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I just read something about .085 being way too thin for a cedar top for a dread. Can I use it for a much smaller guitar size. What about a small size 1 or 2 parlor guitar? Should you go thinner on smaller guitars?
What about redwood? How thick for a 00 or 000 size?

.085" is way too thin for a D, even if it were a very stiff spruce top. Personally I wouldn't use anything that thin, on anything.
I usually leave WRC or redwood 10 to 15% thicker than spruce, and yes smaller guitars allow slightly thinner tops. I select the tops with the least stiffness across the grain for small guitars. But regardless of the guitar size, you should still be concerned by longitudinal stiffness, so the variation is not that great. On a 0 size guitar I may thin the top down to 10% less than on an OM.

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Laurent Brondel
West Paris, Maine - USA
http://www.laurentbrondel.com/

I built a 00 sized guitar with a Cedar top that was .95 thick. It was a disaster. It bellied so bad within the first 3 months that I had to re-top it. It did, however, sound great for that first couple months

For a 15-16" guitar I'd suggest around .125 for cedar/redwood. Perhaps a tiny bit thinner, but that would depend on a host of things.

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John Mayes
http://www.mayesluthier.com

You might get away with it on a small classical or Flamenco, with a low saddle and light strings. Or you could learn about the joys of lattice bracing, and thin it out even more.

I`ve done both cedar and redwood.What John said around.125 works out well.
james

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James W Bolan
Nashville Tennessee

Ladder bracing!! Could I use my very thin cedar top on a very small parlor if I ladder brace it?

Lattice not ladder.... huge difference

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John Mayes
http://www.mayesluthier.com

You can also use lattice bracing without very thin (Smallman style) tops.
Lots of possibilities, though you would have to give some thought to the location of the string holes if using a pin bridge.
Classical 'lattice' by Greg Byers

Sergei deJonge style lattice could easily be adapted to steel string, I think.


Cheers
John

Lattice? Never mind. - (Roseanne Roseannadanna)

John & Laurent
Thanks for the advice on cedar top thickness. Those numbers were just what I was looking for.

I'll save my ,085 top and use it for a very small bodied travel guitar - with a lot of bracing.