A Brief History of the Humbucker Bobbin
A Design Frozen in Time
When the original Les Paul–style humbucker was introduced in the mid-1950s, its bobbins were manufactured using early industrial plastics and phenolic materials. These materials were chosen for availability and electrical insulation—not for environmental impact, worker safety, or long-term sustainability.
Decades later, despite advances in materials science and manufacturing, most humbucker bobbins are still produced using nearly identical plastics and processes. The geometry is familiar. The tooling is old. The materials—often petroleum-based—remain unchanged.
The result is a component that works, but one that no longer reflects modern manufacturing values or environmental awareness.
Rethinking Legacy Materials
Learning from the Past: Forbon and HiBoard
For decades, phenolic materials like Forbon have been widely used in pickup flatwork and bobbins. While effective electrically, these materials are historically associated with:
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Toxic chemical processing
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Hazardous dust during machining
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Limited recyclability
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Poor environmental end-of-life outcomes
The music industry is now seeing alternatives emerge. HiBoard is one such example—offering a sustainable, plant-based replacement for traditional phenolic flatwork materials while maintaining performance expectations.
Hempbuckers™ follows the same philosophy, applied specifically to humbucker bobbins.
