RobSm Posted January 13, 2008 Report Share Posted January 13, 2008 Hi. In setting out my 'latest' project I was upset by the large wastage factor of my attractive blackwood body blank. Consumed by my penny pinching ways I rotated the blank 90deg & found I could squeeze two bodies out of it that way. I drew up the shapes & cut two 'blanks' from the one. A smarter friend of mine pointed out that I was now in for all sorts of problems with the grain now going 'crossways' & not up & down the length of the body. We discussed 'stringers' & also whether or not a 1/4" top with the grain running 'up & down' would stabilise it enough. I want to do both..that is use internal stringers as well as the 1/4" top. So the question is...what's a good timber out of which to make the stringers?..and any other tips in making & using them? ...er...also....do y'all think it will work.....or should I hoik the whole thing & start afresh? TIA Rob. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killemall8 Posted January 13, 2008 Report Share Posted January 13, 2008 well first of all, you wont have stability issues. that really has nothing to do with a body that would effect the guitar. but your biggest problem is going to be that the vibrations from the guitar are going to be broken up as they dont travel nearly as pure when the grain is turned sideways. there was a thread a while back about using wood in that orientation. but if you want a top then go for it. bubinga and wenge are extremly stiff woods that are great for lams. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodenspoke Posted January 13, 2008 Report Share Posted January 13, 2008 well first of all, you wont have stability issues. that really has nothing to do with a body that would effect the guitar. but your biggest problem is going to be that the vibrations from the guitar are going to be broken up as they don't travel nearly as pure when the grain is turned sideways. there was a thread a while back about using wood in that orientation. but if you want a top then go for it. bubinga and wenge are extremly stiff woods that are great for lams. Stringers; sounds like your building a house. 1. gluing a neck to end grain will be a problem if you are using glue and not screws. 2. ascetically I don't think it matters. sound wise probably not a good move to continue. 3. adding some sort of cross inserts "stringers" seems like a waste of time the damage is already done unless you need to glue on a neck then I highly suggest adding it to the area where the neck is glued in on both sides. If you did this fix I would just go past the bridge not out through the rear side. You also have the same issue with gluing end grain to side grain only a much longer joint. So will this fix it not really. 4. In gluing plywood and veneer you always add wood to the bottom side to offset stresses from the top gluing. I"m not sure if this applies to a cross glued guitar tops since I have never seen one except made from plywood. Most people when they screw up except the fact they made a mistake and buy a new piece of wood rather than spend all that unnecessary time trying to fix it. Like it or not its not going to make your guitar sound any better by continuing down this path plus then you are going to glue on a more expensive pice of wood making the mistake even worse by adding more money to it. Accept the fact that when you screw up your pain is your wood dealers gain and do it the right way. learing can be an expensive process. Another suggestion is make a puzzle out of it LOL. Do a search Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fryovanni Posted January 13, 2008 Report Share Posted January 13, 2008 I agree with what Woodenspoke is saying. There are a number of issues that will make running the grain in that orientation problematic and or potentially less desirable. 1. you have increased the amount of exposed end grain. 2. If you glue stringers in line with the neck, you will have to contend with endgrain joints. 3. Shrinkage and expansion due to changes in moisture are significally greater cross grain than with the grain. 4. Vibration travels across the grain at a much much slower (problematic??? depends on whether you see it as a problem) 5. Strength of wood across the grain is significantly lower cross grain vs with the grain. (of course a body is so overbuild it would not likely even come close to failure) I would recommend you read up on wood(effects of moisture, properties (structural), finishing and so forth), glued joints, look closely at the areas that are most critical in terms of stability and stresses that are placed on a guitar. There is a reason why woodworkers and luthiers do things the way they do them. Luthiers in particular pay extreamly close attension, because tolerences are critical, stability is a functional requirement, and longevity as well as durability is important. Peace,Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scab Posted January 13, 2008 Report Share Posted January 13, 2008 yeah dude we all make mistakes and "F" up a lot of crap.. I guess it's just the part of learning. Sounds like you have something to put up on the "wall of shame" Regards, Scab Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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