Although there is precedent for using oak in banjos, especially banjos from the 19th Century, there aren’t many modern banjos being made with it. After making a few, I’m really not sure why. It looks nice, has a balanced sound, isn’t too heavy, is easy to work and is readily available. I’m going to stick with it. This Oregon white oak comes from Zena Forest Products out of Salem. It is a family owned operation that sustainably manages their forest and provides high quality lumber. The two tone pistachio is culled from California Orchards. Notice how I also used grafted pistachio on the fretboard binding to off set the graft line in the fingerboard. Fun fun.