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Are you talking about moisture meters for lumber, or a humidity indicator? Both are good things to have.

I was thinking he meant two different woods joined down the middle.

No reason you can't do it. Whether it will create the tone you want is hard to say. It's largely a placebo effect anyway, IMHO. Something like walnut and maple would look really cool, though. Especially with "zebra" humbuckers, and contrasting pickguard.

I built one using a squirrel cage blower, it SUCKS.. really. Basically, I mounted the blower over a hole in the floor, and built a box on top of it with 1x2 wood slats on top, spaced 1 1/2" apart. The way my shop is built, the dust blows down under the building, and outside. The blower could also be mounted to the wall and blow out the side. I live out in the boondocks, so the dust isn't a problem, but if you have neighbors, it wouldn't be too hard to build something to contain it. Squirrel cages work best when pulling from an open area, rather than ductwork, or a baffle with small holes. Also, remember to feed the squirrels, or they will stop turning the fan. Things I need to add are: a screen below the top, to keep fallen objects out of the blower; and a door at the bottom, also with a screen, for sweeping floor dust into.

I've always been leary of doing this because of the grain runout issue, but it's done all the time. Also, reading the discussions on it here has given me more confidence in it, especially with a laminated neck. An angled peghead from all one piece still worries me, at least without a plate on the face.

Ya, thinking just gets in the way.

Wow, where do you get the Beast for that price? Best I can do is PBR @ 6 bucks a twelve. Sounds like you are ahead of the game already. Building guitars vs. brewing beer? I fail to see how the two are mutually exclusive. I somehow doubt this will be your last axe, you seem like you are enjoying it. I can't remember where in heck I heard it, but someone once said: " Do what you love, the money will follow. " And please, stick around. Tell us a bit about your guitars.

I've never used catalpa before. All I know is that it is very light, same weight as basswood. But coarse grained. Durable in ground contact as well, but I guess that's not something you need in a guitar.

Most structural lumber, 2x8, and larger is Southern Yellow Pine (SYP), at least in the eastern US. It is actually a very strong wood, as far as softwoods go. I've gotten some super nice wood for furniture and such from box store 2x12's. It's the 2x4's and 2x6's that are mostly trashwood. Kinda sad when a 2x4 has both the bark and the pith in it. If a body can be made from basswood, it can certainly be made from SYP. Takes stain in a weird way, though, compared to other pines. It won't take well to the winter wood, resulting in a bold grain pattern.

Yes, start it tonight! I'm dying to see it!

Ah, yes. Eastern red cedar. I cut a lot of it, mostly for panelling, decks, and other woodworking projects. I just started a guitar body (solid) with it, to see how it does. I have also cut some mandolin and dulcimer tops, but who knows when I will ever get around to those. Eastern red and Western red are not related, at least not closely. In fact, neither are actually "true" cedars. The eastern is actually a Juniper, botanically, and the western is a cypress. Eastern red cedar is fairly weak and brittle, I don't know if it would make a good acoustic top for anything bigger than a mando, without a lot of bracing. I'm certainly no expert on this, though.

I start with a 50 grit disc on an angle grinder. It goes real fast, though, so a light touch is necessary to avoid removing too much wood. Then I go to a disc sander with 80 grit and up. I also use a gouge for any concave surfaces.

Were they a very solvent band? Aww, now I'm gonna have Knopfler in my head all day. That's OK I think you're right about the name reflecting that era. The guitar does, too. Real sweet!

I've used mesquite, which is really pretty. Also, osage orange, which is nuclear yellow, aging to a nice orange-brown.

I hear the gaps increase sustain, as well.

I'd seriously rethink that theory if I were you. Maris, that sunburt is FANTASTIC!!

Every now and then at the cabinet shop, we would get in some "lauan" plywood that had a couple camphor plies in it. The splinters do suck.

Depends, what do you mean by "primer"? Are you talking about clear sealer, or a solid primer, like you would use under a solid color? The latter woud be disastrous.

Sorry, my years in cabinet shops in the south have got me sick to death of oak. With the exception of quartersawn white oak, in certain applications, I think the stuff is just plain ugly, and a pain to work with. Again, I ask: What kind of cedar? Western red is a completely different tree than eastern red. And then there are the white cedars, also different. Where are you located?

What kind of cedar? As for the oak, I would split it into whatever size would fit in my stove.

Right. You want it 7 or 8 percent moisture content. If it is already under 20%, it can be dried indoors in a warm dry place. A dehumidifier helps speed things up at this point. The sauna might be a bit much, though.

Actually, the humidity in a sauna comes from you, and the water you pour on the rocks. Remove those, and it will probably be TOO dry! If the wood is over 20% moisture content, drying it too fast will cause it to check, and other nasty stuff. ! year per inch is correct, but that is also dependent on relative humidity, and air circulation. Air flow is important. Stack it with 1" square sticks between each layer, placed perpendicular to the boards, spaced 16" apart. Start air drying green wood outside, covered with roof tin on the top, or under an open shed. Keep the sides of the stack sheltered from rain, but open to air flow. A kiln is really the only way to do it quickly, though.

idch, if it was kiln dried, then yes, should be just fine. 335, there should be several hundred bf of good wood in a tree that size, but you can never tell until you open it up. Big, old, yard trees frequently have bad spots in them. Keep in mind that most sawmills will NOT saw yard trees because they often contain metal, and even concrete which causes expensive downtime when run thu the saw. If you find a sawyer with a portable mill, you will probably be charged around $20 for each band that gets chewed up, and a trunk that size may have to be ripped into quarters with a chainsaw just to fit on the mill. As for log lengths, talk to whoever will be milling them, or, if you will be doing it yourself, whatever you can handle. Some dry kiln operations will dry small lots for the public, as long as they can combine them with other lots to make a full load, and there are also individuals with smaller kilns in the business as well. Just gotta ask around. Prices are usually 30 to 60 cents/bf. Sounds like you have some time to line stuff up.

from what I can see, it looks like a martin style truss rod with the aluminum box channel? Measure the width. If it is 15/32" wide like the ones stew-mac sells, you can get a router bit that size. They are sometimes called undersize dado bits, made for routing grooves for 1/2" plywood, which is not quite 1/2"

Grain runout is the biggest issue in my mind. Cutting an angled head out of the same piece of wood as the neck makes it so the grain cuts across the headstock at an angle. ( looking at it from the side ) This makes it much easier to break. Matt, will you be scarf sanding between the sealer coats? From what I've seen of your work here, I believe you will do just fine building a neck.