Blackbird Pricing

Blackbird does many things differently from Composite Acoustics. That said, they undeniably make some wonderful instruments and I greatly respect the work of founder Ellis Seal and his team in Lafayette Louisiana. Having different companies doing different things with carbon fiber and composites is a great thing for guitar innovation. We both use Carbon fiber but just like a Taylor is different from a Martin which is different from an inexpensive student guitar, we have very different approaches. Regarding the material and process, I will say there is certainly different grades of carbon fiber and we use aircraft grade pre-impregnated carbon fiber for our tops. Unless I get a Cargo sawed in half in the mail (a sad sight to be sure) I can't say what they do. One data point though is the range in price from the Cargo to their upper-end which suggests that there are different grades. I submit that Blackbird Guitars are on the upper-end because there is no compromise in material, parts and finish.

We both use carbon fiber but for us it is a means and for them an end. A major distinction is Blackbird guitars proprietary hollow neck and head construction which requires the highest stiffness (modulus) carbon fiber and hollow carbon tube reinforcement. The all-hollow unitary construction also makes the guitar more difficult to build and so we build them in small quantities. Blackbird Guitars is a three man show where the art of lutherie is alive and kicking and I do a great deal of the work myself. We like it this way because we have personal contact with every Blackbird owner.

We can also continue to innovate which allows us to produce two distinct models in only a few short years. Which brings me back to the Rider nylon string. It may look similar to the steel-string but it was designed from the ground up with the nylon string player in mind, so the neck, bracing, top, body, head and parts are all reinvented to get a wonderful nylon sting acoustic sound in a small body and a 25.6" (650mm) scale. We believe there are a handful of players out there who want a small body acoustic whether steel string or nylon string that is without compromise. Our use of super-premium Gilbert tuners, which are normally found on guitars costing 3X or more is one example of our approach. We one day may make more mass produced instruments with more inexpensive materials but for the time being we'd prefer to introduce new models that can benefit from our all hollow construction.