drpossehl Posted September 14, 2005 Report Share Posted September 14, 2005 I am starting a double cut away carve top (my first) using quilted maple and swamp ash. My swamp ash blank is 1 3/4" thick and my maple is curently 13/16" thick. I was thinking of a combined thicknes of 2 1/4" with the maple cap being about 5/8". I'm used to looking at a strat and 2 1/4" seems awfull thick. I dont want to cut away to much ash for fear of the tone brightening up to much. Any one know how thick a simular PRS would be? What do you carved top crafters like for thickness (both overall thickness and thickness of maple cap) ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jay5 Posted September 14, 2005 Report Share Posted September 14, 2005 I think 2" total is more reasonable. I would leave the maple where it is and take the ash down to 1.25". On another note, I havent seen too many ash backed, maple topped guitars. I am not sure what type of sound to expect from that combo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erikbojerik Posted September 14, 2005 Report Share Posted September 14, 2005 Quilted maple is almost always the softer variety of western maple; not as hard as eastern rock maple. The swamp ash might actually be brighter than the quilt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thegarehanman Posted September 14, 2005 Report Share Posted September 14, 2005 (edited) Why don't you plain your alder down to 1 1/2, put the maple on, and put a 9/16" carve in the maple. That'll bring you down to 1 3/4" on the sides and you get a carved top in the process. I've personally always hated the looke of a thick(even as little as 1/2"), uncarved maple top. peace, russ EDIT: Oh, sorry, didn't realize you wanted a carved top to begin with. Well, these measurements should still be helpfull. Edited September 14, 2005 by thegarehanman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drpossehl Posted September 14, 2005 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2005 I think 2" total is more reasonable. I would leave the maple where it is and take the ash down to 1.25". On another note, I havent seen too many ash backed, maple topped guitars. ← What do you think gang? 2" thick? Originally it was going to be mahogany with a maple top but that was seeming like it would be kinda heavy. So I went with swamp ash because it is lighter wieght and is supposed to sound good also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thegarehanman Posted September 14, 2005 Report Share Posted September 14, 2005 (edited) My rule of thumb is nothing over 1 3/4" for a solid body EDIT: 1 3/4" at the sides that is. carve the top as thick as you want. Edited September 14, 2005 by thegarehanman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jay5 Posted September 14, 2005 Report Share Posted September 14, 2005 2" is my suggestion. Generally, PRS guitars are about 2" in the center with the carve coming done about 1/2" to leave a side thickness of about 1.5". Again, I would get some more opinions on the ash/maple combo as far as how it will sound before you do anything. I dont know, but I have a feeling it wont be a good combo. I would go for the mahogany and just hollow it out if you are worried about weight. Then you have an ash blank for another project. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brian d Posted September 14, 2005 Report Share Posted September 14, 2005 2" is my suggestion. Generally, PRS guitars are about 2" in the center with the carve coming done about 1/2" to leave a side thickness of about 1.5". ← That's it? only 1/2" height of the actual carve? I thought it was much more. How high is the actual carve on a LP? Thanks, Brian. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted September 14, 2005 Report Share Posted September 14, 2005 Drp: Well, mahogany/maple is the classic combo-- if you're worried about weight, you can add chambers in the mahogany. Save the ash for the next project! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattia Posted September 14, 2005 Report Share Posted September 14, 2005 Carve's about the same on a LP, methinks. 1/2" is roughly right. Mind, I tend to make mine a little deeper than that, but still. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maiden69 Posted September 14, 2005 Report Share Posted September 14, 2005 2" is more than enough, but if you want the back to look thicker (like on LPs) you need a bit more. The 2 1/4" you got is a pretty good size if you are doing a carve with a neck angle, if not I think it is a bit too much, but you can do it anyways. My carve top is 2" with 1" walnut and 1" quilt and I think it looks OK http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v195/Maiden69/DSC01891.jpg this is the only pic that I got that shows the guitar from the side, as you can see the rear walnut luuks thin compared to the back of an LP, but it looks OK. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thegarehanman Posted September 14, 2005 Report Share Posted September 14, 2005 I have a set of plans in front of me for a LP custom. It specifies 15/32 as the thickness for the carve. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brian d Posted September 14, 2005 Report Share Posted September 14, 2005 I have a set of plans in front of me for a LP custom. It specifies 15/32 as the thickness for the carve. ← Thanks Garehanman. I'm thinking of doing a carved top with a top carve that will go just over the body wood to give a sort of contrasting rim around. So I don't need a full 3/4' top, only 1/2 inch and still get a good carve depth. That's good news for me. BTW Maiden, I think your 1" top/1" back looks more "refined" and elegant than the LP body. I love the faux binding too. Great work! Cheers, Brian. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devon Headen Posted September 14, 2005 Report Share Posted September 14, 2005 You need 3/4". If the carve is 1/32" shy of taking out all the wood, you're just asking for a disaster by carving down that thin. I'd say leave about 3/16" or 1/4" around the edges. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bugman96 Posted September 14, 2005 Report Share Posted September 14, 2005 I think 2" total is more reasonable. I would leave the maple where it is and take the ash down to 1.25". On another note, I havent seen too many ash backed, maple topped guitars. I am not sure what type of sound to expect from that combo. ← I think some Warwick basses use ash back/maple top Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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