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 Post subject: Dogwood back and sides?
PostPosted: Wed Apr 28, 2021 8:11 pm 
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Cocobolo
Cocobolo

Joined: Mon Oct 31, 2011 8:50 pm
Posts: 115
First name: Bob
Last Name: Howell
City: Atlanta
State: Ga
Focus: Build
Status: Amateur
Friend brought a 6.5-7" wide 1" thick and 7' dogwood board for me to resaw and help make a guitar for him. Its spalted and flatsawn and has character so looks are good but any experience with the sound. cured 7 years.
I read over the numbers and as we all know its hard but is it a good tone wood.

He is fine with 3 piece back.

Bob


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PostPosted: Wed Apr 28, 2021 9:02 pm 
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Contributing Member
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Joined: Wed Sep 08, 2010 12:17 am
Posts: 1263
First name: John
Last Name: Arnold
City: Newport
State: TN
Zip/Postal Code: 37821
Country: USA
Focus: Repair
Status: Professional
I have some killer looking dogwood with crazy spalt. But dogwood taps like wet cardboard. Tap tone on back and side wood is not the only factor, but I am not that enthusiastic about dogwood for that purpose. I have made dogwood fingerboards, since it wears slick. Image

Sent from my SM-G950U1 using Tapatalk

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John


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PostPosted: Wed Apr 28, 2021 10:13 pm 
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Koa
Koa

Joined: Mon Dec 18, 2006 9:42 am
Posts: 1574
Location: United States
Antonia Torres, the "father " of modern classical guitar making, is famous for making a guitar with hardboard back and sides to demonstrate that it is pretty much the top that is important for sound.


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PostPosted: Thu Apr 29, 2021 2:20 am 
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Joined: Fri Jul 10, 2009 4:44 am
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First name: colin
Last Name: north
Country: Scotland.
Focus: Build
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I have built with a couple of woods which, to me, seemed to tap a bit like wet cardboard.
Seems it can still make fine guitars, just don't expect the B & S to contribute much to the sound.

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The name catgut is confusing. There are two explanations for the mix up.

Catgut is an abbreviation of the word cattle gut. Gut strings are made from sheep or goat intestines, in the past even from horse, mule or donkey intestines.

Otherwise it could be from the word kitgut or kitstring. Kit meant fiddle, not kitten.


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PostPosted: Thu Apr 29, 2021 5:47 pm 
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Koa
Koa

Joined: Sun Oct 28, 2018 3:40 pm
Posts: 500
First name: Ernest
Last Name: Kleinman
City: Guthrie
State: OK
Zip/Postal Code: 73044
Country: United States
Focus: Build
Status: Professional
FWIW I seasoned some boards of dogwood 11 yrs ago for bridges,fb. an chisel handles. I would not use it for back an sides, too much shrinkage warping an checking. It makes great chisel handles for use with a malllet though!


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PostPosted: Wed May 26, 2021 3:15 pm 
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Koa
Koa

Joined: Tue Feb 24, 2009 9:23 am
Posts: 1372
First name: Corky
Last Name: Long
City: Mount Kisco
State: NY
Country: USA
Focus: Build
Status: Amateur
Agree on all points here. I experimented with it some time ago, reasoning that anything that dense and hard might be promising for back and sides. It simply has no resonance at all. Taps like wet cardboard. Maybe it could make interesting fretboards. It would certainly resist wear. Tough on the tools, though.


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