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Mahogay resaw mistake. Wood still usable?
Posted: Sun May 11, 2014 10:31 am
by Herman
Last year I bought a perfect quatersawn Honduran mahogany billet 4"x4"x36". The nicest wood ever. Great for 3 necks.
Now I did cut it in three pieces. But somehow I managed to cut it the wrong way. Now I sit on three plainsawn neckbillets. Real bummer.
What to do?
-Use it for blocks, stacked heels and headstocks?
-Plane, glue and resaw them?
-Or, and that is the question here, did anyone use plain mahogany for necks? Is it that less stable as been written?
What would you do my friends?
Herman
Re: Mahogay resaw mistake. Wood still usable?
Posted: Sun May 11, 2014 10:52 am
by John Parchem
can you use it for laminated necks?
Re: Mahogany resaw mistake. Wood still usable?
Posted: Sun May 11, 2014 11:17 am
by Herman
The pieces are 1 inch thick, so for a laminate neck I would all 3 pieces, with the laminations quite wide apart. Not that pretty I think. I thought of it John, but I guess it'll be my last resort.
Re: Mahogay resaw mistake. Wood still usable?
Posted: Sun May 11, 2014 7:47 pm
by ken cierp
I've seen pretty cool necks with the three wide laminate and contrasting stripes -- make the center one Alit more narrow. Although, some very fine Fender guitars are made with slab cut Hard Maple, I have to saw that in all my years of woodworking I have been convinced that 1/4 sawn wood and laminated is more stable and less prone to twists. I have never made a slab cut neck.
Re: Mahogay resaw mistake. Wood still usable?
Posted: Mon May 12, 2014 12:02 pm
by Herman
As I cut the block the pieces bended directly, due to released internal tension. I guess this is a sign that the wood is less stable in the slabcutform than it would be in the 1/4 direction.
So I will not be pigheaded this time. The customer also likes a laminated neck. So that's what will happen, laminated.
Can I advertise it now as "salvaged mahogany"?
Re: Mahogay resaw mistake. Wood still usable?
Posted: Mon May 12, 2014 12:13 pm
by ken cierp
Still sounds like premium Mahogany to me. How you decide to cut it makes no difference. When we buy our Honduran/Genuine Mahogany the boards themselves are really slab/flat cut, but so thick I can blank them into quarter sawn configuration. Same with all our laminated necks -- book matched flat sawn makes a 1/4 sawn blank and finished neck. Hope this is helpful.
Re: Mahogay resaw mistake. Wood still usable?
Posted: Mon May 12, 2014 12:59 pm
by Herman
Yes Ken, I did that before. But thanks anyway.
Over here the local lumberyard knows that quatered Honduran mahogany is more desired than slabcut. The slabcut lumber is 2/3 the price of quatered.
But either way I'm able to make a neck from about 15 dollar of mahogany. Reasonable I think. Much cheaper than SM or LMI.