Furch Guitars adds new antibacterial treatment for guitar necks

12 Feb 2021 by Jef | Approximate reading time: 2 Minutes

Furch Guitar with new antibacterial neck varnish · Source: Furch Guitars

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Furch Guitars has just introduced a new antibacterial finish for guitar necks, which was inspired by the current global COVID concerns. It uses silver particles to kill any microorganisms. The new finish has a satin feel which should reduce friction, and features the antibacterial treatment as a bonus.

Furch Guitars antibacterial neck treatment

All new Furch Guitars acoustic models will now feature an antibacterial varnish on the back of their necks. Inspired by the COVID pandemic and wanting do something about it, the company has taken practical steps to help keep the most heavily used part of the guitar germ/microorganism free.

Furch Guitars adds new COVID-inspired antibacterial finish for guitar necks · Source: Furch Guitars

Silver nanoparticles

The certified antibacterial varnish contains silver nanoparticles which bind to the proteins of microorganisms and destroy them. It’s all fantastic science, and in these odd times we all live in, it also seems like a practical solution to a potential problem. It also doesn’t contain any “dangerous chemical substances” and is anti-allergenic.

“the neck is, by nature, one of the most handled areas of any guitar. While playing, a number of microorganisms arise, which can have a negative impact on the player’s health.”

Serial Number 95787

Guitars bearing serial number 95787 and above will feature this finish as standard, with some already waiting with dealers to be sold.

“Recently, when we looked at how to improve the surface of our guitar necks, specifically to achieve an even smoother surface for faster playing, we also decided to explore how to make our instruments safer for players. It was Covid which led us to this.
“In most styles of playing, the greatest contact between the skin and the surface of the guitar occurs at the back of the neck. The contact surface of one chord can be around 50cm squared. The bacteria which this introduces are eliminated by our varnish in just a few seconds.”
– Petr Furch, CEO of Furch Guitar

Proven?

Well, kind of. Silver has a fundamentally antimicrobial (not only antibacterial) effect and therefore it is proven to work against bacteria, mould and other fungi. The effect against viruses has as yet only been weakly proven. However, it is particularly effective against HI viruses (under clinical conditions). Furch states that the finish was “corona-inspired”, but has not made any official “anti-corona varnish”claims.

It seems like such a simple thing and yet a very practical one, and I’m glad to see an instrument manufacturer trying to help the spread of microorganisms. COVID or otherwise. Essentially, it’s nice to play a clean guitar you won’t catch something from!

You can read more on the Furch website about this new finish from the link below.

More Information

Details here

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7 responses to “Furch Guitars adds new antibacterial treatment for guitar necks”

moselblues says:

12 February 2021 at 12:25

COVID is the name of the Sickness soused by the Corona VIRUS! (not a bacteria or even a microorganism)

Ab. says:

12 February 2021 at 14:34

It’s called a metonymy and it’s alright.

Ab. says:

12 February 2021 at 14:40

I hope it’s a marketing stunt… cause it’s… a bit dumb.

If it actually works for more that a couple of days (if ever) it *might* help the guitar last a tiny bit longer… but as a health thing it’s really as useless as can be.