Wood selection for kerfing, bridge plate and blocks

[Kyle Barbour]

I still like the use of Baltic birch ply for the end block. It's light, strong and fairly inexpensive. I'm still looking for ideas for the neck block. Mahogany seems to be the main choice here. Are there other alternatives?

[ken cierp]

Martin uses Apple-wood ply for the neck and tail blocks in there lower grade models. When using plywood it a good idea to bevel the ends leaving the ends the same width as the kerfing. This way you don't have to deal with sanding /carving the end grain to match contours -- I've seen this done on the neck blocks too, I am not convinced its structurally equivalent to the conventional method.

I am going to have kits with matching hardwood innards (blocks, kerfing, side reinforcements), mainly because I think it looks very cool. But that is likely to add not reduce costs.

Again, the material choice for me has to do with stability and strength. The design of the KMG guitars use opposing layer neck blocks and the tail block has a vertical cross grain reinforcement. I want to be comfortable that 20 - 30 -50 years after the instrument is completed there are no worries about these components. $.02

[Dave Bagwill]

That will be a cool look.

[Dave Bagwill]

I've got some good dry walnut - good for blocks? I was thinking of laminating the headblock.

[TonyinNYC]

Walnut is fine for a tail block, but I wonder if it is hard enough for a head block. Since you are laminating it, I bet it would be fine.

I have used aspen for the tail blocks on a few guitars. I bought a board of it for something else that never happened, so I decided to cut it up for tail blocks. Seems to be working fine.

[Dave Bagwill]

Actually the walnut is pretty hard stuff, harder than most of the mahoganies, for instance, so I think it will work fine, especially as I do laminate in a center piece of cross-grained wood, as you pointed out.

[TonyinNYC]

Most of the walnut I have used has been pretty soft, although I had not considered it when compared to mahogany. I do have some curly walnut that is pretty hard, but its too pretty to use as a neck or tail block. And I just found a knife scale I bought that is curly claro walnut and it is very hard. I should think more before I regurgitate stuff I have read on other forums.