Why Should You Choose A Carbon Fiber Bow?

For nearly two centuries, the finest violin bows in the world have been crafted from pernambuco (Caesalpinia echinata) — a dense, long-fiber Brazilian hardwood renowned for its extraordinary elasticity, tonal resonance, and ability to hold camber over decades of rigorous play. Those properties made it irreplaceable. Its scarcity is now making it unavailable.

Pernambuco forests once stretched across Brazil's Atlantic coast. Today, what remains occupies a total landmass no larger than the state of Rhode Island. The Brazilian government has banned all domestic logging of the species. International trade in raw pernambuco is prohibited under CITES regulations. The world's supply is not merely dwindling — it is effectively closed. Every serious bow maker working today knows what this means for the future of the craft.

Rodney Mohr knows better than most.

Crafted by the World's Most Decorated Bow Maker

Rodney Mohr is widely recognized as one of the foremost bow makers of his generation. A multiple gold medalist at international bow making competitions, he has since moved to the judging panel — his work considered the standard against which others are measured. A dedicated teacher and mentor, he has trained generations of bow makers and has spent decades championing the integrity of the craft.

Mohr has long understood that a bow-making tradition permanently dependent on an endangered, legally restricted material is a tradition with a finite lifespan. Concerned that bow making could face the same fate as scrimshaw — a distinguished craft rendered obsolete by the prohibition of its core material — he embarked on an intensive research program to find an alternative worthy of the tradition.

After extensive experimentation with numerous species, he arrived at an unexpected answer: bamboo.

Rodney Mohr is one of these master builders of fine bows for the orchestral strings that has many ideas and dreams of creating. Rodney developed and designed violin bows from one of nature’s most renewable resources, bamboo. The Nubow, now patented, meets performance demands while intentionally created for sustainability. The strength, gram weight, and durability of the NuBow, along with its exceptional playing qualities, contribute to the bow’s responsiveness. The NuBow has playing characteristics that are remarkably consistent to that of a traditional pernambuco specie bow. The frog and button material are made from a product that is durable and scratch-resistant called Sonowood® by Swiss Wood Solutions, AG. The bow is mounted in sterling silver and the frog is accented in glistening Caribbean Opal- a simulated man-made mother-of-pearl which is exceptionally durable. The bow is a knockout.

Rodney is also experimenting with a mixture of bamboo and other sustainable woods laminated together. Functional strength, beauty, and always playability are constantly the maker’s goals. Because let’s face it, if it doesn’t play well and make your instrument sound fantastic, it will not be sought after. These new bows are something to look forward to and adding to your bow collection. You may have to also start saving for a new case that holds four bows.

Weight fully haired 61.3 grams

The Science Behind the Choice

Bamboo appears, at first glance, to be a counterintuitive material for bow making — it is hollow, grows in segments, and bears little physical resemblance to the dense tropical hardwoods bow makers have relied upon. But Mohr's innovation lies not in the raw material alone, but in the engineering.

Through a proprietary lamination process — now patented — Mohr transforms bamboo culms into a structurally unified bow stick with playing characteristics that rival, and in certain respects complement, those of traditional pernambuco bows. The result is the NuBow: a violin bow that delivers the responsiveness, camber retention, and tonal projection that serious players demand, built from one of the planet's most abundant and rapidly renewable resources.

CNC precision manufacturing is integrated into the production process, ensuring dimensional consistency across each bow — a level of accuracy that hand-work alone cannot guarantee at this standard.

Vermont Violins' Assessment

Vermont Violins evaluates bows against a rigorous standard: Does it serve the player? Does it honor the instrument? Does it reflect responsible stewardship of the materials it relies upon?

The NuBow checks every one of those criteria. It produces genuine resonance, draws tone from the instrument, and responds with the kind of feedback that allows both advancing students and seasoned professionals to play expressively and with confidence. It is currently being played by professionals and dedicated amateurs across the country, and the response has been consistently enthusiastic.

It is also — and this matters to us — fully legal to own, travel with, and sell across all international jurisdictions, with no CITES documentation required.

Priced competitively with a fine mid-range pernambuco bow, the NuBow represents a genuinely compelling choice for any player ready to invest in something that will last, perform, and carry no ethical compromise.