Where has all the Koa gone?

[McGuyver]

Not that I have the spare change to be ordering another body anytime soon, but I do love looking at the unique choice woods whenever I have a minute.  I've noticed that pretty much ever since I ordered my VIP a few months ago, Unique Choice Koa tops seem to be non-existent.  Anyone know anything about that?  Did I miss something in the news or an announcement from Warmoth?

DL Koa is still an available choice for tops, but I haven't seen any unique choice Koa on the site for a long time.

 

[stubhead]

Koa is expensive enough, and scarce enough, that I would guess Warmoth and any other buyer would be looking for a certain quantity at a certain price. If you're willing to pay whatever it takes to get a great piece I'm sure they're out there, but anybody looking to turn a profit off of each piece has to be really careful. I'm not sure what the growing time is - "old growth." There are some woods like swamp ash and hard maple that seem to be always available, some of the rare "rosewoods" is a matter of what's hyped this year, so there may even BE a lot of koa, it's just a matter of who's talking it up.

 

[greywolf]

Good koa is getting harder to find , the really pretty stuff only grows at the higher elevations in Hawai'i and cutting is heavily restricted.

I look every week for sets , and snatch it when I can .. not uncommon for $200 + these days.
There are several sets here if you don't mind doing the top yourself : 
http://www.bigislandkoa.com/sales.html

http://www.curlykoa.com/

 

[Dolando]

I asked warmoth about this the other week actually, and they told me that they have some, but just not got round to putting it up on the website. Spike told me that its on the long list of things to do. So watch this space I suppose...

 

[McGuyver]

That's kind of what I figured Dolando, I had to practically hound my sales rep to practically hound the webmaster to get some updated koa choices on the site.  Thanks.  :rock-on:

 

[Dolando]

Yea, I'm ready to make an order and I was going to for mahogany/quilt maple deluxe jazz or G5, but keep thinking it will get put up as soon as I order something. I'm trying to be patient. Haha.

 

[stubhead]

You can just ask them what they have, I suppose. I was just looking through the latest Carvin catalog, and they always list it - but boy. You can get a plain koa neck and body for $800 (on top of the regular fees!) a plain koa top for $400 or a premium top for $800. You can always get anything you want - if you have enough money! I think I'll use solid emeralds for the knobs.
Maybe Seymour will wind me some Zephyr Pluses outta gold wire..... :doh:

 

[line6man]

Where has all the Koa gone? Long time passing. Where has all the Koa gone? Long time ago...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Qt57c7rnHM
:blob7:

Koa is usually a custom order. You have to call and ask what's in stock. Otherwise, they may allow you to supply your own, if they approve it.

 

[McGuyver]

Where has all the Koa gone? Long time passing. Where has all the Koa gone? Long time ago...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Qt57c7rnHM
:blob7:

Koa is usually a custom order. You have to call and ask what's in stock. Otherwise, they may allow you to supply your own, if they approve it.

This gives me hope for... a lot of custom orders.

Can you supply wood for them to use beyond laminate tops?  Is there hope for a Curly Maple VIP for me yet?!

 

[line6man]

Where has all the Koa gone? Long time passing. Where has all the Koa gone? Long time ago...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Qt57c7rnHM
:blob7:

Koa is usually a custom order. You have to call and ask what's in stock. Otherwise, they may allow you to supply your own, if they approve it.

This gives me hope for... a lot of custom orders.

Can you supply wood for them to use beyond laminate tops?  Is there hope for a Curly Maple VIP for me yet?!

Call and ask. They have used customer-supplied wood in the past, but generally don't like doing that, as wood from unknown sources may or may not be stable and workable.

 

[Creeping Death]

Where has all the Koa gone? Long time passing. Where has all the Koa gone? Long time ago...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Qt57c7rnHM
:blob7:

Koa is usually a custom order. You have to call and ask what's in stock. Otherwise, they may allow you to supply your own, if they approve it.

This gives me hope for... a lot of custom orders.

Can you supply wood for them to use beyond laminate tops?  Is there hope for a Curly Maple VIP for me yet?!

I actually have some really good information on this as I just emailed the turtle last week about supplying my own body blank for my next project and this is what they told me.

We can sometimes use wood blanks provided by customers.  Our requirements are:
-          Kiln dried

-          A wood that is not toxic or illegal to cross State borders

-          At least the same size as our guitar or body blanks (http://www.warmoth.com/Body-Blank-Guitar-C212.aspx)

-          We do not guarantee that the wood will make it through our process

-          The final product is non-returnable

I hope this helps

 

[Wolff05]

The Koa is coming! Flame or regular. More to follow quite soon.

 

[anorakDan]

It's not a Warmoth, but here's a shot of my Carvin AE185. Hope it helps to hold you over!

 

[Dolando]

They have quite a few Koa tops now! I bagged this one.