Which would you choose and why? TIA

Ash, cause it's purty.

I do like the maple.

I love the look and feel of ash. I've made furniture with it and it finishes beautifully. I want an ash Stick. I have a rosewood Stick now and for a second one I'd have to decide between ash and bamboo. Why have you tempted me so?

-Eric

Thanks, h3.

Careful, Eric,

I find having Sticks with opposite contrasts to be a bit disorienting. For a while I was playing a dark bamboo Grand with black inlays and a rosewood 10string with white inlays. It's much easier to switch back and forth with like-contrast instruments.... I never quite got used to the bamboo instrument for that reason.

That's fascinating, Greg. I would never have thought of that. What do you think was causing the disorientation? And you look at your Stick probably less than anyone else I know of. Good to know and to consider. Thanks.

-Eric

I would not even consider Maple. It would be Bamboo, or Ash, or for me.

A bamboo Stick with all its small short interlocking "400 chopsticks" laminations is gonna have a higher modulous of rigidity. In geek talk it's expressed thru the ratio of lateral strain to axial strain in an axial loaded specimen. It gets much deeper but that's the gist of it.

It's also harder,lighter and tougher than most hardwoods. And real purty too.

The laminations in the various other hardwoods offered are plenty solid enough to make a Stick w/no rigidity issues though. So go with what pleases you.

Randy,
To be fair you would need someone who owned both to truly give you a comparison. All we can offer is our own experience and preferences of what we play.

I prefer Bamboo for many reasons, the key being it is lightweight, rigid and stable. Plus, people respond very favorably these days when I say it is a sustainable material. Granted i was coming from, and still own my White PolyCarb which is approx 5x (feels like 10x) the weight. The White Polycarb is 1989 and the Bamboo is 2007, and there were a lot of improvements along the way. The dual truss is key with it's quick and easy adjustments. It is organic and really responds to subtlety or to all out thrash! In short, I love it.

The only other choice was to go with was 6+6 since I was already in 10 String Baritone Melody, which means you just add two more outer strings and no learning curve.

I hope this helps, and in the end Tom Petty said "Listen to your Heart"!
Happy New Year, and all the best to you my friend,
Dave B "DBro"