Thx Taylor for up-cycling your leftover ebony pieces to Buck Knives. I just bought a traditional Buck 110 folding knife & it's beautiful with it's brass & ebony handle. 👍
Love what Bob Taylor is doing as a leader not just within Taylor but within the Industry as a whole and making the end-users aware of sustainability and new practices that need to be implemented.
Fast forward five years and online supplies of white and swirling ebony wood are strong, and bringing the same premium as black ebony, sometimes higher. I like the white-black swirl ebony more than traditional black ebony. It is a whole new market and the end of wasting a rare resource. Bob Taylor deserves credit.
Glad I bought one of Bob Taylor’s guitars. Shows this company takes its resources very seriously. We cannot keep taking without putting back . This way everybody benefits. Well done Bob. 👍🏻
I bought a Taylor a few weeks ago without knowing anything of their company, just was looking for a new guitar and instantly fell in love with sound and feel of this beautiful piece of workmanship, after watching this I’m even happier with my purchase. Good on you Bob.👍
Been playing guitar for about 20 years, but just recently got my first Taylor. It's like falling in love with guitar playing again. Taylor now has a devoted customer for life.
That's a great idea. However, people buy a brand for its craftsmanship at a budget they're okay with. When you buy a guitar because you want to help someone earn a living, that's just an act of helping someone.
This is the kind of Company that I dream to work for It one day. They have great people, great ethics, great marketing...everything! I LOVE Taylor guitar company, and I love all my Taylor guitars !
I love my Taylor Guitar. I will never sell it. It will go to my son. Brilliant company and this video shows the care they have for resources and sustainability.
I don't even play or own a guitar, but when I first found your channel while looking for info on acoustic woodworking and saw the original video of you talking about the historical problems with ebony, the project etc, that's when I subscribed to the channel - you really are doing God's work with this; preservation and sustainability are so incredibly important, and I hope more people (and companies) will understand this going forward.
Marcus Vinnas Hello from Illinois Sir; I have played many other guitars, but Taylor just seems to have it going on-good to see other proud Taylor players here!
love the stories that goes behind the scene, the process how it's made, the efforts and love that goes into the craft, it makes each guitar actually have a soul and a deep meaning, still learning guitar as much as I can but you definitely won a future customer, dreaming on that 322ce 12 fret for now lol
Normally asking a corporation to manage a precious resource is a recipe for disaster of epic proportions. Kudos on Taylor for being the exception. It almost NEVER is a good thing when a company is in this position. This is the exception, not the rule.
How Brazil is handling it’s forests is a big and complicated question. The coastal dry Atlantic Forest, the Amazon rainforest, to the Cerrado (i.e. semi-forested savanna lands) each have their own issues. A few years back Brazil had great success dropping its rate of deforestation but more recently it has spiked up again. Taylor doesn’t really buy in Brazil so it’s tough to say. Regarding Brazilian rosewood, that species has been on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) since 1992.
Pretty pictures, lenitive music, feel good posture. can we get a few facts? what is the state of the Ebony stands? How long does it take from a sapling to a harvestable tree? How much of the undergroth is destroyed by the heavy equipment?
I agree. Facts are important. Pure black ebony is approx 150 years old when mature enough to cut. Younger light brown ebony (that it looks like they're harvesting) must be approx 50 years old before cutting. So sustainability of ebony forests in the way Martin Guitars is doing is a nice yet probably futile gesture in the face of slow re-growth and high risk of poaching or deforestation. They're simply not doing things on enough scale to be more than a drop in the ocean. ocean. It's good to see Martin guitars have a social conscience but what it all boils down to is consumerism. Ebony fretboards might sound and feel better but you don't have to use them in the manufacturing process. There are other fast growing hard words infinitely more sustainable to use. Only us 'buyers' can make a difference
As mentioned on the Ebony Project website (www.taylorguitars.com/ebonyproject), The Congo Basin Institute estimates that there are over 190,000 ebony trees over 60cm in the Congo Basin some 30 million in various stages below that size. No one really knows how old a sapling will take to be harvestable. Estimates range from 60 to 150 years. We simply aim to fund scientific research to better understand the basic ecology of ebony (and the rainforest it comes from), to use the trees that are cut as efficiently as possible, and to plant for future generation. And note, in Cameroon they don’t cut ebony in concessions. There is no heavy equipment. Individual trees are cut into large blocks and carried by hand to the closest road.
I don't feel as bad now that my guitar has an ebony fingerboard. I didn't know that it was an endangered tree, however replaying is an important part of long term sustainability.
If you’re referring to dyospiros celebica, normally known as Macassar ebony, this is a different species than diospyros crassiflora that grows in Cameroon. It has a different texture of wood, different color spectrum, and usually a different look. Macassar is rarely if ever black in color.
I'm really happy that they are replanting in addition to properly controlling this industry. Hope within twenty years you have more planted than we even need
Over 1,400 ebony trees where planted in the 2018 April rainy season and more will be planted in the fall when the rains come again. In the near future, fruit and medicinal trees multiplied by the community members themselves will be planted with the help of the project. Check out chapters 6-8 here: www.taylorguitars.com/ebonyproject
The abuse and deforestation of tropical Wood for our beautiful guitars just sickens me. I have a PRS and i feel sad but find a Baritone with p90s without tropical Wood that is Not Made for heavy Metal
I doubt you would do the same if you were in Bob's position. If you really feel that way, you could wire transfer all of your salary/money to those workers....if you actually work.
Dude, you are just trying to corner the market of ebony. What are you doing to make sure there are new plantings to make sure there will always be ebony available?
When they own their own forest land, they replant. When the government owns the land, it tends to get trashed. Look up "the tragedy of the commons." The solution is privatization. No profit seeking corp will destroy its own assets and resources.
The ebony is scaled-down into manageable pieces (which still weigh hundreds of pounds) so that they can be hand-carried, often for many kilometers at a time to the nearest road. Have you experienced the entire story yet? www.taylorguitars.com/ebonyproject
As much as I like taylor guitars and ebony, ebony has no place on fretted instrument unless you are arguing for its tonal quality. A wood that hard is necessary for fretless instruments but guitars have frets and fingers technically never need to touch the actual guitar fingerboard. Ebony takes . . . . a long time to grow.
Our master guitar designer Andy Powers explains why guitar builders like to use ebony in this chapter of The Ebony Project: www.taylorguitars.com/ebonyproject/why-ebony-matters/
Cuanto les pagas a esas personas para que trabajen y corten tu madera? Es proporcional a precio de venta de tus guitarras? Mmmm... Creo que no. Por más que reforesten, esa gente no tiene hogares dignos. Habla de los sueldos que deben tener. "No los exploten" ni a los hombres ni a la tierra. Espero que Dios apruebe lo que hacen y deseo de corazón que sean buenas obras. Bendiciones a todos.
Makes me smile that I play Taylor. Exceptional company that happens to make wonderful guitars
Thx Taylor for up-cycling your leftover ebony pieces to Buck Knives. I just bought a traditional Buck 110 folding knife & it's beautiful with it's brass & ebony handle. 👍
Love what Bob Taylor is doing as a leader not just within Taylor but within the Industry as a whole and making the end-users aware of sustainability and new practices that need to be implemented.
Fast forward five years and online supplies of white and swirling ebony wood are strong, and bringing the same premium as black ebony, sometimes higher. I like the white-black swirl ebony more than traditional black ebony. It is a whole new market and the end of wasting a rare resource. Bob Taylor deserves credit.
THANK YOU FOR RE-PLANTING
Glad I bought one of Bob Taylor’s guitars. Shows this company takes its resources very seriously. We cannot keep taking without putting back . This way everybody benefits. Well done Bob. 👍🏻
I bought a Taylor a few weeks ago without knowing anything of their company, just was looking for a new guitar and instantly fell in love with sound and feel of this beautiful piece of workmanship, after watching this I’m even happier with my purchase. Good on you Bob.👍
Been playing guitar for about 20 years, but just recently got my first Taylor. It's like falling in love with guitar playing again. Taylor now has a devoted customer for life.
i saw bob and andy at sweetwater . great show . bobs not just building guitars , hes building a future for the guitar .
I remember seeing Bob's video a few years back about the state of ebony, it's so great to see progress. Bob is an exemplary human.
Lucas Stoll, in context...
Thank you, please spread your work to other countries.
Now, I feel like instead of buying a Taylor guitar, I want to buy a guitar from a local guitar maker in Younde Africa.
That’s a great idea!
That's a great idea. However, people buy a brand for its craftsmanship at a budget they're okay with. When you buy a guitar because you want to help someone earn a living, that's just an act of helping someone.
remember,
brand price 80%
product price20%
This is the kind of Company that I dream to work for It one day. They have great people, great ethics, great marketing...everything! I LOVE Taylor guitar company, and I love all my Taylor guitars !
Great work Bob
great project.
big love for re-planting!
I love my Taylor Guitar. I will never sell it. It will go to my son. Brilliant company and this video shows the care they have for resources and sustainability.
I don't even play or own a guitar, but when I first found your channel while looking for info on acoustic woodworking and saw the original video of you talking about the historical problems with ebony, the project etc, that's when I subscribed to the channel - you really are doing God's work with this; preservation and sustainability are so incredibly important, and I hope more people (and companies) will understand this going forward.
I am humbled to own a guitar that is created by a company with such a feel good story. Well done Taylor Guitars
Inspiring...I love my Taylor guitars and this is another reason they are such beautiful instruments!
Nice to see you giving back by planting trees... it makes the difference!
So appreciated that you guys re-planting the trees!!!
I am in awe…all I can say. 👍
Proud of my 314ce v-class and it's beautiful stripped ebony fingerboard! Bob Taylor is a truly remarkable person!
Good to see kindness go full circle for a change...
This is a fantastic business practice sustainability is what helps alot of businesses move forward and empowering local communities absolutely awesome
Guitars produced out of love and good stewardship simply sounds amazing...I can now see the value of my gs mini...
I am very impressed with this noble initiative! God Bless Bob Taylor - a decent person and amazing guitar builder!
super Bob. Real glad of you.
One more proud Taylor player here. Cheers from Brazil!
Marcus Vinnas Hello from Illinois Sir; I have played many other guitars, but Taylor just seems to have it going on-good to see other proud Taylor players here!
Like many others have already expressed, this is one of a handful of reasons why I proudly choose Taylor guitars
Thank you Mr. Taylor! That makes me feel even prouder that I own and play my GS Mini! Maybe even Frabrice cut the wood for my fingerboard. Cool!
love the stories that goes behind the scene, the process how it's made, the efforts and love that goes into the craft, it makes each guitar actually have a soul and a deep meaning, still learning guitar as much as I can but you definitely won a future customer, dreaming on that 322ce 12 fret for now lol
It is a beautiful thing Bob, thanks for taking the trouble, my Taylor has a sweet voice
At 03:06 the blanks are being submerged in a liquid? Is that wax?
I love what you are doing Bob!
Hey Bob, do you think of Joe, Pete and Carla that harvested the timber and milled the lumber that built your house?
Good job people!
Normally asking a corporation to manage a precious resource is a recipe for disaster of epic proportions. Kudos on Taylor for being the exception. It almost NEVER is a good thing when a company is in this position. This is the exception, not the rule.
Great to see how you think ethical side as well. I am impressed by this and would love to see other companies thinking in the direction. :)
Let's keep the mother Earth beautiful and green
This video is awesome thanks for sharing! 😊
awesome!!!
Great Video , I would love to see a video on Brazilian rosewood. How is Brazil handling their Forest?
How Brazil is handling it’s forests is a big and complicated question. The coastal dry Atlantic Forest, the Amazon rainforest, to the Cerrado (i.e. semi-forested savanna lands) each have their own issues. A few years back Brazil had great success dropping its rate of deforestation but more recently it has spiked up again. Taylor doesn’t really buy in Brazil so it’s tough to say. Regarding Brazilian rosewood, that species has been on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) since 1992.
Wat is the botanic name of that wood is it diospyros Ebnum ?
Cos i plan too plant but i dot no yet wat wariet i schud plant
The one person who downvoted this vid has no soul. Great stuff Taylor.
Pretty pictures, lenitive music, feel good posture.
can we get a few facts?
what is the state of the Ebony stands?
How long does it take from a sapling to a harvestable tree?
How much of the undergroth is destroyed by the heavy equipment?
I agree. Facts are important. Pure black ebony is approx 150 years old when mature enough to cut. Younger light brown ebony (that it looks like they're harvesting) must be approx 50 years old before cutting. So sustainability of ebony forests in the way Martin Guitars is doing is a nice yet probably futile gesture in the face of slow re-growth and high risk of poaching or deforestation. They're simply not doing things on enough scale to be more than a drop in the ocean. ocean. It's good to see Martin guitars have a social conscience but what it all boils down to is consumerism. Ebony fretboards might sound and feel better but you don't have to use them in the manufacturing process. There are other fast growing hard words infinitely more sustainable to use. Only us 'buyers' can make a difference
As mentioned on the Ebony Project website (www.taylorguitars.com/ebonyproject), The Congo Basin Institute estimates that there are over 190,000 ebony trees over 60cm in the Congo Basin some 30 million in various stages below that size. No one really knows how old a sapling will take to be harvestable. Estimates range from 60 to 150 years. We simply aim to fund scientific research to better understand the basic ecology of ebony (and the rainforest it comes from), to use the trees that are cut as efficiently as possible, and to plant for future generation. And note, in Cameroon they don’t cut ebony in concessions. There is no heavy equipment. Individual trees are cut into large blocks and carried by hand to the closest road.
Exellent !!!
I don't feel as bad now that my guitar has an ebony fingerboard. I didn't know that it was an endangered tree, however replaying is an important part of long term sustainability.
You just have to wait 100+ years for an ebony tree to mature
what is the difference between african and celebes (sulawesi) ebony?
If you’re referring to dyospiros celebica, normally known as Macassar ebony, this is a different species than diospyros crassiflora that grows in Cameroon. It has a different texture of wood, different color spectrum, and usually a different look. Macassar is rarely if ever black in color.
I'm really happy that they are replanting in addition to properly controlling this industry. Hope within twenty years you have more planted than we even need
Over 1,400 ebony trees where planted in the 2018 April rainy season and more will be planted in the fall when the rains come again. In the near future, fruit and medicinal trees multiplied by the community members themselves will be planted with the help of the project. Check out chapters 6-8 here: www.taylorguitars.com/ebonyproject
❤❤
The abuse and deforestation of tropical Wood for our beautiful guitars just sickens me. I have a PRS and i feel sad but find a Baritone with p90s without tropical Wood that is Not Made for heavy Metal
I am so happy that my taylor guitar carries the tears of those underpaid workers
I doubt you would do the same if you were in Bob's position. If you really feel that way, you could wire transfer all of your salary/money to those workers....if you actually work.
Cool video, should have more views
Dude, you are just trying to corner the market of ebony. What are you doing to make sure there are new plantings to make sure there will always be ebony available?
I think it's a shame to chop down any tree but replanting is key. Many industries don't do this. They just take take take
When they own their own forest land, they replant. When the government owns the land, it tends to get trashed. Look up "the tragedy of the commons." The solution is privatization. No profit seeking corp will destroy its own assets and resources.
❤️
I hope they can plant a lot of trees which are now considered near extinct
www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/06/cameroon-ebony-guitar-makers-taylor-gibson/
The workers should be wearing eye protection
So proud to own a Taylor.
Wow, they grow square trees in the jungle.
The ebony is scaled-down into manageable pieces (which still weigh hundreds of pounds) so that they can be hand-carried, often for many kilometers at a time to the nearest road. Have you experienced the entire story yet? www.taylorguitars.com/ebonyproject
Are they paid a living wage?
Dude my fingerboard ain’t named fabrese... none of them
Now..gaboon is very rare.
Talking about Cameroon as "Africa" (a continent with 45 different countries) is the kind of racism and colonialism I expected from this video 😂
I hope any children aren’t forced to work in the guitar industry.
Bhaiya Tumhara contact Diya bhaiya Hamara pass lakade hai na bhaiya
As much as I like taylor guitars and ebony, ebony has no place on fretted instrument unless you are arguing for its tonal quality. A wood that hard is necessary for fretless instruments but guitars have frets and fingers technically never need to touch the actual guitar fingerboard.
Ebony takes . . . . a long time to grow.
Our master guitar designer Andy Powers explains why guitar builders like to use ebony in this chapter of The Ebony Project: www.taylorguitars.com/ebonyproject/why-ebony-matters/
Cuanto les pagas a esas personas para que trabajen y corten tu madera?
Es proporcional a precio de venta de tus guitarras?
Mmmm... Creo que no.
Por más que reforesten, esa gente no tiene hogares dignos.
Habla de los sueldos que deben tener.
"No los exploten" ni a los hombres ni a la tierra.
Espero que Dios apruebe lo que hacen y deseo de corazón que sean buenas obras.
Bendiciones a todos.
We invite you to watch this chapter: www.taylorguitars.com/ebonyproject/getting-to-know-the-team/
One does have to enjoy the sideline heckling from people who can barely work their own jobs, much less create any for anyone else.
For $3-hour😉
Wonder how much he pays his African employees ...
now to find 3000 dollars somewhere..
sound track lacked acoustic guitar. the soundtrack of an acoustic guitar manufacture promotional film, lacked acoustic guitar.
Nahhh still way too overpriced..... Nice try thought.
Taylor> Gibson
propaganda
Nothing like a little exploitation of your outsourced workers to sell that last bit of guitar magic. Snake oil in yet a new bottle