@Greywolf, the ratio of quilted maple is much more lower that you stated. Once - PRS was accussed of purchasing black harvested big tree woods - I did a research on that by asking one of the leading forest research instituts regarding the population of figured maple.
"Quilted Maple is far more rare than flame Maple, so yes it is more expensive even if moderately plentiful at best. Factor in that one in 3000 trees are flamed, and of all the flamed maple trees, two to five percent of the flamed trees reveal or generate good quilt, that drives the price and demand higher. I am hearing it is further increased by the buyers paying super high rates to procure quilted maple because they will make their money back at least threefold by veneering it. That makes a solid block, or book matched pair nearly impossible if not obsolete for many guitars and manufacturers based on selling price points."
One has a massive quilted top (10 T), one has a massive maple top, but a quilted veneer only.
"Quilted Maple is far more rare than flame Maple, so yes it is more expensive even if moderately plentiful at best. Factor in that one in 3000 trees are flamed, and of all the flamed maple trees, two to five percent of the flamed trees reveal or generate good quilt, that drives the price and demand higher. I am hearing it is further increased by the buyers paying super high rates to procure quilted maple because they will make their money back at least threefold by veneering it. That makes a solid block, or book matched pair nearly impossible if not obsolete for many guitars and manufacturers based on selling price points."
One has a massive quilted top (10 T), one has a massive maple top, but a quilted veneer only.
