Official Luthiers Forum!
http://www-.luthiersforum.com/forum/

Carpathian spruce from Bob C.
http://www-.luthiersforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10102&t=1821
Page 1 of 1

Author:  Paul Schulte [ Wed Apr 27, 2005 9:08 am ]
Post subject: 

      Recieved some Carpathian spruce from Bob C. yesterday. The first thing I noticed was how light in weight it was! Gave it the fingernail hardness test and was pleasnantly surprised to find it pretty hard also. Was not surprised when the tap tone was so nice.
      I e-mailed Bob and asked him to pick out a couple of tops as I really couldn't tell from the pictures on his site. Bob, I publicaly promise I will never ever do that to you again!

Author:  Tim McKnight [ Wed Apr 27, 2005 9:21 am ]
Post subject: 

Paul:
One thing you will notice when cutting the top shape outline on your bandsaw is that the growth rings are very hard. It's weird as the wood between the rings is soft and the rings are waaaay oppostie. I like all of Carpathians attributes: light, stiff and oh so lively.

Author:  LanceK [ Wed Apr 27, 2005 10:58 pm ]
Post subject: 

Tim - I noticed that as well, I also see the samething in the LS redwood tops, VERY very hard growth lines, as opposed to the wood between. Hmm - makes one wonder if there aint some commonality it why both these woods are so nice sounding?

Author:  Bobc [ Thu Apr 28, 2005 2:26 am ]
Post subject: 

Thanks Paul
I'm glad your satisfied. As for the growth rings isn't that typical of all conifers? Summer wood , winter wood?

Author:  LanceK [ Thu Apr 28, 2005 3:51 am ]
Post subject: 

Bob - it may be - but its much more noticible when cutting the outline of a top on a ban saw with this stuff. Instead of a steady buzz all the way around, you get a buzz buzz buzz buzz -

Author:  Scott Thompson [ Thu Apr 28, 2005 4:07 am ]
Post subject: 

[QUOTE=Tim McKnight] Paul:
One thing you will notice when cutting the top shape outline on your bandsaw is that the growth rings are very hard. It's weird as the wood between the rings is soft and the rings are waaaay oppostie. I like all of Carpathians attributes: light, stiff and oh so lively.[/QUOTE]

Have you noticed any problem when sanding with getting dips in the soft earlywood?Scott Thompson38470.5484375

Author:  Brock Poling [ Thu Apr 28, 2005 4:36 am ]
Post subject: 


I have. I find the same thing in Adirondack though. Usually though when I sand a slight bit against the grain this problem isn't as bad.

Author:  jfrench [ Thu Apr 28, 2005 4:44 am ]
Post subject: 

One thing you can do it to scrape instead of sand. Also, if you use egg white (or even hide glue) to size the surface before finishing, it should raise the softwood some. This definitely works for European spruce, and "Carpathian" spruce is the same wood, just fast growing and with a steel-string friendly name...

Author:  Scott Thompson [ Thu Apr 28, 2005 5:07 am ]
Post subject: 

[QUOTE=jfrench] One thing you can do it to scrape instead of sand. Also, if you use egg white (or even hide glue) to size the surface before finishing, it should raise the softwood some. This definitely works for European spruce, and "Carpathian" spruce is the same wood, just fast growing and with a steel-string friendly name...[/QUOTE]

What is sizing the surface? I don't know this technique.

Author:  jfrench [ Thu Apr 28, 2005 5:20 am ]
Post subject: 

Scott - its just sealing it before applying shellac or whatever. If you're using lacquer, you could use egg white, then shellac or sanding sealer over that before spraying.

Author:  Dave-SKG [ Thu Apr 28, 2005 6:00 am ]
Post subject: 

I assume the Egg white adds no color. Is it straight egg white or is it diluted? Does it affect the tone? That's very interesting...

Author:  jfrench [ Thu Apr 28, 2005 6:10 am ]
Post subject: 

Dave, it adds no color. Supposedly anything with a complex protein structure is good for the sound (egg whites, hide glue, etc). I started doing this on recommendation of Jose Romanillos.

Edit: I don't dilute it. I brush it on, let it sit over night, and either sand with 600 grit or just start adding shellac.

best wishes,
Joshuajfrench38470.6365509259

Author:  Brock Poling [ Thu Apr 28, 2005 11:33 am ]
Post subject: 

Don't the egg whites go rancid after a while?


Author:  Shawn [ Thu Apr 28, 2005 1:00 pm ]
Post subject: 

I also use egg whites, straight, not watered down. If you want to tint them you can add a few drops of strongly brewed chicory (found in the grocery store in the coffee section as a coffee additive for Cafe Au Lait) or tea. Chicory adds a golden brown color whereas tea can range from reddish to brown so only a few drops are needed to tint the egg whites.

Egg Whites do go bad so use it and dispose of the rest. Egg Whites are a traditional finishing material used by artists for making tempera paints and for finishing violins.

Page 1 of 1 All times are UTC - 5 hours
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Group
http://www.phpbb.com/