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Build 2 Questions


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Ill keep this short, sweet, and to the point

1) found a sick peice of poplar... but I've never heard of poplar being used for a fret board. Its a hardwood, resists warping pretty well, but is it unsuitable for a fretboard for any reason? Googling doesnt provide much help here. Theres no green color ,its all black, purple, and white/brown.

( http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/6195/dscf0060hg.jpg if you care to see it)

2) goin with poplar top, mahogany body. Pretty cut and dry. Tones should balance nicely no?

3) titebond 2... I used titebond 3 last time, and I thought you guys were gonna kill me... but that was months ago, my guitar has been sitting in a VERY humid garage, and theres no warping, or movement at all. Glue is cheap enough, but I havent really found a good answer as to why 2 over 3 other then "just because".... If someone can take the time to explain this to me, Id appreciate it. NOT using hide glue, not my cup of tea lol.

4) for grain filler, Im lookin at epoxy. Ive used deft in the past as well, but nothing with as open grain as oak has. Thoughts?

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I've used poplar for bodies and necks and never had any problems, a good hard finish will protect the wood from denting too easily, but I wouldn't use it as a fretboard because it's not hard enough. I think the strings would dent the surface no matter what finish you put on it. It is a hardwood, but of the softer variety.

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I've had pieces I wanted to use for fretboards then decided against. They almost always become part of a neck as a laminant. Keep your creative brain chugging and you'll find alternate ways to use things like that.

Edited by NotYou
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I wouldn't use the poplar. Like folks have said, it will dent, even with a hard finish.

Don't use 2 or 3 because this is not what they're designed for. They never FULLY harden as the way they make them heat resistant and water resistant requires this. Also, for extra humid applications you actually WANT this because the wood will move a lot more than in nicely controlled places. For all the time you spend on making the guitar? Why not just buy some Titebond original? Your man-hours are worth WAY more than the $5 glue.

How thick is the top? I don't think you'll have an issue either way. But if it's 3/16" or less (basically drop top territory) the tonal effects are pretty negligible.

There are many types of epoxy. Some structural, some finishing resin. For pore filling you want the finishing resin type. My suggestion? Buy some zpoxy. It's the right type and it sands really nicely; some are gummy, some take forever, zpoxy is neither. Just put it on there thin with a squeegee or credit card. Dry, sand back to wood leaving it in the pores. May take more than one application.

Chris

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I agree about the glue. I wrote a whole post about it when this thread first popped up, but apparently didn't hit "post" when I was done :/

Titebond 1 is great glue for guitars. I used to love LMI's glue, but I've been finding it to not hold nearly as well as Titbond. Something to consider for glueing a neck into place. Titbond will form a joint stronger than the wood. LMI's glue, not so much. It's suitable, but Titebond is still my go-to.

Edited by NotYou
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like other have said as soft as it is poplar might not be the best choice, but if you are up for experimenting a little bit you might try empregnating it with something. Maybe z-poxy thinned way down with alcohol or something like that. With a couple applications you might have something hard enough to use if it penetrates deep enough. I've never done it, and im not sure it would work, but you might try it on a scrap piece of poplar and see what happens.

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like other have said as soft as it is poplar might not be the best choice, but if you are up for experimenting a little bit you might try empregnating it with something. Maybe z-poxy thinned way down with alcohol or something like that. With a couple applications you might have something hard enough to use if it penetrates deep enough. I've never done it, and im not sure it would work, but you might try it on a scrap piece of poplar and see what happens.



Ive actually been epoxying it for **** n giggles as a show piece somewhere lol Ill have to give it a try Edited by Prostheta
removal of bad language, warned.
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