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I have some slab cut black walnut.I would like to use for guitar necks. I know mahogany is the wood of choice for steel string necks. I was thinking I could laminate it like arch top builders do with maple. Does anyone have any insights. Is walnut stable enough and strong enough ? Is is too heavy?

Tom Mac

Selmer maccaferri guitars used Walnut (european) for necks for nearly their whole 20 year run... don't know how it compares to american varieties. I use english walnut for the necks on some of my guitars...

I have used slab cut black walnut for necks in the past; they are heavier than mahogany but black walnut is plenty stable and strong enough.
I laminated them into three pieces( 5 piece counting the peg head ears).
jack

I used it and I'm planning on using it on this build. And it's stable as long as if it's dried enough and good looking . Just think about how many gun stocks are made from it and the conditions they go through. Here's a billet I glued up with one neck cut from it and two to go.

Top notch neck wood, IMHO. Very stable. Stronger/stiffer than mahogany. A bit heavier than most mahogany, but no big deal. Carves great. Handsome. What's not to like?

Yeah, I'd laminate your slab cut wood and make some great necks out of it.

Bear in mind, any kind of wood has a lot of variation, and you could get a squirrelly piece of any species if it grew under funky tensions. I keep all my neck blanks under observation on my shelf for at least a year. If they stay straight, they pass the test.

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Todd Rose
Ithaca, NY

https://www.dreamingrosesecobnb.com/todds-art-music

https://www.facebook.com/ToddRoseGuitars/

I just recently completed my first guitar, a Classical with a Black Walnut neck.
It is a three piece lamination, not counting the heel block or headstock.
I have four other Classicals, and don't feel that the Walnut is any heavier than the others.

Ray

I also just finished one with a walnut neck. I like it.

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Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

My first couple guitars sported walnut necks, and they seemed to work just fine. 2.5 years later, and 8 guitars later, these necks are still holding up and looking great. I strongly encourage you to use it.

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Jake

~Make a joyful noise unto the Lord~

Outstanding neck wood. Just wish I could find more of it that was affordable.

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Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.

I use it alot for necks and have had great results useing it.It glues and finishes real well too.

It's hard to know how stable your particular walnut is without looking but if you have any doughs, laminate it. I have 4 identical planks of walnut I plan to use for necks and one weighs about 1/3 more than the others do. I would use the heavier, denser one as thin laminates with mahogany.

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Wade
Nashua, NH
http://www.wadefx.com

I get mine from a lumber yard at something like $7.50 BF. Now if you are talking Claro I see your point.

I use it & love it.
Just check for runout .
Many non-pro. cutters of wood do not care about that and it could be a problem .

Mike

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Mike Collins

Superb for necks and other. One of my current builds has a Claro walnut neck and I have 11 logs of Black walnut awaiting the mill. Everyone else covered it's bene's quite well.

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Bill Hodge


One does not simply, own enough guitars!

Walnut is one of the five woods the LMI sells for necks. Somebody must be using it. BTW I'm one of them. I've played some Al Carruth guitars with walnut necks and they didn't seem heavy at all. Al's necks were made out of an old church pew if I recall correctly.

As a player, I don't have any problem at all with a heavier neck. Even with a much heavier neck, like rosewood necks and such, it's just not an issue in the slightest. On slim-bodied instruments (like electric guitars) it certainly can be, but on a regular steel string guitar, the shape and depth of the body means that my right arm rests on the lower bout and easily outweighs the neck. The guitar doesn't have to balance on its own on my leg or in its strap, because as soon as my arm is there, the guitar is positioned just right for playing, whether I'm sitting down or standing up.

I think the idea that a steel string guitar neck should be light is one of these things that has more to do with preconceptions rather than actual experience. People get it in their heads that the neck should be light, or that the whole guitar should feel like picking up an empty egg shell. In my mind, all acoustic guitars are very light instruments - compared to banjos, electric guitars, etc - so one that's somewhat heavier is no big deal; it's still a piece of cake to hold and play.

I don't mean to invalidate anyone's personal preference for the feel of lighter guitars or lighter necks. It's just my experience that it really doesn't matter for actual playability. AND heavier guitars can do some things sonically that lighter guitars can't. Dense back and side woods tend to make killer guitars, and many people swear by the positive effect on sound they hear with a heavier neck as well. Greater inertia in the neck can be a good thing.

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Todd Rose
Ithaca, NY

https://www.dreamingrosesecobnb.com/todds-art-music

https://www.facebook.com/ToddRoseGuitars/