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| Dark streaks in Redwood- Fine or something to avoid? http://w-ww.luthiersforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10101&t=57133 |
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| Author: | Octave [ Thu Jul 17, 2025 8:28 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Dark streaks in Redwood- Fine or something to avoid? |
I'm on the market for a few Redwood top. I've never built with Redwood before, and I'm finding that I love the look of Redwood with dark streaks as shown in links below. Are these streak an indication of an issue with the wood, or is it only aesthetic? I imagine that it's just the natural appearance of a healthy slice of Redwood, but before spending money on a few similar tops, I wanted to confirm that there would be no unusual structural issues. Note- In some of the images, the dark streaks are near the outer edge of the top. If I were to use wood like this, I would flip the panels so that the dark streaks were in the center. https://woodfromthewest.com/collections ... board-kf24 https://woodfromthewest.com/collections ... board-kf23 https://woodfromthewest.com/collections ... board-ke58 https://woodfromthewest.com/collections ... board-kd54 |
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| Author: | J De Rocher [ Thu Jul 17, 2025 9:55 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Dark streaks in Redwood- Fine or something to avoid? |
I don't have any problem with streaks in redwood tops. I like them. They add character. This one with a sinker redwood top is one of my favorite guitars I've built. Attachment: Sinker redwood top.jpg
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| Author: | Chris Pile [ Thu Jul 17, 2025 11:32 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Dark streaks in Redwood- Fine or something to avoid? |
It's not a bug, it's a feature. |
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| Author: | Hesh [ Fri Jul 18, 2025 8:11 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Dark streaks in Redwood- Fine or something to avoid? |
Nearly 20 years ago when I was a new builder I built this guitar after seeing this redwood top at Uncle Bob's (RC Tonewood, I gave him that name RIP Uncle Bob). A couple months later I posted pics of this guitar here. Some of the woodworkers were critical and said the top is all runout. Bob sold 50 more tops like this one in only 2 days after I posted my pics and he was thrilled and we became close friends partly as a result of interacting over this curly redwood top. Redwood supports some of the taller structures in nature obviously and that says a lot at least to me. The only thing I watch for with redwood is cross grain stiffness. When flexing it can fracture with no warning so be careful flexing it. As for this guitar that is now nearly 20 and in my living room right now with the other prototypes I had to build being me... it's fine, sounds and plays great, was used by a famous person in concert for three tunes and then he got mad at me after the concert because I did not want him to sign his name on it. Can't say his name here but some of you know the story and have heard it before. Redwood is a beautiful wood, great sounding, reminds me a bit of Adi with the strong fundamentals but it has overtone too like Western Red Cedar. So Alex my friend as Chris says it's a feature and as J says it's character. Might be kind of cool to continue the theme with the dark lines near the edges for a headstock overlay, maybe not, would have to see it mocked up. |
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| Author: | Woodie G [ Fri Jul 18, 2025 8:40 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Dark streaks in Redwood- Fine or something to avoid? |
No glamour shots of these that I can find. Same owner, but a bit more centerline streaking in the Grand Auditorium Maize-sourced top on the right versus the SJ on the left. Greenridge has an all-sinker/bogg-reclaimed timber project underway that has a darker, more mineral-streaked sinker redwood top used (with bog oak, sinker mahogany, etc.), but amount of color does not generally seem to impact anything other than cosmetics in straight grained topwoods.. I believe both tops were selected based solely on acoustic and physical properties, with little consideration given to either uniformity of color or overall appearance. Attachment: GA and SJ Redwood GRs circa 2019.jpeg The figured material on the Wood of the West looks quite interesting as long as one keeps in mind the changes in longitudinal and transverse stiffness seen in both large-curl and smaller curl timbers. That seems to be something easily addressed with both top thickness adjustment and bracing. |
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