I am having fun building, occasionally, out of non-traditional woods. So far I have been happily surprised at the outcomes.
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| Alternative woods 00-Pine guitar - Now Cuban Mahogany http://www-.luthiersforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10101&t=45601 |
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| Author: | David Newton [ Fri Apr 24, 2015 4:02 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Alternative woods 00-Pine guitar - Now Cuban Mahogany |
I am having fun building, occasionally, out of non-traditional woods. So far I have been happily surprised at the outcomes.
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| Author: | Hesh [ Fri Apr 24, 2015 4:15 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
Very, very cool David! I like that you left the knots in the back as a tribute to where the wood came from. How does she sound? |
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| Author: | klooker [ Fri Apr 24, 2015 5:26 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
That's very cool. I'm actually surprised that I think a pine guitar looks cool but it does IMO. I'm with Hesh, how does it sound? |
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| Author: | David Newton [ Fri Apr 24, 2015 5:33 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
Hi Hesh, thanks. It was fairly quiet at first stringing, but now 2 days later it has very good volume, pure & clear, with long sustain. I built the top & back about as thick as I have ever, finished around .125" with good Spruce bracing. If any of you beginner builders are nosing in here, you should save the AAA Spruce & Rosewood, and find out how liberating it is to build out of something that you can scrounge up locally. Just try to find something light and resonant for the top. At the lumberyard it will be stamped "SPF" |
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| Author: | Joe Beaver [ Fri Apr 24, 2015 5:50 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
Very cool guitar David. |
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| Author: | Haans [ Fri Apr 24, 2015 6:12 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
Very nice David! What is the F/B? |
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| Author: | Robbie_McD [ Fri Apr 24, 2015 6:38 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
Love it! I believe SPF = Spruce/Pine/Fir - there is always something quartered in the stack....go to Terrace BC for the really good stuff... |
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| Author: | jack [ Fri Apr 24, 2015 6:40 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
Very Nice David.....! |
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| Author: | Bob Matthews [ Fri Apr 24, 2015 7:15 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
I like it David and have been thinking of doing something similar myself, the timber yards around here (England) are stacked with softwood boards of all dimensions and the quality is so much better than it was throughout the last three decades. I can now find clear quarter sawn stock if I sift through the stacks and after seeing your results, it makes me want to have a go. Padauk f/b and bridge? |
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| Author: | David Newton [ Fri Apr 24, 2015 8:55 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
Padauk, you betcha'. I've had a 2"x6"x8' quartered timber for 40 years. It is the kind that won't bend. At all. I had to use it for something. The inspiration for this came from an ebay auction years ago, these pictures saved from it. I wanted to build a guitar in the spirit of this one, about as "elemental" as a guitar could be. 
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| Author: | George L [ Sat Apr 25, 2015 12:00 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
I. Love. It. So cool! |
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| Author: | DannyV [ Sat Apr 25, 2015 1:01 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
A well done unbound guitar looks great. Minimalist. Well done. |
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| Author: | surveyor [ Sat Apr 25, 2015 8:37 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
I live in Orange, Tx and have a "heart" Cypress log. I was wondering whether this could be used for the top, or do you think it would be strong enough? |
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| Author: | ernie [ Sat Apr 25, 2015 8:41 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
Nice work !,been usin pine for uke tops.Find that FP gives it an extra zing! |
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| Author: | Bill Hodge [ Sat Apr 25, 2015 9:36 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
This is excellent! I've got some 100+ year old barn wood stashed out in the hay barn that I've been thinking of using to make an all "barn wood" guitar. This inspires me to stop 'thinking about' it and just do it. Thanks for sharing it David. |
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| Author: | David Newton [ Sat Apr 25, 2015 10:54 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
Thank you all for the nice comments. Bill: the older the wood, the better it is! Of course you should pick out the clearest, most quartered stuff, at least for the top, but fear not the defects. Mike: Neighbor! Cypress is plenty strong. Use it for top, back, sides, and neck! Try to pick a stiff piece for the top. Cypress tends to be a bit "muting" for a top, at least the soft stuff that is currently available, like at Acadian. I had a piece of heart Cypress that was very hard, that should work well and no need for it to be any thicker than Spruce, maybe finished thickness at .115", just brace it well with good Spruce. I couldn't get the sides to bend, kept breaking, it may have to be pretty thin, and have a couple of sets of sides available. |
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| Author: | Bill Hodge [ Sat Apr 25, 2015 11:06 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
David, I totally agree. Which is why I only saved the clear quartered stuff. Nearly impossible to find from newer barns (less than 100 y/o) but pretty common to find on older ones if one shops around. I was fortunate enough to inherit this stuff sort of when we bought this place 15 years ago.  Most of it is oak, some American Mahogany which I believe is now extinct, and even some Ipe (La Pacho)  Just been procrastinating on resawing it mainly for lack of time on average.Oh yeah, and there's some ancient tight grain WRC in the mix too. 
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| Author: | printer2 [ Sat Apr 25, 2015 6:13 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
My first acoustic guitar, pine back and sides. Used what I could find. Even flat sawn I have not had any trouble with it.  Made a few more, two pine tops two cedar. Too much work at the time and my sister wanted a couple for an art project so she got the pine tops.  Some pine from Home Depot. If I would have known anything about acoustic guitars back then I probably would not have cut a Tele body out of it. Have not found a piece as wide or clean as this one. 
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| Author: | surveyor [ Sun Apr 26, 2015 8:28 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
Thanks for the info on the Cypress. I only started building about 2 yrs. ago, I'm hooked. When I finish re-building a trashed out J-45, I'll probably start no. 5 and use some of that cypress for a top. In hindsight I could kick myself for passing up some 30" dia. sycamore, already "bucked up" after Rita. I wasn't building then. |
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| Author: | gozierdt [ Mon Apr 27, 2015 6:58 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
Very Nice!! I've been holding on to some really beautifully quartered fir, and some pine with a beautiful rose-peachy color. I had been thinking nice decorative boxes, but now I've gotta try a couple of guitars. I'll have to make 3-piece tops and backs because of the width. I also like the unbound, minimalist look. |
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| Author: | WudWerkr [ Mon Apr 27, 2015 7:11 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
I love it !!! |
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| Author: | Alex Kleon [ Mon Apr 27, 2015 7:59 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
I was at HDepot this morning, and took a detour to check ou the 2x12's. Saw one that was mostly quartered for about 8". I'm sure it will be there tomorrow. I hope. Alex |
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| Author: | Pmaj7 [ Mon Apr 27, 2015 9:20 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
Nice Dave! It would be great if there were more cool guitars like this around. I think it would increase the market acceptance of alternative woods, beauty marks, unbound, non glossy finish, etc |
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| Author: | David Newton [ Mon Apr 27, 2015 11:37 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
Thanks Pat. That is good fodder for discussion. I expect to sell it eventually, 'cause my last Pine guitar sold before I was done having fun with it. You have to have the right customer base to sell alternative wood guitars. It just so happens I am not building supermodel-guitars, so my weirder guitars don't look that different from my traditional-wood guitars, and seem to sell ok. |
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| Author: | lactose [ Tue Apr 28, 2015 10:49 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: New alternative woods 00-Pine guitar |
Love your guitar. For those of us building guitars in apartments, those pine slats from the hardware store have been useful for me. Need sides ? If I have to use a plane for thicknessing, going from 6mm to 3mm is not so bad. Need a top or back ? I glue them side by side. The neat thing about this method is there is practically no limit on size. The slats are ~ 8 feet long, and you could make them as wide as you want gluing the slats side by side. Grain is a little bit of an issue for planing. If I screw up, I haven't wasted any valuable wood. |
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