Bruce Sexauer forced into Luthier Conundrum

[El Conquistador]

Originally Posted by Bruce Sexauer

my resistance is not because the first attempt was a failure, quite the contrary, but because of my personal tonal preference

I suspect all great builders have a "tone" in their heads that they aspire to. Since each person hears things differently, some will love and some will loath certain top woods. There is nothing wrong with Redwood, in fact, for some, there is everything right with it. But, I would be slightly wary of asking a builder to build a guitar with a tone that she/he doesn't particularly like. You are a brave man Tom.

Steve

[cotten]

I have to confess: I laughed out loud when I first read the title of this thread. The thought that came into my feeble brain was, "Here is someone who's never met the same Bruce Sexauer that I have."

Be nice now. Some of my first impressions have proved to be right. A few, maybe. Very...

cotten

[Kent Chasson]

Originally Posted by El Conquistador

I suspect all great builders have a "tone" in their heads that they aspire to. Since each person hears things differently, some will love and some will loath certain top woods. There is nothing wrong with Redwood, in fact, for some, there is everything right with it. But, I would be slightly wary of asking a builder to build a guitar with a tone that she/he doesn't particularly like. You are a brave man Tom.

Steve

I like redwood on small bodies but I would never use it on a dread. Until....

I had someone talk me into it. A professional pianist who was starting to get serious about guitar requested one. I tried to talk him out of it but he eventually convinced me it was right for him. The finished guitar would not be great for my playing but it's just right for him and he's thrilled. I'm betting Tom will be just as happy. Sounds like he knows what he's getting into.

[tomgt]

Here are some pictures of the actual redwood top that I sent to Bruce and
more importantly he accepted !!! and the MBlackwood that I chose during a past visit . This is my 1st time posting pictures so go easy on me





Its going to be hard to keep up because Bruce apparently works at the
speed of light and I need to go to my full time job in order to pay for these
magnificent guitars.. Tom

[tomgt]

Couldn't resist posting this picture of "Blondie" my current
favorite all Catalpa Bruce Sexauer guitar. She is Mind Blowing
to play, I wish everyone could hear her.

[jhchang]

Originally Posted by tomgt

Well...I don't think "softer" has to be bad... Like I said, my favorite
guitar to date has a Catalpa top which is quite soft ( and happens to have
been built by Bruce Sexauer as well). It is extremely responsive and
quick. I practically had to pry it out of Bruce's hands at one of the
Woodstock shows....I'll try to take some pictures of it.

I don't understand how people could justify RW as "soft". Yes it's softer than spruce, but the softest top wood is Cedar, which has been widely used w/o any issue. And RW can't be softer than that. Makes no sense to accuse it for its intermediate softness.

[cotten]

Originally Posted by cotten

I have to confess: I laughed out loud when I first read the title of this thread. The thought that came into my feeble brain was, "Here is someone who's never met the same Bruce Sexauer that I have."

It has just now occurred to me that my silly little quip here may have come across as being negative toward Bruce. That was definitely not my intention!

Though he and I have talked here on the AGF many times, I've only met him in person once, at this year's Healdsburg Guitar Festival. I thoroughly enjoyed meeting him, sampling his fine guitars and chatting. He impressed me as someone who, through years of a very wide range of experiences, definitely knows now what he likes and what he doesn't like. That's not a negative at all, and I apologize if it came across that way.

I just thought that the idea of someone's being able to force Bruce into something as a builder was funny. Still do!

cotten

[tomgt]

Here are some shots of what has happened while I was at work
today. The beautiful blackwood with its backstrip
and the Redwood taking form....
There's no turning back now !!!

[Bruce Sexauer]

Redwood actually has an interesting quality where soft/hard is concerned. It is indeed much harder seeming that cedar, but it fails suddenly, especially as compared to spruce. Redwood's structure simply collapses with a degree of pressure that would merely dent spruce. Redwood seems to have a very short fiber length, if I chew up a little piece of it, it turns to powder in my mouth, whereas a similar piece of spruce is tenacious and fibrous, maintaining its integrity as a single mass for a surprising chewing duration. Redwood is brittle, because of the short grain and stiffness I imagine, and a sharp blow can actually shatter it. These are observations of my own, and the scientists among us are welcome to disagree, though I doubt they will.

I have heard plenty of RW topped guitars I liked, and can only agree that it is therefore an acceptable material for the purpose, or I wouldn't agree to use it. To my ear, however, the sound is dry and lacks a mid range warmth which I have learned to love in my own guitars. No cedar or RW steel string guitar in my experience make the sound I crave. I used to call this quality "tone", but that isn't fair or even true, it is merely "a" tone, but it is the one I like. It is worth noting that the first 27 guitars I made had Red Cedar tops. Very few of the following 350+ instruments have cedar or Redwood tops, but those that do are entirely up to snuff. Tom is safe enough with this project, and he knows it.

[cokezero]

if I chew up a little piece of it, it turns to powder in my mouth

Luthier that eats tone wood. Simply awesome.

[tomgt]

Bruce..
You didn't tell us which one tasted better ? Redwood or Spruce
Euell Gibbons would know !!

[Bruce Sexauer]

Spruce is a bit bland. Redwood would have to be called an acquired taste, not entirely pleasant IMO. As far as woods I've eaten are concerned, BRW is without peer in the top slot. Padauk is pretty good but can kill you if you eat too much. Tastes like cotton candy, which can also kill you if you eat too much!

[BBWW]

Originally Posted by Bruce Sexauer

As far as woods I've eaten are concerned, BRW is without peer in the top slot. Padauk is pretty good but can kill you if you eat too much. Tastes like cotton candy, which can also kill you if you eat too much!

RESPECT! You have to love this, I've done many things with and to wood, but haven't tried eating it.

I've got some Brazilian...maybe some wood chips for smoking fish...

[Chazmo]

Awesome thread! Unfortunately, now I've got some coffee on my keyboard (sprayed through my nose)!

So, now we've got tap tone, chewability, taste, and digestability as tonewood qualities. What's next?

[Bruce Sexauer]

The chewing of Tonewood is not a mere bad habit or even a casual endeavor, and the folks on this forum are by no means the first to look askance. In all seriousness, I suggest that chewing Tonewood is as useful in assessing the properties of the wood as flexing and tapping. The teeth are the hardest part of the body and are very sensitive. When brought to bear on wood one learns exactly how hard it is, and then what it takes to completely ruin it. Along the way, if paying attention, you get integrity both aligned and cross grain, and a sense of fibre content and fiber length. Since a guitars performance depends on approaching the edge of edge of destruction without actually crossing it, these are very useful bits (bites?) of information. I think I started doing this consciously about ten years into my career, which means I have been doing it for some 35 years!