buying the log don't know which grade of Koa they are getting until they OWN the log and have the chance to cut into it!
As with all McPhersons, the guitar depth at the neck block is 4 inches. The depth at the tail block on this guitar is 5 inches! This is a big sound for a Koa guitar!
All McPherson® guitars include the following unless otherwise specified:
- Scale length: 25 1/2 inches
- Upper bout: 11 1/8 inches
- Waist: 10 1/4 inches
- Lower bout: 16 inches
- Body length: 20 1/8 inches
- Overall length: 41 1/2 inches
- Neck width: Standard 1 3/4 inch @ nut, 2 5/32 inch @ 12th
- Wide 1 7/8 inch @ nut, 2 5/32 inch @ 12th
- String spacing: E to E - 2 3/16 inches
- Offset sound hole.
- Cantilevered neck.
- Truss Rod: Non-adjustable, unidirectional high-modulus carbon fiber
- Ebony bridge
- Ebony bridge pins: Unslotted with mother of pearl dot
- Fingerboard: Ebony with 14 inch radius
- Nut: Natural Bone
- The Buzz Feiten intonation system
- Three custom bone saddles set up for low, med, and tall action
- Binding: Flamed Koa
- Electronics: L.R. Baggs RTS2 system
- Ribbon transducer pick-up, pre-amp and volume control
- Tuners: Schaller M6G Gold Tuning machines
- Gold strap button
- Case: Custom fit Ameritage case with built in humidification system
- Inlay: McPherson® mother of pearl inlay on head cap and mirror image on bridge plate.
- Finish: Lawrence-McFadden UV finish.
- Strings: Elixir Nanoweb medium gauge
