Red (“Adirondack”) Spruce mandolin top – Grade A

Red spruce (Picea rubens) top for mandolin. Often called “Adirondack Spruce” in the musical instrument world, red spruce occurs in higher elevations of the Appalachians as well as farther north in eastern North America. We harvest our red spruce in the Allegheny Mountains of West Virginia, where it grows at elevations of about 4000 feet msl or more. Once covering more than 700,000 acres of the State, red spruce now is estimated to cover only 50,000 acres of West Virginia. A superb, but scarce, tonewood for the mandolin. Many think the red spruce from West Virginia is superior to that from other locations. Red spruce generally has wider grain and more defects allowable with respect to a grade than the Carpathian spruce. Limited supply. This is our “Common” grade. Common grade mandolin tops may have uneven grain, grain that is not straight, and/or color variation, but is generally the same quality as the more expensive grades with respect to tone. Photo shows examples of Common grade red spruce mandolin tops. This photo is for reference – all pieces are unique and vary.