Walnut Back Cap

[tmcq]

New member here...hello all!

I'm building a Thinline Telecaster with a mahogany body and a maple cap.  The piece of mahogany I got for the project might end up being a slight bit too thin after I plane it, so I am considering putting a walnut cap (around .200" thick) on the back.  The body will get top and back binding, so all seams will be concealed.

Can anyone think of an issue with that idea?

[henrim]

20 minutes ago, tmcq said:

Can anyone think of an issue with that idea?

Technically I can’t see any real problems. Because of the neck pocket the back binding is a bit trickier to do than the front, I guess. But doable.

[tmcq]

Thanks!  That does bring up another thought...I was going to plan the rear binding seam to be in the very center of the neck pocket.  Back binding will be only a single piece.  The top binding will be a bit more elaborate.

[henrim]

2 hours ago, tmcq said:

Thanks!  That does bring up another thought...I was going to plan the rear binding seam to be in the very center of the neck pocket.  Back binding will be only a single piece.  The top binding will be a bit more elaborate.

It sounds like a good idea to me to have the seam there. That way you have the ends of the binding where the most complex curves are, and you can do the bends from two directions. That said, I’m not really the best person to answer questions about bindings as I don’t really do them. I speak from my experience and knowledge about plastics in general. If it is an ABS binding we are talking about here. Although if it was a wood binding, I think I’d like to have the seam there in that case too.

[ADFinlayson]

Walnut vs mahogany vs maple, it's all just an aesthetic and doesn't really matter IMO.

You might find it's easier to have the seam for the back binding where the strap button is at the other end - Those bends around the neck pocket can be pretty tricky and it will be way easier to start there, get that area glued down and then work your way round to the other end. If you do get any gaps then you can make some putty out of chopped up binding an acetone to fill any gaps. 

[henrim]

Right, you better listen to @ADFinlayson advice. He’s done more binding than I ever will.

[ADFinlayson]

Another little bit of unsolicited advice from me... Before you bind an open-grain wood like mahogany or walnut, it's a good idea to do some grain filling because when you make your binding putty to fill any gaps, it's a real pita to get white binding sludge out of the open grain.