Luthiers - what's a fair price for this wood?

[Ned Milburn]

Originally Posted by arie

i'm told it makes a very fine neck wood

That's a very nice idea!!

[Halcyon/Tinker]

I used it on a neck once and it was fine, but quite soft compared to a regular neck wood. But I would use it again if asked to.

[arie]

Originally Posted by Halcyon/Tinker

I used it on a neck once and it was fine, but quite soft compared to a regular neck wood. But I would use it again if asked to.

softness in between Cedro and Mahogany? or softer then Cedro?


p.s, i went to the wood database and looked up the janka hardness of all three:

Yellow Cedar -580
Cedro -600
Honduran Mahogany -900

[Halcyon/Tinker]

Janka 600 for cedro, 580 for yellow cedar, so a bit softer but pretty close.

But it behaves much differently. It's structure is more like a top wood in the sense of long stringy grain rather than however one would describe mahogany.

[arie]

Originally Posted by Halcyon/Tinker

Janka 600 for cedro, 580 for yellow cedar, so a bit softer but pretty close.

But it behaves much differently. It's structure is more like a top wood in the sense of long stringy grain rather than however one would describe mahogany.

ok, thx for that. i've been tempted to buy some for an upcoming 000-12 and let it season for a while.

[Halcyon/Tinker]

No reason not to, just don't expect it to work like mahogany...

[Bruce Sexauer]

I have worked quite a bit of Yellow cedar, though I have made no guitars from it. It carves like butter, and require less attention to grain direction than most woods. Also, it is close to pore-less, and finishes very easily. The smell is strong, and while at first it is seductive, after a while it starts to seem like it has a edge to it. IMO, of course. I do have quite a few guitar sets I milled from billets that came off the beach in BC about 40 years ago, and I may build with it yet. It is one of those woods that could be used for every part of a guitar save the bridge and fingerboard. The big danger with salvaged logs is that they can have defects that don’t come to light until advanced stages of the work.

[printer2]

Originally Posted by Bruce Sexauer

I have worked quite a bit of Yellow cedar, though I have made no guitars from it. It carves like butter, and require less attention to grain direction than most woods. Also, it is close to pore-less, and finishes very easily. The smell is strong, and while at first it is seductive, after a while it starts to seem like it has a edge to it. IMO, of course. I do have quite a few guitar sets I milled from billets that came off the beach in BC about 40 years ago, and I may build with it yet. It is one of those woods that could be used for every part of a guitar save the bridge and fingerboard. The big danger with salvaged logs is that they can have defects that don’t come to light until advanced stages of the work.

That would be a fun build. I have built a few small nylon string guitars out of spruce and pine, come to think about it, also two steel strings with fir necks and red cedar tops. A little softer than the previous mentioned woods, harness of around 420 for the spruce. The difference in hardness of the early and late wood is a little difficult for carving the heel, the yellow cedar sounds much better. With lightweight tuners the total guitar weight is, well, light. It could make a perfect couch guitar.