Why not oak as a tone wood? - Page 2

Wade Hampton · #16 02-19-2018, 10:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by McCawber

Isn't the Gibson J-15 made with oak back and sides? If so, the one I played at Janet Davis music was a lot of guitar for a modest price.

No, the Gibson J-15 is made with black walnut back and sides and a spruce top.

Gibson J-15

whm

Athens · #17 02-19-2018, 10:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bsman

Walnut. Another undeservedly overlooked tonewood.

I had a late 90's Breedlove that was Sitka over walnut and had a gorgeous warm tone. It was a great guitar but I wanted something a bit smaller.

Looburst · #18 02-19-2018, 10:55 PM

It's true that Oak is a very nice tone wood but its just not gotten the sexy press that rosewood and mahogany has garnered, over the last 100 years. There's a guy in Weaversville, NC., Lawrence K. Brown, that makes some of his L-00 versions in Oak back and sides, and they sound really good.

justonwo · #19 02-19-2018, 10:55 PM

I’ve seen a few guitars around here built from oak. I’ve never played one though.

tdq · #20 02-19-2018, 11:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bsman

Walnut. Another undeservedly overlooked tonewood.

I don't know much about Oak, or tonewoods either really, but as for walnut, I have a weissenborn with walnut b/s and someone posted a beautiful walnut open back banjo over in the "other stringed instruments" section - It can look very, very nice.

David M123 · #21 02-19-2018, 11:17 PM

I have a guitar made by Forum Member Steve Saville which has Oak Back and sides and a Lutz Spruce top. It is a small jumbo and it is a heavy guitar, but I think that is as much due to the way it is built than due to the intrinsic weight of the Oak.

Sonically, the guitar is just fine with a clear, balanced voice, perhaps somewhere between Mahogany and Rosewood.

I'm going to try attaching a few pictures using the new method, so you can see that it is a fine looking guitar as well. (Didn't work. Something about a missing security token. I'll have to figure it out.)

Seagull S6 · #22 02-19-2018, 11:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Long Jon

Maybe you could extol it’s English heritage in some way ? Call it “Royal Heartwood” or something ....

We love it so much we sing about it here !

Why is everyone in the video except the guy playing the non oak guitar running away from the camera? The creature from the Okefenokee Swamp maybe?

True though. Many people seem to hear with there eyes as in information from your eyes is relied on and believed over information from your ears.

guitar12 · #23 02-19-2018, 11:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bitraker

I live in an oak forest and that got me thinking: why no oak guitars? it certainly is hard enough - the weight maybe?

It's needed for whiskey barrels, please, priorities ....

Rob

Wade Hampton · #24 02-19-2018, 11:56 PM

bsman man wrote:

Quote:

Originally Posted by bsman

Walnut. Another undeservedly overlooked tonewood.

I'm a huge fan of walnut as a tonewood, North American black walnut and European/English walnut in particular. My first musical instrument was a mountain dulcimer with walnut back and sides and a spruce top, and one of my favorite guitars is a Larrivée OM-03W, with black walnut back and sides and an Engelmann spruce top.

Howard Klepper built his interpretation of the Gibson Advanced design for me in black walnut and Carpathian spruce. It's a terrific guitar that uses the projective qualities of walnut to great advantage.

whm

Pickcity · #25 02-20-2018, 12:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bsman

Walnut. Another undeservedly overlooked tonewood.

I believe this will change...I believe walnut will become more and more popular in the coming years. It is a fine tone wood and it looks great.

I've never played an oak guitar, but it is an interesting subject. Why not?

TKT · #26 02-20-2018, 12:22 AM

I love my circa 1915-20s oak Lyon & Healy parlor. But I am also nuts for Arts & Crafts furniture, like my Stickley Brothers.

PeterTaylor · #27 02-20-2018, 03:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by guitar12

It's needed for whiskey barrels, please, priorities ....

Rob

Maybe this answers your question?

http://www.lowdenguitars.com/winter-...imited-edition

rogthefrog · #28 02-20-2018, 10:30 AM

The Kinnaird crew made at least one in the past couple of years. There's a thread about it in the custom shop forum.

Rchtop · #29 02-20-2018, 11:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PeterTaylor

Maybe this answers your question?

http://www.lowdenguitars.com/winter-...imited-edition

Don't you love the way they talk up the Bog oak and don't show the back in any of the photos? I played a guitar with white oak back and sides at the Woodstock Luthier's Show last fall - it was stellar! It had lots of power and great balanced tone.

kiva238 · #30 02-20-2018, 11:53 AM

I had an acoustic electric Takamine with an Oak back and sides about twenty five years ago. It had turquois fret markers as I recall. It sounded pretty good plugged in, but not so wonderful acoustically.
Like lots of guitars with more unusual woods, it looked beautiful but was not cut on the quarter. Slab cut is great to look at and that's about all I can say. . . .