Official Luthiers Forum!

no not wHitch Elm,

Witch Elm.

or rather

WYCH elm (Ulmus glabra)

I've got a chum who's a tree surgeon and he as a tree that hes sawing.....

I haven't seen HIS but here's a pic off the net....


Anyone heard of it being used for guitars?

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ooohh, wotta coincidence... last month whilst ordering my cuppa java and scone from my local discovery centre cafe, I saw an exhibition of local hardwoods being used for furniture, etc..I had to have a nose around...

There was a solidbody bass guitar on display, body made of....Wych Elm (proper spelling methinks)...with a neck-thru lam stripe.

It said on the display notice that the tone was very much like mahogany.

Get some cut up, seal the ends, and dry it in your attic, if it as dry and airy as mine (I've been clearing mine today!!)

Here's a linkorama on local woods, should you tree surgeon mate come up with some more mature cellulose for your poor bandsaw...

Here's a pic of some finished Wych Elm flooring, yum.



Sam Price38998.6853009259

Well I'll be.... I figured witch elm was right.... the boys told me you make broom handles out of it. You see? You live and learn!

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Joe Beaver
Maker of Sawdust

hmmmmmmmmmm

I've googled around a bit and wych comes from.......

The word wych has its origins in Middle English wiche, from the Old English wice, meaning pliant or bendable, and which also gives us Wicker and weak.

Maybe not for long scale bass necks then.........

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Martin, Roger Phillips learned tome on British trees suggests that U.glabra wood is both hard and resistant to splitting. Certainly worth getting some and seeing what develops.

Colin

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

[QUOTE=martinedwards] hmmmmmmmmmm

I've googled around a bit and wych comes from.......

The word wych has its origins in Middle English wiche, from the Old English wice, meaning pliant or bendable, and which also gives us Wicker and weak.

Maybe not for long scale bass necks then.........[/QUOTE]

Aw, just go for it!! It'll make a good guitar solidbody like the bass I saw, but I don't know whether it can be made into plates for an acoustic instrument. It looks like it can be a little knotty. But...you don't know 'till you try it...



Sam Price38999.0944097222

Martin,I think i have a log of that exact same wood here, i'll post a pic of it tomorrow to compare with yours, i also was wondering what kind of wood it was. Cool!

It'll have to wait. I'm chocablock til Christmas AT LEAST!!

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/\ No harm in acquiring it though and drying it somewhere in your classroom for a year or so..assuming the wood is green...

I've got a strong lead in my daring and perilous quest for decent local hardwood...found a kiln-dried wood supplier who is putting back some **MAGIC WORD: Quartersawn** Walnut, London Plane and Prunus Avens for me to inspect later this week..some of 'em are 6ft long!!! I can't wait!!!!! I hope this is it...the end to my agonised search!!Sam Price38999.5820601852

Sam , as you know English walnut is fabulous stuff, I'm building an OM with it at the moment.

London plane is a great B&S wood as well, I recently used it with EIR as the back staves of my 8-course lute, and I have a B&S set waiting to build a OO with, Russell built a fabulous sounding little guitar from it. Search the archives for London Plane.

Prunus avens, the English bird cherry is another wood that Russell turned me on to, though we have only used it for necks so far. It is great to work and I have made my most recent OM neck from it, also the neck and tail blocks.

Anything like this is worth getting your hands on!

Colin

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

/\ definetely.

I'll go digging in the archives, thanks.

I saw some samples of stuff this trader had at the farmer's market..wow...I just hope I have the moolah!!Sam Price38999.6631134259

Here's a couple of pics of the log that i have, what would this be? TIA

[quote]Here's a couple of pics of the log that i have, what would this be? TIA[/quote]

I know what that is!! It's firewood! I have some too!

   Actually, it looks kind of cool and very similar, but I don't think it's the same. Billy T39000.1769560185

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Billy Dean Thomas
Covina, CA

"Multi famam, conscientiam, pauci verentur."
(Many fear their reputation, few their conscience)

Phew, i was afraid you'd say that it was wood!

I'm guessing by the grain and knot that it is a type of elm...and I have been thinking on this one all day...

I'm surrounded by wood experts!

/\ Yoo takin' the mickey, Serge????

By the way the English Wych Elm, Ulmus glagbra, goes under the synonym, Ulmus montana, when grown in the USA.

Colin

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

[QUOTE=Colin S]Elm Ulmus glagbra synonym Ulmus montana,

Colin[/QUOTE]

Don't talk with your mouth full!!!



I'm just thinking that Serge's elm logs would make nice blanks for carving... Sam Price39000.5533101852

Got some pinus alba and epicea glauca if you need 'em Sam! Keepin my Ulmus to myself!

[quote=Sam Price]I'm guessing by the grain and knot that it is a type of elm...and I have been thinking on this one all day...[/quote]

    I think the same thing!

It's not really big enough to do something big with a guitar, what are you going to do with it Amigo Sergio ?

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Billy Dean Thomas
Covina, CA

"Multi famam, conscientiam, pauci verentur."
(Many fear their reputation, few their conscience)

Burn it dag nabit!

Was actually thinking of practice wood for mando building!