Santa Claws Posted May 24, 2004 Report Share Posted May 24, 2004 just wanna know, can i use softwood, like pine to make a guitar? i have teak here, but im sorta runing out of it and wanna know what else can i use? and is there much differances in the sounds or does it make a differance. im currantly using the teak for the guitar im doing now. Thanks Alot. .....Keith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morben Guitars Posted May 24, 2004 Report Share Posted May 24, 2004 OK Gang...lets not start a tone wood debate Keith, short answer is "Yes", wood selection will affect the sound of a guitar. There are many other aspects that will have a MUCH greater affect on the sound, but the wood does contribute. I'd shy away from using pine for a body. It's just too soft. You'll have denting issues guaranteed. I've always found pine to be very susceptible to changes in humidity. When folks ask me if the wood I use makes a difference, the 30 second "layman" explanation that I give is this: A guitars sound is simply the movement of a string that is anchored on both ends. What it's anchored to will affect how long it vibrates (and what parts of that vibration fade away). If you anchored a string between two pieces of Jell-o, you'd expect that the string would "die out" quickly, since the jello is absorbing all the vibration...yet if a string were anchored to two pieces of Marble, you'd expect it to vibrate for a long time. So yes, that the strings are anchored to will make a differance in the sound since the vibrations are going through the string, into the body/neck, then bouncing back to the strings. Pine is completely infeasible to use it for a neck, but I figured you weren't considering that. Buy an Alder blank, pretty inexpensive, easy to work with, and produces a great sound. Hope that helps! -Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted May 24, 2004 Report Share Posted May 24, 2004 morben pretty much nailed what i would have said...every time someone asks this question,i wonder why bother with pine when alder and basswood are so cheap (about $20 at a hardwood store for enough to make abody) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Primal Posted May 25, 2004 Report Share Posted May 25, 2004 Now there's something. Anyone want to attempt a guitar made out of marble? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morben Guitars Posted May 25, 2004 Report Share Posted May 25, 2004 Anyone want to attempt a guitar made out of marble? Now that would be a serious Hard Rock guitar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob7 Posted May 25, 2004 Report Share Posted May 25, 2004 i wonder how heavy an all marble guitar wood be......Well, easy solution for those NOT wanting to rout for a truss rod/carbon fiber rod.... JUST USE MARBLE NECKS.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guitar_ed Posted May 25, 2004 Report Share Posted May 25, 2004 I ain't strong enough for a marble guitar. Guitar Ed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAI6 Posted May 25, 2004 Report Share Posted May 25, 2004 A marble guitar has been made. I cannot remember the company, but I read about it in Guitar Player. They had a NAMM report or something, and one of the axes they mentioned had a body of marble. It was a Strat-style, if I remember correctly, and weighed a ton! It had to be kept on a stand while playing it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truerussian558 Posted May 25, 2004 Report Share Posted May 25, 2004 i beleive it was made by fender, experimental guitar, they where experimenting with different materials and their effect on sustain. needless to say it sustained forever but heavy (very heavy) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeli Posted May 25, 2004 Report Share Posted May 25, 2004 What about a 5A figured marble top? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spirit Posted May 25, 2004 Report Share Posted May 25, 2004 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A_M Posted May 25, 2004 Report Share Posted May 25, 2004 Perhaps an acoustic (hollow) marble guitar? It's not like stone instruments haven't been done before... For example, a stone violin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hotrock Posted May 25, 2004 Report Share Posted May 25, 2004 i beleive it was made by fender, experimental guitar, they where experimenting with different materials and their effect on sustain. needless to say it sustained forever but heavy (very heavy) I was under the impression that it was granite Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spirit Posted May 25, 2004 Report Share Posted May 25, 2004 Acyually, now you mention it, I thought it was granite as well. How strange..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Santa Claws Posted May 25, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 25, 2004 well, pine would be ok, just as a body, but wouldnt sustain very well, but would be quite light and dint very easy, am i right in what you were saying? i dont mind the wood dinting easy, ill just have to take care of it. but i have a guitar that i am making now out of teak which i pointed out allready, but i am making a design in the wood, and want to inlay a piece of wood in it about 10Cm down in the front of the body, can i use any wood there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morben Guitars Posted May 25, 2004 Report Share Posted May 25, 2004 You can build a guitar out of anything, but why would you spend that much time and energy on something that is prone to problems? Just get some alder or basswood...save the pine for a shelf or something... Yes, you can inlay with any type of wood you'd like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Santa Claws Posted May 25, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 25, 2004 ok kewl, yeah i think im getting Brazilian Wallnut for the inlay. Is that anygood? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curtis P Posted May 25, 2004 Report Share Posted May 25, 2004 I havent heard of Brazillian walnut, but most walnut is beautiful and i dont really see a problem, dont quote me though If i werre you, i seriously would not make a guitar out of pine, i am making one for decoration and it has a tiny warp in it right now, after its been laminated, but hey, if you really really want to, then its your descion, but I would go for Alder or Basswod like already mentioned, or get a bit more money and get alot of Walnut or Cherry, heck Mahogany is nice too!! Curtis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Santa Claws Posted May 26, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 26, 2004 yeah ok, the brazilian walnut is actually off of a Floor in an apartment, nearby me. But what Softwood's can i use for making a body of a guitar? and where do ya get basswood? and whats it like Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted May 26, 2004 Report Share Posted May 26, 2004 hardwood stores are where you get them use hardwoods in your guitar...it doesn't mean it is hard to work...basswood and alder are no harder to work than pine....they are actually easier because the grain doesn't promote tearout as bad with a router basswood is a very soft wood...easy to work and makes a good,long lasting guitar body...i prefer alder...but that is just me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoryNad Posted May 26, 2004 Report Share Posted May 26, 2004 k im looking for a really light woow in terms of wieght, and cheap, but sturdy as i will be used in a semi hollow body any ideas.......im thinking basswood, or alder? but i dunno, aswell it would be best if the wood was soft, like workable thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted May 26, 2004 Report Share Posted May 26, 2004 basswood i guess....but for a semi hollowbody i would use mahogany with a maple cap...the weight won't matter as much because of the semi hollow part mahogany works well...maple is hard though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeB Posted May 26, 2004 Report Share Posted May 26, 2004 pine can be used, but not normal white wood, you would need to use yellow or pitch pine, preferably pitch pine, as it is both hard and strong enough for a body. i have built my 31 fret geetar out of pine, it sings really well, good acoustic properties, and good sustain! btw i have also used teak for the fretboard, and laminations etc... beautiful wood! keep pics posted of the teak guitar, i wanna see it!! Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ansil Posted May 27, 2004 Report Share Posted May 27, 2004 sugar pine as the first broadcaster design prototypes andd the first ones sold were made of it.. and actually if you make a lespaul out of it, its quite nice.. there is some draw back on the sustain, but just enough to hardly notice. plus as its so much lighter i love it and wouldnt' trade it for the world [ok ok i did trade it for soemthing less than the world but i am trying to get it back.] but the neck is still mahogany. but wes is right for the amount of crap you ahve to put up with pine isn't worth the effort to me.. i built one of the old gibson m3's some time ago out of alder and used the same for the neck, and it cut like buttah compared to having to stop and start the saw cause the pine was getting shreded.. theres a guy who does strat bodys i have been told some time ago off a popular template system and made them from sugar pine.. and they sound fantastic. once it was painted you coudlnt' tell the difference till you pickedit up and felt how light it is. still though give me a mahogany body jem with a maple neck ebony board and 26& 1/8 inch scale and i am happy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Santa Claws Posted May 27, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 27, 2004 Yeah Thats Sounds cool actually. But, could i made a guitar neck out of Teak? Just a Question? I dunno if i could make a Fretboard out of it. Ill Post some pics of it Later But i wanna get to work on it. Pine Yeah Could be ok, but Does Pine Not have alot of knots in the wood, or does that make a difernace? Thanks Keith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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