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I have a very nice 10/4" X 9" X 10' Khaya board. What if any difference tonally between Khaya & Honduran? I see LMI sells Honduran, Khaya and Sapele on the same page as "Mahogany?

Tonally, I don't think there is any difference. The two woods are basically the same density. Because of the more interlocked grain, Khaya is not as stable, but that wasn't the question.

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John

I have not really seen too many honduran mahogany, but have only bits and pieces labeled as honduran mahogany. I cannot tell the two apart... and as far as stability goes how the wood was treated and its grain structure probably counts more than which species they are. My experience with Sapele is that they are really dense... not something I prefer working with as a neck wood because the last Sapele neck I made was far too heavy. I think the heavy U channel truss rod I used in there probably contributed, as well as really heavy tuners.

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Cat-gut strings are made from kitten guts, stretched out to near breaking point and then hardened with grue saliva. As a result these give a feeling of Pain and anguish whenever played, and often end up playing themselves backwards as part of satanic rituals.

Typhoon Guitars
http://www.typhoon-guitars.com

With some magnification, the difference in Khaya and Honduran mahogany is apparent. Look for the rays on a tangential (flat sawn) surface. They appear as little 'hash marks' that are darker than the background. Khaya has staggered rays, while Honduran has 'storied' rays. Storied just means that the rays are in groups aligned in rows straight across the grain. These groups create ripple marks.

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John

I get what you are saying, but I see them (the figure at the neck block) on woods labeled as african mahogany (khaya) and even philippine mahogany (Lauan)! Basically its confusing as hell, and when certain wood suppliers can label honduran mahogany as african mahogany to avoid CITES paperwork, the difference is not big enough to catch anyone's notice.

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Cat-gut strings are made from kitten guts, stretched out to near breaking point and then hardened with grue saliva. As a result these give a feeling of Pain and anguish whenever played, and often end up playing themselves backwards as part of satanic rituals.

Typhoon Guitars
http://www.typhoon-guitars.com

Honduran Mahogany is more expensive, therefore it is better. Also, Martin uses it, therefore it's better.

I have made a number of Africa Khaya both full and spruce tops. I was impressed and continue to use it. I would rather a great piece of Khaya than average Honduran .

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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

Is Khaya similar in Density/weight (on average) to Honduran?

Thanks for all the response. I'm sticking with Honduran for the moment.


Possibly on average, I have some Honduran thats very light and some thats fairly heavy and much denser........so?

I find Khaya to be more consistent in regards to density than Honduran. But rift sawn is the standard cut for Khaya so there is that to deal with...... I personally prefer the Khaya.

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Brian

You never know what you are capable of until you actually try.

https://www.howardguitarsdelaware.com/

Here we go again...
Lauan is not Mahogany but rather a compressed form of splinters.

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wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah

Yea, I hate it.. but its all I can obtain sometimes.

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Cat-gut strings are made from kitten guts, stretched out to near breaking point and then hardened with grue saliva. As a result these give a feeling of Pain and anguish whenever played, and often end up playing themselves backwards as part of satanic rituals.

Typhoon Guitars
http://www.typhoon-guitars.com

I find Khaya machines very nicely but is difficult to work by hand due to the interlocked grain. I'd much rather carve a neck from mahogany. I found a good source in Pennsylvania for pattern grade (i.e. well quartered and straight grained) honduran mahogany. TBM hardwoods. They kiln dry the mahogany on site. I drove out there to check out the operation and brought some home. It's great stuff, and they deal with instrument makers (some large names too) so if you tell them what you need you'll get what you need, no fooling.

Everything is just sitting in a warehouse and is rough, so you'll need to be able to let it sit for a little bit to acclimate and you'll need to be able to break it down, but it's a great source if you're able to deal with rough lumber as it comes out of a kiln.

I'd be surprised if John Hall wasn't familiar with them.

I sold my last 2 guitars and customers prefered the african mahogany over honduran guitar. Go figure. I think we can agree that tone is subjective and the customer will dictate the market. I do agree honduran is more fun to work . There does seem to be a better supply of Honduran the last 2 years.

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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