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Sitka Spruce lt curl/ lt quilt quandary
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Author:  Alaska Splty Woods [ Tue Feb 04, 2025 3:49 pm ]
Post subject:  Sitka Spruce lt curl/ lt quilt quandary
There are very few soundboard producers in the world that get quantity of boards with this attribute to be able to create it's own sort of multiple grades and sizes.
Though We don't get a log with the light curl/quilt figure attribute very often, but do so on occasion. I believe I posted a picture a while back of a load on the log truck that had one such type log with the knuckle looking lumpy skin on it. Anyway. My qunderey right now is I need to make decision regarding this qlt/crl sort and whether to send some to get torrified. I have a cart of about 600 cut guitar tops that I started running through the widebelt sander today. It's all from a different log that Ry Guy cut a few weeks ago. Currently it's at .230" thick, They are thick enough to send to a roaster in eastern USA to get torrified. It's looking like 30-50% would be great candidates for this process.

About a yr ago I made a youtube video showing these 2 sorts because still pictures just cannot capture the visual energy of depth. At least not without a finish of a completed guitar.

https://youtu.be/u7CqD83QshI?feature=shared

From this group, is there any interest in roasted guitar tops of this type?
Author:  Darrel Friesen [ Thu Feb 06, 2025 7:57 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Sitka Spruce lt curl/ lt quilt quandary
That's some awesome looking wood Brent!
Author:  Alaska Splty Woods [ Fri Feb 07, 2025 4:06 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Sitka Spruce lt curl/ lt quilt quandary
Darrel Friesen wrote:
That's some awesome looking wood Brent!

Darrel, It really is. the video was from last yr and is shared just to try to show the visual energy of 3D depth. The log that was blocked out for cutting split beautifully straight and we could see what was coming by the small lumps of the back, under the sapwood that was split off and the curls of the split face of blocks. So now I have another good amount of these 2 sorts of the highest grades.
But my question is about getting some roasted. Is there interest in the torrified variation? There's no sense it getting this done if it's just gonna take up room on the shelves for yrs after putting all the extra time and especially the money into it.

I'm putting together a pallet to send to Indiana. That's very expensive endeavor to ship from Alaska to Seattle To Indiana and back, Besides the cost of the roast itself. Last time we had some roasted 4 yrs ago, it was $6/top. Now it's $10/top. and shipping has skyrocketed as most of us know. The barge to and from Seattle alone is up 50% from just last yr.
Author:  bobgramann [ Fri Feb 07, 2025 5:16 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Sitka Spruce lt curl/ lt quilt quandary
I might be of your smallest customers, so my opinion might not matter much. I built a guitar a few years ago with a torrified top (from StewMac). It sounded pretty good matching the sound of one of my best built ten years before. It found a home quickly. I decided that I would only make them on request given that the roasted wood was just a bit more difficult to work with and time and playing gets the same result. I haven’t had a request for it, so I haven’t built any more with torrified tops. I’ve made some fine sounding guitars with your spruce tops. I don’t need it to be roasted.

I just finished one with a figured top that you sold me in 2016. The top was excellent in all measures—good cross grain stiffness, stiff overall, and fairly light. It looks good and sounds very nice. That one sure didn't need to be cooked.
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