Rubato’s new Lassie guitar is a carbon fibre beauty

South African brand Rubato Guitars has debuted Lassie, a electric guitar built from carbon fibre that combines classic appointments with player-centric innovations.

At first glance, the axe appears to be another boutique double-cut instrument. Closer inspection, however, reveals that the body and neck are integrated into a single monocoque – or shell – that’s made from high-performance carbon fibre.

The benefits of using carbon fibre are three-fold. Firstly, Lassie is much lighter, weighing at just 2.5kg. Secondly, the neck does not require a truss rod – due to the sturdiness of carbon fibre – and the brand promises “virtually no bend”. Thirdly, carbon fibre is particularly resistant to fluctuations in temperature and humidity, meaning you don’t have to fret over warping.

Lassie’s C-shaped neck has features that enhance playability, including a smooth satin back and a comfortable heel-less neck join. The ‘smoothness’ is carried over to the compound-radius flame maple fretboard, which promises unimpeded access across the ’board. Lassie also boasts what is known as an “ultra-low friction string guide”, which, as its name suggests, greatly reduces string friction for better tuning stability.

The guitar also features securely fixed pickup mounting that’s said to give you “more precise control over the string height” while mitigating the common ‘wobble’ or tilting. The pickups – two Porter mini-humbuckers – can be sculpted by master volume and tone knobs as well as a three-way pickup switch. Both pups also feature rubber pad backing designed to reduce both the vibration from Lassie’s body and feedback hypersensitivity.

Rounding out Lassie’s features are Grover Mini Rotomatic locking tuners as well as a Hipshot fixed bridge.

Here’s an introduction of Lassie:

More info at rubato.guitars.