Official Luthiers Forum!

Could you imagine a guitar that would be sweating??

[QUOTE=Serge Poirier] have you ever heard of anyone building a guitar out of a ginko biloba tree?
[/QUOTE]
It won't stay bent--its memory is too good.

Thanks Carlton, i hope nobody ever gets the idea of cutting one down to try it though!

[QUOTE=Colin S] [QUOTE=Brad Goodman] [QUOTE=L. Presnall] Isn't Sapele mahogany? [/QUOTE]

Mahogany isn't even Mahogany!![/QUOTE]

There are 600+ species in 60 genera in the family Meliaceae, all of which can justifiably be called 'Mahogany'.

The ones that we usually call mahogany are from just one of these genera from the New World, Swietenia; S.mahogani (Cuban), S.macrophylla (Honduran), S.microphylla (small leaf).

In Africa there are 17 species in 2 genera that can also be called mahogany (as members of the Meliaceae family). These two Genera are Khaya and Entandrophragma.

The Sapele we use is Entandrophragma cylindricum, while the Khaya we use is from a number of species mainly K.ivorensis, and K. anthotheca, though a heavier species K.senegalensis is a wood I'm currently trying to track down.

So, all of them can be equally be called 'Mahogany' though for the sake of clarity maybe we should use the terms South American mahogany or African mahogany.

I have long been a believer that all wood should be sold with its taxonomic name.

Colin[/QUOTE]

I would dissagre that all 1400 (yes 1400) species of the 50 genera making up the Meliaceae family can equally be called mahogany. Swietenia is the genus reserved for true mahogany. Genus Khaya has 8 species and is similar to true mahogany because of oleoresins. Genus Cedrela produces Cedro (Spanish Cedar). I'd sure dislike ordering a container of mahogany and getting Spanish cedar or Bead Tree    

And here's my sapele haul from our great forum garage sale:





Andrew

That means it's old growth, right? I think a little Botox would do it, but I'm not sure where to inject.

Andrew

[QUOTE=harmonist34] That means it's old growth, right? I think a little Botox would do it, but I'm not sure where to inject.

Andrew[/QUOTE]

How about my shop?? You can inject it there..

[QUOTE=harmonist34] And here's my sapele haul from our great forum garage sale:





Andrew[/QUOTE]

Sure wish I had more of that.

_________________
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