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-   -   What is "NATO" wood? (https://www.acousticguitarforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=183963)

Fatstrat 05-06-2010 02:06 PM

What is "NATO" wood?
 
IMO it's about the equivalent of building a guitar out of wall paneling.

Minotaur 05-06-2010 02:19 PM

It's a wood from South America and the Caribbean. It's pretty dense and sturdy, and resistant to wear, and is used by Chinese and Korean guitar makers because of its lower cost and availability.

Cue Zephyr 05-06-2010 03:24 PM

Like sapele, it's a type of mahogany.

15 Man 05-06-2010 04:04 PM

Everything You Wanted To Know About Nato But Were Afraid To Ask
 
I found this on the net someplace a few years ago; and keep it for my own information and also times like this.

Nato is one of the softer hardwoods like Mahogany, Walnut, Koa and Maple. It’s a good, but less expensive alternative to Rosewood. It’s also known as Eastern Mahogany; due to the fact that the species used in guitar construction is from South East Asia. It is a reliable, strong wood. It’s also a value-priced wood used more in the lower cost instruments. However, Nato still embodies all of the properties of more commonly used (and more expensive) Mahogany. It’s not a bad wood at all for a lower cost instrument.

Genus names: Mora, Mora excelsa, Mora gonggrijpii.

Family: Leguminosa

Other Common Names:
Nato, Nato rojo (Colombia), Mora de Guyana (Venezuela), Marobukea, Mora (Guyana), Mora Moraboekea (Surinam), Pracuuba (Brazil).

Distribution:
Mora excelsa: Widely distributed in the Guianas; and less so in the Orinoco Delta of Venezuela. Dominant on river levees and flood plains forming dense stands. Mora gonggrijpii: Restricted to Guyana and Surinam, a dominant species best adapted to hillsides on heavy clay soils.

The Tree Usually 100 to 120 ft high and 2 to 3 ft in diameter with clear boles 60 ft and more above very large buttresses that may extend 15 ft up the trunk. Trees of Mora excelsa 160 to 200 ft high and 4 ft in diameter are reported.

General Characteristics
* Heartwood - yellowish red brown, reddish brown or dark red with paler streaks.
* Sapwood - 2 to 6 in. wide, distinct, yellowish to pale brown.
* Texture - moderately fine to rather coarse, rather harsh to the feel.
* Luster - medium to high; grain is straight to commonly interlocked, very variable.
* Astringent taste and slightly sour odor.

Weight:
Basic specific gravity (oven-dry weight/green volume) 0.76 to 0.84; air-dry density 59 to 65 pcf.

Jeff M 05-06-2010 04:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cue Zephyr (Post 2217694)
Like sapele, it's a type of mahogany.

I don't believe it is. Not from the family Meliaceae (see my signature line).

"A type of mahogany".
The wood worlds version of "it tastes kind of like chicken". :D

ahorsewithnonam 05-06-2010 04:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 15 Man (Post 2217726)
I found this on the net someplace a few years ago; and keep it for my own information and also times like this.

Nato is one of the softer hardwoods like Mahogany, Walnut, Koa and Maple. It’s a good, but less expensive alternative to Rosewood. It’s also known as Eastern Mahogany; due to the fact that the species used in guitar construction is from South East Asia. It is a reliable, strong wood. It’s also a value-priced wood used more in the lower cost instruments. However, Nato still embodies all of the properties of more commonly used (and more expensive) Mahogany. It’s not a bad wood at all for a lower cost instrument.

Genus names: Mora, Mora excelsa, Mora gonggrijpii.

Family: Leguminosa

Other Common Names:
Nato, Nato rojo (Colombia), Mora de Guyana (Venezuela), Marobukea, Mora (Guyana), Mora Moraboekea (Surinam), Pracuuba (Brazil).

Distribution:
Mora excelsa: Widely distributed in the Guianas; and less so in the Orinoco Delta of Venezuela. Dominant on river levees and flood plains forming dense stands. Mora gonggrijpii: Restricted to Guyana and Surinam, a dominant species best adapted to hillsides on heavy clay soils.

The Tree Usually 100 to 120 ft high and 2 to 3 ft in diameter with clear boles 60 ft and more above very large buttresses that may extend 15 ft up the trunk. Trees of Mora excelsa 160 to 200 ft high and 4 ft in diameter are reported.

General Characteristics
* Heartwood - yellowish red brown, reddish brown or dark red with paler streaks.
* Sapwood - 2 to 6 in. wide, distinct, yellowish to pale brown.
* Texture - moderately fine to rather coarse, rather harsh to the feel.
* Luster - medium to high; grain is straight to commonly interlocked, very variable.
* Astringent taste and slightly sour odor.

Weight:
Basic specific gravity (oven-dry weight/green volume) 0.76 to 0.84; air-dry density 59 to 65 pcf.

Great info, no wonder my all nato Yamaha has a hispanic accent.

airguitarro 05-06-2010 05:35 PM

Here's another article that describes what sounds like a different species of tree in South East Asia known also as "nyatoh" or "nato".

http://united-woodwork.net/page4.php

Nyatoh is a standard Malaysian name for timbers of Sapotaceae family and their colours range from light pink to red-brown. These timbers are principally from Palaquium, Ganua and Payena genera.

The Palaquium genus account for a large part of Malaysian Nyatoh. It consistof a wide range of species and exhibits many properties. The Palaquium timberweights from fairly light to extremely heavy. In fact two species from the Palaquium genus have been excluded from Nyatoh classification due to their high density.The existing classification maintained, Nyatoh wood is light to moderately heavyand in some cases very heavy, with density ranging from 400 -1075 kgs/m3 (25- 67 lb/ft3) air dried.

Nyatoh has a very good reputation as a fine textured and easy to work timber. It is much sought after for the manufacture of furniture and furniture components, interior furnishing, paneling, high-class cabinet and parquet flooring. The timberis also used for the production of plywood, both rotary peeled as well as sliced.For the above uses the lighter species are preferred, as the heavier speciesare not so attractive as well as being more difficult to work.

The heavier species are suitable for medium to heavy construction works. This include heavy-duty flooring, door and window frames, heavy-duty furniture, boxes,crates and wooden pallets.

Nyatoh is equivalent to Nato of the Philippines, Masang in Thailand and Nyatuhin Indonesia.

AZLiberty 05-06-2010 06:41 PM

I have a dining room table that I think is made out of Nato. visually it looks like a cross between Sapele and Pecan. It's your generic south east Asian hardwood.

brokepick 05-06-2010 07:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ahorsewithnonam (Post 2217743)
Great info, no wonder my all nato Yamaha has a hispanic accent.

You have an "all nato" Yamaha? What model?

The current Yamaha models that list nato, only use nato as a very thin veneer over meranti. The predominant core wood in all of the current laminate back and sides Yamahas is meranti.

Maybe we should be asking "What is meranti wood?":confused:

airguitarro 05-06-2010 07:29 PM

The wonders of Google...

http://woodwizard.mtc.com.my:8888/report.asp?ItemID=103

Like Nyatoh, Meranti is another wood that is often used in furniture, cabinetry and construction in Malaysia and other South East Asian countries.

ahorsewithnonam 05-06-2010 09:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brokepick (Post 2217889)
You have an "all nato" Yamaha? What model?

The current Yamaha models that list nato, only use nato as a very thin veneer over meranti. The predominant core wood in all of the current laminate back and sides Yamahas is meranti.

Maybe we should be asking "What is meranti wood?":confused:

FX370C Laminated spruce top and nato for the rest.

Xylophile 05-07-2010 03:06 AM

If we're talking guitar wood, like backs, sides and necks, it will be the southeast Asian nato or nyatoh (Palaquium spp.), not Mora spp. from the Guyanas.
BTW, the info in red seems to be a combination of both woods.

And like Jeff said, it is not in the Meliaceae or "mahogany family", let alone in the Swietenia genus. So "eastern mahogany" is a rejectable name.


Meranti and lauan (Shorea spp.) are from SE Asia, as well. They are not in the Meliaceae family either, but some of it is sold as "Philippine mahogany". That is bad practice, too.

The mahogany name sells.





X

Rick Jones 05-07-2010 06:17 AM

THe gunwales of my old boat were made of it, I dunno if that has any relevance, but it was hard wearing!

brianmay 05-07-2010 07:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rick Jones (Post 2218238)
THe gunwales of my old boat were made of it, I dunno if that has any relevance, but it was hard wearing!

So, did you strum or finger pick? What kind of capo do you use with that?

Obviously, I know a lot about guitars but don't know that model . . . :D

leehop71 05-07-2010 10:43 AM

I'm glad I ran across this thread. A wealth of info here and I learned a lot of wood types and such.

I always thought NATO wood was a wood that the North American Treaty Organization made. :lol:


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