Hatcher's Studio '20 #2
 

Time for my second studio thread. It's July and tomorrow is July 4th! It seems appropriate to do a Red White and Blue guitar.
Let's start with Blue. The top for this guitar comes with a story drawn from an American way of life. The Sitka top I selected came from an old logging float camp in Alaska. The huge old growth Sitka logs were lashed together over 30 years ago and formed the raft which houses were set on. When the loggers were finished in one area they would use tugs to pull the camp to the next site.

Here is part of the old camp:

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...12f6a080_c.jpg

To give you an idea of the size of the 110 foot long logs that were salvaged:

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...0d88c70d_c.jpg

Iron cleats and 12" long iron rods were driven into the logs to hold it all together and to hold the steel cable lashing used for towing the camps:

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...d001ca0f_c.jpg

After thirty years soaking in salt water the iron leaches into the surrounding wood fiber.
Here is a quote from my supplier:

"These boards cut from a floatlog in the vicinity of a 12″ long spike, that permeated the surrounding fiber with iron. The result is this oxidized blue board. Out of thousands of tops cut from these logs, only a few have the stain for the full length and width of both boards. They are blue throughout the board. The sugars of the wood has become crystalline and extra mineral added"

Of the few that had the blue stain a very few had bear claw figure and that is what I am using on my Red White and Blue guitar:

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...8cc3e0c9_b.jpg

If you'd like to know more about these old camps I came across this video of a different camp, but you'll get the idea:

http://www.ketchikanstories.com/film...s/logging-boom

More to come!
Mark

Cool story !

Looking forward to the next episode;)

That is so COOL! Thanks for sharing this Mark! I love hearing the story behind the wood!

Bet they would have loved to have one of your canoes to get around camp or to town in style.

Bruce,

The story sounds similar to that of Salmon Sitka which comes from the crates made by fisheries to hold a fisherman's catch during the day. But none of that cool blue color.

This should be fun to watch! :)

Red White and Blue Back and Sides
 

Thanks Lonzo, here it comes!

Thanks Treenewt, I enjoy researching and telling the story.

Thanks for commenting Bruce, Seems back in the day everybody had a little float plane. That would have been fun!

Thanks cigarfan, I have built with floatwoods before and have been happy with the results. I don't know if there is really any magic to them, I just go by my standards when picking tonewood. The blue is just cool as far as I'm concerned.

Awhile back I bought this highly figured and unusual Sapele board:

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...0f2b236b_c.jpg

It's 5ft long and 2 inches thick. Besides the striking pommele figure it also has much lighter sapwood and it even has blue spalting. So this is a no-brainer for my Red White and Blue guitar.

Here's a closer look:

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...407fcff6_c.jpg

The model I am making is my parlor Piña:

https://live.staticflickr.com/7909/4...559f6246_b.jpg

Here are a couple pics of the back and side set I found inside that board:

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...cc1f9d15_b.jpg

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...45fd3be2_b.jpg

Happy Fourth of July everyone!
Mark

As always Mark, woods beyond the ordinary!

That Sapele is quite lovely!

That's some fine looking wood! I also love hearing the stories from where the wood originates too. Those are some LARGE timber.

Boss Woods
 

Really fun wood sets!!!

I played in Ketchikan repeatedly in the 80s and 90s. It was NUTS and the huge club was ROCKIN' every night.

This will be very cool

Thanks for showing us all...

Paul

How do they go?
 

Thanks Tom, It's crazy what you can find!

Thanks Treenewt, Sapele is a great tonewood. It at first looks similar to Mahogany with its color and interlocking grain but it is as hard as Rock Maple and doesn't seem to have a limit in the gorgeous grain department. Tonally it is complex with a lot of sustain.

Thanks Brian, Big old growth trees, it's nice to be able to re-purpose them.

Thanks Paul, Yeah, I thought that video helped catch the flavor of the times.

I've shown two woods so far for my Red White and Blue guitar let's see how they go together:

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...b75b7066_c.jpg

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...5e9e2758_b.jpg

Those of you who have been following me for awhile know that I have a bench in the back of the studio called the Dartboard. It is where I stage the woods and parts for future builds and accumulate ideas for. That way I can always see them and can drop things off or take them away in passing depending on how well they get along with the other parts.

This idea has been building for many months so you are going to see a lot of different elements coming together as I am building this guitar!

Thanks for viewing!
Mark

Mark, first off, that top is seriously amazing!

Second, thanks for that description of Sapele. That’s quite informative, as it so often is simply lumped in as a mahogany substitute. I have heard it’s hard to work with due to the dust...is that simply the case for folks with allergies, or does any extra care have to be taken on your end to work with Sapele?

You’re welcome Treenewt, I didn’t take any extra precautions working with Sapele. It has a pleasant sweet smell and I did not find it irritating in any way.
That’s me. I haven’t read that it is particularly bad but, if I were sensitive to it you’d being hearing a different story. This is coming from a guy who finds African Mahogany particularly irritating and I have never heard the same complaint from another woodworker. It is hard to know which woods, if any you will react to so it’s important to pay attention and always exercise basic precautions when working with woods (dust mask, and dust filters). I worry mostly about respiratory symptoms. For skin issues my only real precaution has been to be sure to shower right after working in the shop, not before.

Thanks Mark! I could absolutely have mixed it up with another wood!

Floatwoods
 

"I have built with floatwoods before and have been happy with the results"

I can personally attest to the exceptional look and sound of Mark's ""Floatwood""

To my eye, this is one of your best ( if not the best ) wood combinations you have put together.

daniel