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I was given a 40+ year old back and sides set. My phone's camera lens is dirty and leaves blurry dark spots on everything, but I'm hoping for input on what type of wood this might be. Thoughts?

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George :-)

Indian rosewood

Sand or scrape & smell test?

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I'm not a luthier.
I'm just a guy who builds guitars in his basement.
It's better than playing golf.

Thanks for the replies!

My first thought was EIR as well, but I'm far from an expert. This was given to me several months ago by a friend who used to build guitars in Port Townsend, WA, way back in the olden days. (Your old stompin' grounds, Michael!) I hadn't really looked at the wood until this morning. I texted him earlier and asked him if he remembered what it was. He said he thinks it's Brazilian. I sanded one end of it slightly and it seems to have that dusty peppery scent my nose associates with EIR. (I've never smelled Brazilian rosewood.)

However, it does have some unusual figure to it, which is what prompted me to post here. You can sort of see it along the bottom of the image above, running on a slight diagonal up and to the left edge. The grain lines intersect one another there, as if two pieces of wood have been glued together—but they haven't. It appears to be what is often referred to as "landscape" figure. I've never seen that on any of the EIR I've had before and it doesn't feel like any EIR I've had, either. I'd describe it as noticeably hard and tight and kind of brittle. I thought maybe it was one of the other rosewoods out there, which, like Brazilian, I've never actually handled myself.

It's barely 12.5" wide, so, whatever it is, I'm not sure what I'll make with it, maybe a parlor guitar or something.

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George :-)

Definitely looks like Indian to me. If you want to make something wider, add a center wedge matching the binding wood.

EIR , unless it smells like attar of roses when scraped

How heavy is it? The peppery smell makes me think Cocobolo. Indian smells like a cow.

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Good judgement comes from experience. Experience comes from poor judgement.

eir if you have old natural they have a more cinnamon smell for lack of a better term

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John Hall
blues creek guitars
Authorized CF Martin Repair
Co President of ASIA
You Don't know what you don't know until you know it

Everything about it, especially the purple tones says EIR to me. I don't smell so well these days so I wouldn't know about that.

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Joe Beaver
Maker of Sawdust

It’s rosewood.


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