Brian Posted February 7, 2004 Report Share Posted February 7, 2004 Last night I was looking at one of those knife handles that is made from different colored laminated woods all put together then carved so that you have a rainbow effect of woods. Thinking about this and knowing that in some of the finer hobby shops around I can find veneers of different hard wood's I began to think it might be kinda different to laminate different hardwoods together then cut out a fret board and radius it down to say 12" or so showing the different wood's on the side. Opinion's? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jammy Posted February 7, 2004 Report Share Posted February 7, 2004 I like the idea brian. Just a case of making sure the laminates are the correct thickness to looks right when radiused. If they were too thick you would just end up with a stripe, i suppose. Also, you would get a cool wavey line between the woods which would look ace Glue lines may be a problem, perhaps... Get testing... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
feylya Posted February 7, 2004 Report Share Posted February 7, 2004 An interesting idea. Wonder what the tone would be like.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GOG427 Posted February 7, 2004 Report Share Posted February 7, 2004 wow great idea !!!!i know a guy who did one walls in house like that..looks like peikock"spelling" ill see where got wood from.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skibum5545 Posted February 7, 2004 Report Share Posted February 7, 2004 That'd be really cool. If it were just very thin veneers, you'd get really cool stripings. Just don't use too many colors of wood, or it might look messy. Maybe purple heart and maple? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
renablistic Posted February 8, 2004 Report Share Posted February 8, 2004 veneer is thin. Maybe two maples to two purplehearts to two ebony to two others or something? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skibum5545 Posted February 8, 2004 Report Share Posted February 8, 2004 veneer is thin No.... well I'll be! (sorry, I couldn't resist) But in all seriousness, that's the point. Do a bunch of layers of [gratuitous 'like edited so as to not sound like a valley girl] purpleheart and maple, and get a pinstripey effect. Maybe throw in some satine for color. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Litchfield Custom Gutars Posted February 8, 2004 Report Share Posted February 8, 2004 I say go for it. I have yet to see something like that. I have seen gibson les pauls with 3 piece rosewood fretboards....but that isnt slick lookin. Maple purpleheart and ebony. Ha! Derek and I have officially corrupted the forum! LONG LIVE THE PURPLEHEART TREES! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
decalshopmike Posted February 8, 2004 Report Share Posted February 8, 2004 Sounds interesting - the only thing I think you's have to think about is getting woods of similar hardness otherwise over time you may find that the veneers wear at different rates - came to mind as I've been workng on a 40's Gibson and the fretboard had gouges a few mm deep from finger wear. I dont think the tone should suffer too much - in the 90's BC Rich made neck backs that were 100 strips of maple glued together along the length which supposedly gave greater stability - dont know if it did or not but they sounded the same as the ones with solid maple necks. If all the veneers are pretty hard wood, the tone should be reasonably consistent - suck it and see I guess ! Make sure you get some pics up on here when its done though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JPL Posted February 8, 2004 Report Share Posted February 8, 2004 I think the idea has promise. Rather than just doing a flat lamination and getting a pinstripe pattern I would try roughing it up a bit. The same idea is used in jewelry but the surface is pounded with hammers and punches then rolled. That wouldn't be quite as easy with wood but I think if you soaked the veneer in a glycerin and water mix and then clamped it in a very uneven caul you could get lots of hills and valleys that would provide an interesting pattern when sanded flat. Kind of like this. Of course you would have to start with a very thick stack so there is something left after sanding. Also I would think that this would be a very unstable piece of plywood and might not stand the test of time. It would have to be hard finished I'm sure. Still, I think it might be worth looking into. I have lots-o-veneer to play with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Rosenberger Posted February 8, 2004 Report Share Posted February 8, 2004 It's called Dymondwood Look Here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JPL Posted February 8, 2004 Report Share Posted February 8, 2004 It's called Dymondwood Look Here That is just a flat lamination cut on the diagonal. Very nice effect but would be pretty hard to make long enough for a fretboard without making large quanities. You would have to make a very thick lamination to be able to cut a diagonal section and have a lot of waste. Of course the waste could be used for other things. My method would involve a flat lamination but with hills and valleys pressed into the lamination. As you sand down the hills to the same level as the valleys you expose the layers. The question is whether or not you can press a pronounced enough topograghy to create a nice effect. With all that said I think the Dymondwood technique would be a lot easier and is still pretty spectacular. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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