What is "luthite"

Luthite is a lightweight synthetic material developed by Westheimer Corporation (a US-based Cort Guitars importer) for the construction of bass guitar and guitar bodies.

Luthite was developed as a substitute for wood, for as a synthetic composite material there is much greater control over the consistency of production. Additionally it is able to be formed to almost any shape, i.e. 3D shapes out of plane, where the wood equivalent would require a very large body blank or laminates. In spite of these advantages, it possesses considerably less resistance to impact than its wooden counterparts. This renders finished instruments more susceptible to being chipped during use or cracking if dropped.

The tone of luthite is different from many tonewoods, this may be seen as an advantage or disadvantage according to personal preference. Whilst primarily used in Cort’s Curbow series basses, the Ibanez Ergodyne series basses and guitars were also made of luthite until 2006.