Steve and I are very pleased to share with you a build thread with what we believe to be a pretty fun guitar. This is going to be a 12 fret Port Orford Cedar &
Osage Orange SJ for AGF regular (some may say spectacular) Jamiejoon. Jamie had some fun ideas about where to start and then has let Steve and I throw some wild ideas in the mix too. I hope you enjoy following along.
I’ll see if Steve can chime in with some raw wood pics, but since I have construction shots, let’s get started.
First is a look at the rich yellow of the Osage Orange back. Round these parts most people call the wood - Bo-dark (Bois D’arc). As supposedly it was the Native American wood of choice for making hunting bows. Though actually it’s even more commonly known as horse apple. The huge bright green fruit of the tree being its most recognizable outward characteristic. But if they knew what was inside...
The Osage oxidizes and darkens over time. Freshly sanded it becomes a chromium yellow. Xanthic one might say. For the last couple months I have been staining my hands and my clothes with the bright yellow dust. It’s really a whole new experience to work with something so yellow. The pictures can’t quite capture the depth of the wood, but it is quite enchanting in person.
Jamie chose our big body shape - the SJ. Combined with the strength of the POC and the hardness of the Osage, we’re expecting a cannon of an instrument. I hope you’re ready.
Here’s a silly shot to make a point. The camera tries to color correct (and probably does a much better job than my eyes), but in person, the wood looked more yellow than the map color did. Your eyes may present its own take, but one thing for sure is the wood has a depth the flat color doesn’t. This guitar will be a stunner.
I hope you follow along and see where this build takes us. You won’t be disappointed.