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 Post subject: Madrone
PostPosted: Thu May 06, 2010 10:36 am 
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Walnut
Walnut
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Joined: Thu May 06, 2010 8:30 am
Posts: 5
First name: Steve
Last Name: Rogerson
City: Pembroke
State: Ga
Zip/Postal Code: 31321
Country: United States
Focus: Build
Status: Amateur
I'm looking at using a piece of Madrone for the neck of my next build. I've heard that it can be difficult to work with. Any thoughts?


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 Post subject: Re: Madrone
PostPosted: Thu May 06, 2010 10:51 am 
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Cocobolo
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Joined: Sat Feb 02, 2008 12:15 pm
Posts: 475
Location: Santa Barbara, Ca
First name: John "jd"
City: Santa Barbara
State: Ca
Focus: Build
Status: Semi-pro
stv_rgrsn wrote:
I'm looking at using a piece of Madrone for the neck of my next build. I've heard that it can be difficult to work with. Any thoughts?


The madrone I have worked with has been very highly figured. is machines well, but has a tendancy to crack in the most heavily figured sections. This is not really unexpected as it is similar to working with burls, The areas with lots of grain reversal also have lots of stress built into them.

Also like burls it can warp is strange ways when thinned. Can flatten with steam and soak with epoxy to stabilize if this happens

-jd


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 Post subject: Re: Madrone
PostPosted: Thu May 06, 2010 8:07 pm 
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Cocobolo
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Joined: Mon Feb 25, 2008 12:06 pm
Posts: 157
I've heard the horror stories as well, but I have had a couple of pieces for ~18 months that I've just resawn. They were about 6'x8 1/2"x5/8", nicely quartered with rays kind of like unfigured maple gets sometimes. They've been totally stable and continue to be in the month since I've resawn them.

I'm doing b&s sets but if yours is like mine, I wouldn't worry about a neck.

I cut tons of it for firewood when I was in college and the stuff split like butter with a tap of a maul. Really a beautiful tree. In a wet year after a dry one I saw trunks that had just burst from soaking up the water - crazy.

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 Post subject: Re: Madrone
PostPosted: Thu May 06, 2010 11:05 pm 
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Brazilian Rosewood
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Joined: Thu Aug 04, 2005 7:50 am
Posts: 3152
Location: Canada
I don't have any experience with it in guitars, except for the awesome stuff that saw John Abercrombie do with it, but I have used it for other woodworking projects (we call it Arbutus). From that experience I would use it for backs and sides but would be concerned for stability in a neck.

Shane

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