Amercan Oak - Another Have You Used It

[ray]

saw some of this today and really liked the look of it

wondered if it might be good for guitar tops as in thinline or droptops

would make a refreshing change from the overdone curly/quilt look

such pretty swirling grain and woold look cool bookmatched

[ray]

saw some of this today and really liked the look of it

wondered if it might be good for guitar tops as in thinline or droptops

would make a refreshing change from the overdone curly/quilt look

such pretty swirling grain and woold look cool bookmatched

so nobody ever used american oak?

[DrummerDude]

Some people use oak for bodies and necks, so it has to be OK for tops too.

Can't tell anything about the American oak, though.

Is it at least relatively close to the common European oak?

[ray]

Some people use oak for bodies and necks, so it has to be OK for tops too.

Can't tell anything about the American oak, though.

Is it at least relatively close to the common European oak?

hers a pic of the board

looks like swamp ash till you touch it - nice and silky - hard dense - nice tap tone

[DrummerDude]

Yeah, looks like oak to me.

The European oak has very rough wood with huge pores and pretty deep grain. It is very hard to grainfill it.

You say yours is smooth and silky and denser than Ash - well, sounds less work grainfilling it.

Looks that your oak would work for tops.

[Masina]

I think oak has a pretty dull tone, from what I've heard. It is also very unstable, and so should be very thoroughly dried before being used.

[DrummerDude]

Neal Moser's favourite guitar has its neck made of oak.

He's been using it for years when he was an active musician. He swears that it is freaking stable.

He says that oak delivers lots of sustain.

Don't know about the tone, though.

Some people like to fix tone problems using an EQ pedal, others rely completely on their tonewoods.

Guess it all depends on what kind of guy you are.

[fryovanni]

Oak is usable(especially for a top, think about those spalted or burl tops out there- (They have little structure or stability). It does require heavy fill and prep for finish(this makes it a challenge, but certainly can be done). As far as a neck wood. It would really depend on the cut of wood as with most any wood. Also "needs to be very well dried" , that should be an absolute given on ANY wood you are using(especially on a neck). Beyond that, "Tone" of each piece is subjective(as to it being good or bad in your application). Oak is readily available, and price is not exceptionally high(all be it slightly higher than woods in its "class" regarding properties). I would bet(guess?) factories do not widely use this wood due to its difficulty in finishing(speed is essential, for volume), slightly more difficult than other options workability(harder on the tools), and consistency from piece to piece.

[Nicko_Lps]

Yeah, looks like oak to me.

The European oak has very rough wood with huge pores and pretty deep grain. It is very hard to grainfill it.

You say yours is smooth and silky and denser than Ash - well, sounds less work grainfilling it.

Looks that your oak would work for tops.

I have used tones of european oak but i used american some times.(not in guitars)

American is still hard a lot more lighter and a lot more stable.(double priced in Europe too...)

European oak comes usualy from Balcan countries and that wood is a firewood sometimes,

To pick 20 slabs from the european one i must choose it from at least 50 slabs.

And the most imprortand is:when i saw the european one is straight after 15 mins bends the most american ones dont.

If you can find american and still wanna use it,use it.But i dont see it to be a favored tonewood in many cases.

Cheers