Official Luthiers Forum!

Hi,

I went a little crazy buying back and side sets wanting to have a nice variety and find the supplier who has the right balance of selection, quality, price, shipping costs, duty, etc. 

I picked up a set of figured Jarrah, pick below, and just wondering what other wood I could expect it to compare to, how it is to bend and a recommended bending temperature?  I am curious if this is a good beginners wood or if it should go to the bottom of the pile for later?  BTW - the supplier (who is a luthier) hadn't built with it so he couldn't speak from experience. 

Thanks,

Laurie

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Time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time.

I've built with "regular" Jarrah. It has a roey, interlocking grain structure that is not the easiest to bend. Thin the sides to .080" or so for better bending and use a fair amount of moisture to steam all the way through the wood. A side bending machine is a definite asset here.
It is a moderately dense wood as you probably can tell by the weight of the set. Tone qualities, at least with what I built with, were a bit above the walnut/koa range...more like a low end rosewood.
Given the grain structure, and the fact that your sets have some REALLY NICE figure, I'd put it away for a while, let it (and your chops) age a bit and try it after you have some more mileage/experience. It's too nice a set to suddenly require that you learn how to make a floretine cutaway, too!

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Hank Mauel

Hey Laurie,
Nice looking zoot you have there, I really like the figure and color. Yeah you should definitely tell us where you found it...

I'm a beginner as well but I have to encourage you to get a set of "practice" or "opportunity grade" sides to bend if you can. A lot of the suppliers here sell something along those lines. Check StewMac. I got some mahogany and did a few practice runs which helped me get the feel of it.

Let us know how your progress is coming.

Christian

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Time is a great teacher, but unfortunately it kills all its pupils - Louis Hector Berlioz

Chansen / C hansen / C. Hansen / Christian Hansen - not a handle.

Christian

Thanks for the replies....

The luthier is Darren Hippner - a classical builder in Washington.  He sells on Ebay as "drviscuseater", but you need to contact him to get to the good stuff!  He has beautiful cocobolo that is just out of my skill level, besides the fact I don't need any more wood....

Just google hippner guitars for his homepage....I trust he won't mind selling a few more sets...

Laurie

 

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Time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time.