Gidgee – Dressed – Fingerboard

Gidgee fingerboard blank, dressed to a true reference face. One of the hardest timbers on the planet, self-oiling and ebony-comparable in fret wear. Limited stock, ships Australia-wide while stocks last.

Gidgee (Acacia cambagei) from the mulga scrub of inland Queensland and New South Wales. One of the hardest timbers on the planet, dressed to fingerboard thickness and ready to fret. Deep chocolate to near-black heartwood, self-lubricating natural oils, and the density that puts it in the same fret-life band as African ebony.

Dressed to a true reference face. The slow growth of arid-zone acacia leaves a tight, fine-grained section that holds fret slots cleanly and radiuses to a glassy surface.

Why Gidgee

Gidgee grows slowly and dries slowly, and the result is a section that earns its place on the fingerboard bench. The hardness is extreme, among the hardest in commercial use anywhere, and the natural oils carry through the dressed surface, making top coats unnecessary and lemon-oil maintenance the only upkeep a player needs. Australian builders have reported fret-wear on Gidgee fingerboards sitting closer to ebony than rosewood for two decades, a consistent finding across Australian Wood Review coverage and the local steel-string building community. The boards on this listing have rested for years before being dressed to fingerboard thickness. They’re stable, true, and ready to go.

Working Properties

• Hardness: Extreme. Among Australia’s hardest commercial timbers. Sharp tooling and patient feed rates are the price of working it well.
• Grain: Tight, interlocked, occasional fine figure. Holds fret slots cleanly. Radiuses to a glassy surface.
• Machining: Carbide tooling is mandatory; HSS dulls quickly. Slot with a sharp fretsaw or CNC. Bond with epoxy or fish glue; the oils resist PVA.
• Surface: Supplied dressed with a true reference face. Ready to mark out fret slots and radius.
• Finishing: Maintenance only. A wipe of lemon oil at string-change is plenty.

Shipping & Pickup

Ships Australia-wide via Australia Post or Aramex. Pickup from our Mulgrave NSW location Mon–Fri 9am–4pm, Sat 9am–12pm. Call (02) 4577 5277 or email sales@trendtimbers.com.au.

Limited Stock, Once It’s Gone

Gidgee grows slowly and yields selectively. The dressed fingerboard stock we hold is years in the making. Fixed quantity, no reorders. Listed under From the Stacks. When it’s through, the listing closes with it.