BIG SKY
BUILDER
REN TALKS WOOD
We asked Ren about the woods he
prefers building guitars with; he told us
his ear prefers the sound of red spruce
and Brazillian rosewood. However,
considering there will be no more
Brazillian rosewood guitars coming
out of Gibson, due to the company’s
new focus on preserving endangered
woods, he has been forced to develop
some good-sounding alternatives. We
asked Ren to tell us how he approach-es three of the most popular types of
woods, and what he typically hears in
guitars built with them.
Mahogany
“It’s friendly – it holds on to the chorus notes really well and gives you
this back-filled sound. If you pick with
your fingers, you can get great clarity.
Ragtime and blues can be played on
mahogany and sound perfect.”
Rosewood
“It seems to sound a little bit darker.
Rosewood is harder to set in motion
– the reflective sound and energy
required to set it in motion are a little
more substantial. Rosewood has a
richer tone than mahogany, a more
enduring sustain and a sweetness, but
perhaps not excitement of a mahogany instrument.”
Maple
“Maple is clean and clear and holds
the midrange incredibly well. It proj-
ects really well. Maple may not have
the sustain of rosewood or the “party”
sound of mahogany, but maple may
project more or seem louder than
any of the other woods. Eastern U.S.
maple tends to be a bit denser or
harder than its western counterpart;
quilted maple is the softest of the
lot. You will get more punch from
the eastern flame woods, but more
warmth from the western variety.”
The Bozeman factory is located on a street
conspicuously named Orville Way, and is
nestled in a pristine valley situated between
the Gallatin Range and the Bridger Range,
named after mountain man, Jim Bridger.
Bozeman is a relatively small town of approximately 30,000 inhabitants. According to
Cindy Andrus of the Bozeman Convention
and Visitors Bureau, “Bozeman is not easy
to describe to someone who has never been
here before. It is one of the most diverse
small towns in the Western Rockies. It is
blessed with an eclectic mix of ranchers,
artists, professors, ski enthusiasts and entrepreneurs, all of whom are drawn here by
world class recreation, Montana University
and a slice of old fashioned Americana.
There are hundreds of scenic vistas nearby
and Bozeman is a mere 90 miles from
Yellowstone; all in all, the area lures visitors
from around the world.”
It’s definitely an environment that inspires
creativity. Many, if not all, of the new models
coming out of the Bozeman plant are Ren’s
designs, including the Songwriter series, the
Doves in Flight, the J-2000 and the Monarch;
they all have their beginnings in his imagination. There’s really no limit to the lengths
Ren will go to develop the perfect design.
He went as far as packing several models of
Gibsons, Martins and Taylors full with wheat
to measure the volume of each instrument
and to determine the best “recipe” for the
production of each of the limited vintage
reproduction Gibsons he was making. In his
quest for the best sound he has determined
that all Gibson flattops have had an inherent
28-foot radius, or parabolic convex shape,
incorporated into the top. This keeps the
pent-up energy countersprung so when the
strings are plucked the sound is immediate
and forceful.
When asked how he gets his ideas and
inspiration for his gorgeous inlay work, he
responds, “I am a great thief!” Having gotten
ideas from coffee cups, wallpaper and clouds
in the sky, he steals them all. He has always
seen things that others have missed. He
recalls waiting in the doctor’s office and seeing patterns in the linoleum, in the carpeting.
As a kid he was always whittling a neckerchief
slide or making a Jiminy Cricket out of oldstyle clothespins. “I have always seen things
that weren’t there to be seen,” Ren says.
