Since 1997, Hearne Hardwoods has been one of the premier suppliers of specialty and exotic lumber in the world. Known for sourcing the finest and most beautiful woods available, this small, family-owned company recently expanded its selection to include a variety of woods suitable for guitar building, and thus Hearne Tonewoods was born. To celebrate their push into guitar woods, Hearne collaborated with Dana Bourgeois to construct a limited run of six guitars out of fine Hawaiian Koa.
This Bourgeois L-DBO 13 Custom features the exact specs as the all-koa Hearne Hardwoods guitar that was showcased at NAMM 2024. To be fair, this is an ambitious spec sheet, but Bourgeois absolutely knocked it out of the park and delivered a stunning instrument. You may be asking, "what do you mean 'All-Koa' guitar?" Well, Bourgeois used Koa for every wood part where it makes sense. The Top, the Back, the Sides, the Fingerboard, the Bridge, the Neck, the Peghead—all are stunning Figured Koa sourced through Hearne Tonewoods.
This guitar has a rare 13-fret neck joint, and the body is 4-3/4" deep, so it's 1/2" deeper than a standard L-DBO. Combined with Aged Tone Torrefied Bracing, the unique body design helps this Bourgeois overcome some of the perceived deficiencies of Koa. When you might expect a Koa guitar to be thin, bright, and brittle, this guitar is full bodied with plenty of depth, richness, and subtlety. There is mid-range warmth and woody character that make this guitar a joy to play.
With an intricate Heron inlay on the peghead, this all-Koa Bourgeois is an impressive presentation piece—a unique high-end guitar worthy of becoming a family heirloom. Here is the official spec sheet from Bourgeois Guitars:
- Model: LDBO-13
- Top: Figured Koa Top
- Scale Length: 25" Short Scale
- Cutaway: No
- Top Color: Natural
- Back: Figured Koa
- Rosette: Single Ring Half Herringbone
- Backstrip: No Backstrip
- Endpiece Inlay: Matched with Binding Wood, No Purfling
- Body Binding: Ebony
- Purfling: Half Herringbone (Rope) with Back
- Head Shape: Contour Headstock
- Head Veneer: Matched with Body Wood
- Head Inlay: Custom Heron
- Head Binding: Matched with Fingerboard Binding, Wood
- F.B./Bridge Wood: Koa
- Fretboard Inlay: Custom
- Fretboard Binding: Matched with Body Binding, Black/Cream Purflings
- Nut/Bridge Width: Nut- 1 23/32 Bridge- 2.2
- Heel Cap: Matched with Binding Wood
- Tuners: Waverly Gold/Ebony
- Bridge: Rectangular Bridge
- Pins: Bone with Black Dots
- Pickguard: None
- Pickup: None
- Label: Standard
- Glue: Animal Protein
- Neck Finish: Gloss
- Headstock Finish: High Gloss
- Body Finish: High Gloss
- Notes: All Koa Neck
- Special Options: Aged Tone Torrefied Bracing