Official Luthiers Forum!

I bought this top from a guy on Ebay pretty cheap ($20). I just got the package and noticed that there are some very wide annualar grains just left of center in this pic.



This is redwood. Other than the wide grain, it is a very nice piece of wood...pretty stiff longitudinally, decent tap tone. Obviously, I would have liked a tight grain all across the width, but do these 4 or 5 rings make a difference? My plan is to use it for a classical guitar. What do you guys think?

If it's quarter sawn, stiff and taps nice that's all that counts unless you need to market it as 'tight grained', high altitude, old growth, blessed by a Shaman or any other magical words that makes the mouth water. Of course if the guy sold it to you as tight grained then you didn't get what you payed for. But I think most here will say that the proximity of annular rings is not what makes or brakes guitar tone. FWIW that looks like a $20 dollar top and luthiers have made great sounding guitars with stuff like that.

Yep, if it's quartered and not too much runout, it looks like a $10-20 top to me. And even if it's not quartered, I'd still use it. I've been wanting to try making one of my little braceless classicals with a riftsawn top. Since normal classicals have fan braces to stiffen along the grain but not across, it would be interesting to try a piece of wood that naturally has that stiffness distribution.

I also have working proof that riftsawn redwood makes great steel string harp ukuleles

Cheap is often more costly than the good stuff. If you take all that time to make the guitar , Finding a good supplier is a key to success.

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John Hall
blues creek guitars
Authorized CF Martin Repair
Co President of ASIA
You Don't know what you don't know until you know it