The secret of Left Hand Bear guitars

We've tried to make something really special with our top of range Left Hand Bear guitars (Kodiak, Polar, Grizzly, Chief, Lightning Grizzly and Lightning Chief) which keen guitarists will appreciate. Here are some of the details.

Nitrocellulose lacquer on body

Polyurethane is by far the most common finish for mass produced guitars because of ease of application, its toughness and durability. Unfortunately, the price of these advantages is often paid for in a loss of volume and richness in tone. Nitrocellulose lacquer, which is found on virtually all of the most prized vintage guitars, and our high end Left Hand Bears is the gold standard, against which all other finishes are compared. It is more volatile and more difficult to apply typically requiring 8-12 coats compared to 2-3 for polyurethane. Each coat of nitrocellulose actually melts the coat below, bonding with it as it dries. These thin layers (which do not clog the wood pores) result in more vigorous and sustained vibration of the wood top, producing a greater range of overtones and overall all a more balanced tone. Scratches and dings are actually easier to repair as additional lacquer coats melt into the original finish.

Polyurethane on necks

The function of the neck is to guide your hand with the greatest of ease from one postion to the next. Polyurethane delivers greater protection for this part of the instrument, which we polish to a satin finish to lower the friction for effortless movement along the neck from top to bottom.

Engleman spruce tops

Sitka spruce is a valued acoustic material for its warm, even tone, that can withstand hard playing without overdriving, and we use Sitka on many instruments. However, Engleman spruce delivers all this and more, including an enhanced tone from its tighter grain.Engleman is regarded by most as THE best tone wood for steel string tops.

Bolt-on necks

Bolt-on necks are virtually unheard of in our price range. Luthiers know that as an acoustic guitar ages, it is common for the string action to rise as string tension pulls and bows the neck, detracting from playability.

The common solution of sanding down the saddle (and sometimes the bridge) restores the action, but lessons string tension thus causing reduced tone and volume.

The expert fix is to remove the neck and adjust the neck angle. On a glued dove-tail joint this is extremely costly and difficult, but our bolt-on necks are easily removed in minutes.

Our unique joint even includes a fingerboard attachment bolt, so no glue is used between the top and fingerboard. Its simplicity allows the luthier to re-shape the neck angle easily and reattach the neck. No finish touch up is necessary.

Slimline necks: all the way up!

On most acoustic guitars the thickness of the neck will gradually increase as you move up towards the body, which can make grabbing notes and chords higher up on the neck a chore. Not so on a Left Hand Bear guitar. Our necks are contoured to have the same slim profile from the 1st to the 9th fret, for lightning fast handling right up the neck.

Voiced bracing

All wooden guitar tops require internal bracing to maintain their integrity against the stresses of the strings pulling on the bridge. In 'voicing' (as with Left Hand Bear instruments), the braces are carved and shaped to reduce their mass, but still provide adequate structural support so the top vibrates more freely, increasing tone and volume.