Official Luthiers Forum!

I'm thinking this may be a good place to bring this subject up. I have spoken to a couple customers and long time luthiers about Torrified woods, and the subject of aging came into play. I think it was Bob Taylor, that I heard years ago talking about how cut dry spruce does as it ages at the cellular/molecular level. But recently I was introduced to the idea of how wood in log or other form has changes happening to it as well. What I was told was that at the molecular level or cellular level that changes were going on with the lignins and sugars and those changes are happening whether the wood was submerged or buried wet or dry. I had read something in earlier years, maybe 40 yrs ago, about logs being seasoned in the round before cutting. So I am researching this, Right now in archeological books. But I doubt that source of info will offer too much as it applies to tonal properties, but no doubt we should be able to add science to explain the physical effects and their advantages or disadvantages. I should point out, that every tree and even quadrants and lengths of those trees are different. So will need to talk more in general terms. . I know from experience how to read log that will have timber bind and reaction wood. But During the 21 years I have cut soundboard products full time, I have noticed some differences between how fresh cut green wood, and fresh cut old wood, moved and/or distorted, or even split during drying. The block cut from old seasoned in the round log, though much wetter as in moisture content in most cases, due to saturation from either being float log or rain water soaked on the forest floor wrapped in 6" of moss.
Anyway Rich and Tom are both telling me about changes to the lignin and celluloses and maybe the sugars too. And that they both really prefer to use aged woods we provide. Since all of our material in log inventory is old salvage log, it makes sense to know all about it. Everyone can agree that salvage is a benefit in regards to conservation. But I would Especially like to know if there is additional benefit for its structural and tonal properties. Does anyone know of studies specific to this subject?

Perhaps someone could comment, if they know, on the value to guitars of aging the logs in salt water. I bought some sitka soundboards decades ago from someone in Alaska who penciled on one of the sets a note that the Teredo navalis holes (ship worm) near the edge were proof that the logs had been stored in salt water. I suppose that he had heard that salt water storage is good and he wanted to let me know that these tops came from salt water storage. I once read that salt water storage of the spruce benefited violins.