Rabs Posted May 6, 2014 Posted May 6, 2014 So I went and got another boot load of wood today (again for £10).. I was really interested in finding neck wood as I have enough blanks for about 18 bodies at the moment (all that meranti, oak and maple I had).. I think the meranti is not hard enough for neck wood which is a shame is its quite abundant and looks really nice... But today I got a new wood.... Padauk .. now ive looked this stuff up.. its a real proper hardwood and tone wood.. I was shocked when he stuck it in with all the other wood for such a great price :D and Ash... really nice stuff.. but I will probably have to use it for my much needed necks and this stuff is solid. As well as some poplar and even some nice pine for the next load of bodies ... Im hoping that the next time I give a full update I will have a nice selection of guitars to show with some really interesting woods and finishes..... Anyway, just thought id share that for you wood fans :)
Guest Farnsbarns Posted May 6, 2014 Posted May 6, 2014 So I went and got another boot load of wood today (again for £10).. I was really interested in finding neck wood as I have enough blanks for about 18 bodies at the moment (all that meranti, oak and maple I had).. I think the meranti is not hard enough for neck wood which is a shame is its quite abundant and looks really nice... But today I got a new wood.... Padauk .. now ive looked this stuff up.. its a real proper hardwood and tone wood.. I was shocked when he stuck it in with all the other wood for such a great price :D and Ash... really nice stuff.. but I will probably have to use it for my much needed necks and this stuff is solid. As well as some poplar and even some nice pine for the next load of bodies ... Im hoping that the next time I give a full update I will have a nice selection of guitars to show with some really interesting woods and finishes..... Anyway, just thought id share that for you wood fans :) Nice! Although, far be it for me to say, but I'm not sure that ash is cut the right way for necks? Looms like it might be ripe for about 30 very short necks....
Rabs Posted May 6, 2014 Author Posted May 6, 2014 Nice! Although, far be it for me to say, but I'm not sure that ash is cut the right way for necks? Looms like it might be ripe for about 30 very short necks.... Cheers man... Are you talking about quarter sawn wood im assuming? Ive done some reading on it.. and really neck wood doesn't have to be quarter sawn to work well even though apparently it is more desirable if you can have it as its a bit more resistant to bowing and stuff like that and the grain direction on quarter sawn looks prettier... Ive looked up the properties of Ash and its quite near African mahogany and maple in regards to hardness.. I reckon it will be ok. It seems harder than the mahogany I used in my neckthrough builds.
Dub-T-123 Posted May 6, 2014 Posted May 6, 2014 I think he's just talking about the orientation of the grain. It's hard to tell but kinda looks like the grain would be running perpendicular to the neck
Rabs Posted May 6, 2014 Author Posted May 6, 2014 I think he's just talking about the orientation of the grain. It's hard to tell but kinda looks like the grain would be running perpendicular to the neck Yeah it can be really hard to tell these things before the wood is cleaned up.... I will see when I sand it down... By the way if anyone on here does know any better as im still learning (and man theres a lot to learn) please feel free to chime in :)
Dub-T-123 Posted May 6, 2014 Posted May 6, 2014 I would use a chop saw to cut an 1/8" or so off the end so it's flat and look from there. At that point it should similar to how the grain does if you take a look at the booty of your Les Paul (where the bottom strap pin is). Should look like a bunch of tiny dots not smooth lines
Rabs Posted May 7, 2014 Author Posted May 7, 2014 You be careful now. That looks like cloud wood. What does that mean?
quapman Posted May 7, 2014 Posted May 7, 2014 Well you never know,, if that wood came from the cloud it may someday take your design. ;) kidding,, just kidding.
Rabs Posted May 7, 2014 Author Posted May 7, 2014 Well you never know,, if that wood came from the cloud it may someday take your design. ;) kidding,, just kidding. Ohh right.. im with you now :) I did actually just spend a few minutes looking for cloud wood on google... strangely I got no relevant answers :P :) Its late here.. I should obviously go to bed
RevDavidLee Posted May 7, 2014 Posted May 7, 2014 Well before you do go to bed - it's ironic because I just visited the exotic wood store here in Des Moines earlier (called the Woodsmith Store, which is the only place you can purchase exotic hardwood locally) and I spent $150 for 3 pieces of wood. Two boards of padauk and a nice piece of purpleheart. As soon as I read your thread I ran and took pictures and posted them on my band's website for your enjoyment. Here's the link: http://www.rivercityrockets.com/hardwoodpics.html Enjoy!
Rabs Posted May 7, 2014 Author Posted May 7, 2014 Well before you do go to bed - it's ironic because I just visited the exotic wood store here in Des Moines earlier (called the Woodsmith Store, which is the only place you can purchase exotic hardwood locally) and I spent $150 for 3 pieces of wood. Two boards of padauk and a nice piece of purpleheart. As soon as I read your thread I ran and took pictures and posted them on my band's website for your enjoyment. Here's the link: http://www.rivercityrockets.com/hardwoodpics.html Enjoy! Wow, nice stuff I tell you what.. I did the knock test on this Padauk and it sounded amazing.. it had a proper ring to it What you doing with yours?
RevDavidLee Posted May 8, 2014 Posted May 8, 2014 I'm not sure Rabs - I just enjoy woodworking and I really enjoy making small accent furniture pieces for around the house. Nothing looks nicer than many of the exotic hardwoods with just varnish or Danish oil hand rubbed into them because of the inherent color of the wood and the grain as you know. I can tell you I would never attempt to make a guitar so kudos to you Sir. I leave that kind of woodworking up to the experts. In my younger days I actually studied lumber grading and hardwoods at college as I was going to pursue this field as a career. I was fortunate to have worked for a few years at a place called Paxton Lumber here in Des Moines (no longer in business now) and that is where I got my indoctrination into hardwoods I'd never heard of before. I was truly amazed at how many varieties there were and where all they came from around the world. That's where I discovered padauk and purpleheart wood, along with cocobolo, wenge, black palm, zebrawood, tulip wood (also very beautiful) and one called Ipe which had a warning label on the bin it was in stating that the sawdust produced by that one was poisonous. I thought well who the hell would want to make anything out of that stuff..lol. And of course many other varieties that slip my mind right now. I remember the first little decorative boxes I made out of ebony and cocobolo and it seemed like I was trying to sand "rock" instead of wood. It was quite a learning experience. Cocobolo was the wildest with each piece looking nothing like any of the other pieces - almost like someone oil painted each board individually. Wild stuff. One of the things that I witnessed which was very interesting was when a load of Tennessee aromatic cedar would come in (rough sawn) and we would watch as the guys ran it through the large 2 sided strato-planer. Many a times shiny metal objects (musket balls and various sizes of bullets) would appear after having been shaved flat on one side that were from the civil war era. We all grabbed a handful of those just because it was historical stuff and we wondered if anyone was killed by those before they ended up piercing a tree. Weird way to be introduced to that era through wood. Okay I'm rambling.. g'night all :)
Rabs Posted May 8, 2014 Author Posted May 8, 2014 I would use a chop saw to cut an 1/8" or so off the end so it's flat and look from there. At that point it should similar to how the grain does if you take a look at the booty of your Les Paul (where the bottom strap pin is). Should look like a bunch of tiny dots not smooth lines So do you mean like the neck on my Oak neckthrough build lol :unsure: :) Is that the wrong way? I think it looks cool. I had a look at the end grain on that Ash today too... And sanded down the top grain
Guest Farnsbarns Posted May 8, 2014 Posted May 8, 2014 So do you mean like the neck on my Oak neckthrough build lol :unsure: :) Is that the wrong way? I think it looks cool. I had a look at the end grain on that Ash today too... And sanded down the top grain My bad, it looks like it's fine. Sorry!
krock Posted May 8, 2014 Posted May 8, 2014 So do you mean like the neck on my Oak neckthrough build lol :unsure: :) Is that the wrong way? I think it looks cool. The grain looks awesome. Out of interest, how does an oak neck compare to maple and mahogany?
Rabs Posted May 8, 2014 Author Posted May 8, 2014 The grain looks awesome. Out of interest, how does an oak neck compare to maple and mahogany? What you mean sound wise? or strength wise? Strength wise its probably better as Oak is about as hard is it comes... Sound wise, I don't know yet but I expect it will be quite bright and snappy.. :)
Dub-T-123 Posted May 8, 2014 Posted May 8, 2014 I work at a cabinet shop and we use a lot of white oak. That wood is so hard, I really hate sanding out saw marks from it It would make an interesting looking guitar though
duane v Posted May 8, 2014 Posted May 8, 2014 So do you mean like the neck on my Oak neckthrough build lol :unsure: :) Is that the wrong way? I think it looks cool. Is the above spoken for?
Rabs Posted May 8, 2014 Author Posted May 8, 2014 Is the above spoken for? Lol... no not yet... none of them are as such... By the way.. the front is a bit different (a long story)... But it has mahogany adornments on it... :) And these are the pickups im putting in it (with chrome Grover tuners)
Rabs Posted May 8, 2014 Author Posted May 8, 2014 Very very nice work Rabs! That's gorgeous! Cheers man :) that's appreciated... Im REALLY into my Oak at the moment and have two more oak bodies coming soon (glued in necks though)... The thing about it s that its just really hard to work.. Im still using a Jigsaw for most of my major cutting, today I broke another blade trying to cut an oak neck down a bit..
Rabs Posted May 8, 2014 Author Posted May 8, 2014 My bad, it looks like it's fine. Sorry! Lol.. no worries at all man... All input is appreciated :)
Rabs Posted May 12, 2014 Author Posted May 12, 2014 I'm not sure Rabs - I just enjoy woodworking and I really enjoy making small accent furniture pieces for around the house. Nothing looks nicer than many of the exotic hardwoods with just varnish or Danish oil hand rubbed into them because of the inherent color of the wood and the grain as you know. I can tell you I would never attempt to make a guitar so kudos to you Sir. I leave that kind of woodworking up to the experts. And heres the Padauk body :D Yes I need to make it thinner Look at that awesome grain I will see if I can find some more of that wood the next time I go.. (I will be lucky)
krock Posted May 12, 2014 Posted May 12, 2014 And heres the Padauk body :D Yes I need to make it thinner Look at that awesome grain I will see if I can find some more of that wood the next time I go.. (I will be lucky) Is it thick enough that you can get you identical bodies out of it by cutting it in half?
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