Torrefied/baked tops and hide glue worth it?

[Arlington]

Thanks for all the input, guitarfam! Stay at home orders is making it hard to go and test all these wonderful options.

[bizango1]

Here's how I see it: If you fall in love with a particular guitar because of how it sounds and it has a torrified top and/or hide glue then it's worth the upcharge.

I have an OM-28A with both and I think it was worth it. I have also owned and sold several other Authentics and while I think they were worth it with their tops and glue after a while the overall guitars weren't my favorites and I sold them. So like others have said it really is more about the finished product and the sum of its parts being right for you. I definitely feel I can't count on T tops and glue to create a guitar I'll love. I have a couple "regular" guitars with non-torrified non-hide glue no Adi top no Brazilian construction that are wonderful and more appropriate tonally for many songs and to accompany my singing. My '28A can be tough to sing with but is outstanding for instrumentals. To my ears the most consistent quality I hear from T tops and hide glue is an increased clarity and note separation but sometimes those attributes don't add to the song.

A guitar that speaks to you is worth it no matter what the specs are. Price can be the tough part!

My Gibson L-00 Vintage has a torrified top and some hide glue (top bracing and neck joint). My luthier commented that it is very loud and I feel it has great tone for a L-00. I'd like to say that it can be attributed to the torrified top and hide glue but really who knows?! I just like it.

[RILEY31]

I have a Gibson Western Classic J-200 with a torrefied top and rosewood back and sides the neck joint is hot hide glued. It is the best sounding guitar I have ever owned or played this guitar has cured my gas for guitars since I bought it, every time I find a guitar I think sounds good enough to buy I take my Western Classic and play them side by side. I have not bought a guitar in over 2 years.

[musicman1951]

Everything has an effect on the sound of a guitar. Worth it? If you can hear, appreciate and afford the difference it is definitely worth it.

[Ukulele_Eddie]

I have two guitars with torrefied tops and have had several ukes with them as well. I would not buy an instrument only because it has a torrefied top, but I do think they help a guitar sound mature "out of the box" vs. needing to be played in.

I cannot comment on the glue aspect. I suspect -- for me -- it would be hard to discern.

[hubcapsc]

Originally Posted by RILEY31

I have a Gibson Western Classic J-200 with a terrified top...

-Mike

[Arlington]

Originally Posted by hubcapsc

-Mike

Well played

[RILEY31]

Dang auto correct. LOL

[gfirob]

I think it is like the pearl on a 40’s series Martin. If you pay extra for it, you're going to hear a difference (I know, because I have one).

So many variables are working in the construction of a guitar, that tagging one or the other as a determining factor in the guitar’s overall sound is just too subjective.

Bear claw used to be a reason for discarding a top, until Martin decided to charge a premium for it, and then it gained its own mystique.

You have to play the guitar. Some junkers sound fabulous, some A-list masterpieces sound like a plywood Silvertone. You just have to play the guitar.

[printer2]

Originally Posted by redir

I am building my 4th torrified top guitar right now and the expert luthiers that I consulted with all recommended using fish glue for the bracing. Torrified tops are very hydrophobic. While HHG is indeed a water base glue it's set time is much shorter then Fish glue. So the idea is that the slow setting water based fish glue clamped in place for 24 hours makes a better bond.

So if you think about it that way then getting the guitar made with the other alternative which is probably Titebond or some other branded AR glue has some merit to it.

There are plenty of T-Top guitars out there made with HHG glue too though. But now you have a good science based excuse to save some money

I was thinking along this line when I read the OP. Torrified wood does not soak in moisture too quickly and HHG doesn't give you too much time to work with. Check pictures of my first baked guitar, seems I use HHG on the peones.

[Wild Bill Jones]

Most of my guitars use hide glue. I have no way of telling if it is am improvement or not. The luthiers build their guitars with it so that’s what I have. My Thompson and Martin D28 Authentic have torrified tops. I’m sold, I could tell the difference in a moment and certainly compared to the same model without the “cooked” top. I’m also 72 and don’t know if I have enough years to wait an Adirondack top out anymore like I did with my 15 year old Rockbridge.

[palolowarrior]

Torecatio, hide glue an emphatic yes.

[John5]

Originally Posted by brencat

I’ve got two 1st-gen Authentics that pre-date torrefaction but are made with hide glue, a Santa Cruz D/PW made with hide glue, and an Aged Tone Bourgeois with a torrefied Adi top, braces, and bridge plate. All 4 guitars sound awesome, but the Authentics and the D/PW have something extra in the feel — almost like the flex when you lightly bounce on a trampoline or draw back on a compound bow. And the only thing different about these 3 is the hide glue construction. So I can’t say for sure, but I think it does make a difference.

Wouldn't you say the bigger difference, other than hide glue, are the brands and their bracing?

[takamineGD93]

Hide glue is used because it doesn't show much if you get a litle extra somewhere...
And because the process is reversable..(easy to unglue)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oeuTGZ5zXF0

It has nothing to do with sound