Official Luthiers Forum!

Anyone out there use a cut off from the waste of back wood (oriented correctly of course) for their back reinforcement strip?
I typically use spruce or spanish cedar for these, but for some reason I was thinking of this.
Good idea or bad idea?

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Jim Watts
http://jameswattsguitars.com

Jim,

Yes. It works fine.

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Dave White
De Faoite Stringed Instruments
". . . the one thing a machine just can't do is give you character and personalities and sometimes that comes with flaws, but it always comes with humanity" Monty Don talking about hand weaving, "Mastercrafts", Weaving, BBC March 2010

Thats a pretty standard source for backstrips, I think. A lot of standard-size topsets seem to be quite oversize on length anyway.
I usually manage to find 'below standard' topwood somewhere in the junk pile. You can rip up (and bevel?) enough strips to last quite a while, and it makes things easier if you glue up a bit wider blank before you rip it up.

Or, like Larrivee, you can skip the backstrip....

John

Jim, i also did this on no 3, i took some left over pieces from the WRC off cuts and it kind of look nice inside the ash box.

Here, have a peek through the soundhole

OOOPS, misread, i thought you said off of the top, sorry Jim!

Serge-
Obviously I didn't read the question carefully either...OOps all around.

Jim-
to answer your question, not what I imagined....

Some of the mahoganies or walnut would be ok to work cross-grain, but I have enough trouble with the more exotic back woods that I've never thought of making say a RW backstrip. The softer woods sand so easily that it simplifies things. And, if you are a gram counter, I suppose softwood strips are lighter as well.

But, it would look sharp. Let us know how it goes!
John

Yes, I think maybe I wasn't very clear in my original post, sorry about that. The question does concern hardwood back strips, I'm glad people picked up on it, i.e. rosewood strip on a rosewood back. I just don't remember seeing this and was wondering if I was missing something obvious on why it shouldn't be done.
I also like the look of spruce or spanish cedar for back strips though.

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Jim Watts
http://jameswattsguitars.com

I just got an order from LMI and the spruce strips were too rough to use. So I cut off two strips off the back, glued one reinforcement strip to the back, and saved the other for another guitar.

I made it perfectly 3/4" wide on my router table. Then I ran it through twice again with a chamfer bit for a gorgeous very clean, no sanding finish. I'm throwing those other spruce ones in the trash. Looks like they were cut with a chainsaw there was so much tearout!

Jim,

They work fine - the cross grain patterns look funky. Here's an EIR one I did a year or two back:

_________________
Dave White
De Faoite Stringed Instruments
". . . the one thing a machine just can't do is give you character and personalities and sometimes that comes with flaws, but it always comes with humanity" Monty Don talking about hand weaving, "Mastercrafts", Weaving, BBC March 2010

What width do you guys make your re-enforcement strips?
I've learnt 6mm either side of the outermost joint (so if you've got a centre strip, they're a little wider) is what to shoot for.

Thoughts?