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Any experience with Cuban Mahogany?
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Author:  Tim McKnight [ Fri Jan 14, 2005 3:41 pm ]
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I have a customer who is interested in Cuban Mahogany. Do any of you have any experience with it? Can you compare it's tonal characteristics to Honduras Mahogany? Any workability or finishing issues?

My research shows it is denser than HM so can I expect a darker tone than HM?

Do any of you have any sources for it? TIA...Tim McKnight38366.9875810185
Author:  Dickey [ Fri Jan 14, 2005 3:59 pm ]
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Check AC Woods OLF Sponsor Ed Dicks, see banner above. Ever bought from Timbre Tone Woods in British Vancouver, that's the same fella, new company. Also, I saw some talk on the current forum from a knowledgeable UK fellow talking mahoganii. type in the word cuban, you'll either get mahogany or cigars.
Author:  FrankC [ Fri Jan 14, 2005 3:59 pm ]
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Haven't worked with it but all the wood I purchased from them have been top notch.
Author:  Colin S [ Fri Jan 14, 2005 9:19 pm ]
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I use three different Swietenia species in my guitar making. The very best (in my humble opinion) is Cuban Mahogany Swietenia mahogani, the true "Genuine Mahogany". My tonewood supplier in England has stock which was imported from Jamaica in 1908 it's a truly beautiful wood with a Specific Gravity (SG) of 800Kg/m3 (0.80) ( the same as EIRW!) tight grained and easy to finish. His catalogue says of it "Those of us that have been able to work this timber regard it a measure to judge other woods by" and I have to agree. This is JAMAICAN wood so shouldn't be subject to US restrictions, so get your suppliers to look at the other Carribean Islands for supply. My choice for stiff stable necks as well.

The next best is the small leaved mahogany Swietenia microphylla ( also known confusingly as "Genuine Mahogany") it works well, bends well, and makes a great guitar. SG of 0.70.

Finally and only as a last resort I would use Honduran, Swietenia macrophylla, the large leaved mahogany (also confusingly known as Genuine mahogany) SG of 0.64.

For a truly great blues/fingerstyle guitar with that old mahogany growl you can't (again in my humble opinion) beat a Small-leaved (S.Microphylla) mahogany body & sides and European spruce top. Even tone, responsive, strong fundamentals, good separation, heaven!. S macrophylla is but a poor substitute.

Still it wouldn't do if we all agreed would it?

Above is a copy of a post I made earlier relating to Cuban Mahogany in answer to a question about "genuine mahogany" hope this helps. It is a remarkably good tone wood and has to be considerered the Rolls Royce of mahoganys
(especially if you can get near 100 year old stock!) It works a dream, finishes brilliantly and still has that mahogany growl but with a richer bass. Is it the perfect tonewood?

"knowledgable UK fellow" I'm flattered, but compared to you guys, no way!

Colin
Author:  John Kinnaird [ Fri Jan 14, 2005 11:53 pm ]
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I made one guitar with Cuban Mahogany. The guy I bought the wood from had it for years and it was very hard to get him to part with some. This stuff is darker than any other mahogany I have ever used. I will try to post a picture of the guitar. No stain used here, just natural color. It sounded darker, more rosewood like than most mahogs.

What the heck, here is the front too. Had a cedar top. Loved the sound.


Ok I am getting carried away I know but this is like one of my kids and you know how parents are about their kids pictures. Obnoxious as *#@0

John Kinnaird38367.3323958333
Author:  Bobc [ Sat Jan 15, 2005 2:16 am ]
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I agree on the cuban mahogany. supposed to be the very best. My understanding was that this was the would of choice for furniture and boat building in the 1700's and that the supply was depleted. So were is the new cuban coming from? Plantations? I'm going from memory so I could be all wet.
Author:  John How [ Sat Jan 15, 2005 3:15 am ]
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Very nice geetar John. I love the color of that wood.
Author:  Dave-SKG [ Sat Jan 15, 2005 7:33 am ]
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I once bought mahogany from a cuban...does that count? Kidding aside, I suppose current Cuban anything would be illegal wouldn't it?
Author:  Alan Carruth [ Sat Jan 15, 2005 12:57 pm ]
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My first 'serious' guitar was built of S. mahogani, but from Santo Domingo. It was quite a chore to bend, and not just because it was my first! The resulting guitar, a small classical, was worth it.

I have a small stock of Cuban wood, and have worked a little of it, although not into a guitar as yet. It is _full_ of silica, and simply eats up edge tools. Since those are mostly what I use....

That species grows all around the Carribean, and I'm told a lot of big trees came down in Florida in Hurricae Andrew. It was placed on the same CITES listing as BRW, at the same time, so you may need 'proof of purchase' for your stock.
Author:  Tim McKnight [ Sat Jan 15, 2005 2:06 pm ]
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I will continue my quest for Swietenia Mahogani and with some luck and trepidation I might get lucky.
Author:  Don Williams [ Sat Jan 15, 2005 3:20 pm ]
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There was a ton of it at my local Woodcraft a year or so ago, and I had no idea it was supposed to be such a great guitar wood, or I would have bought some....rats.
That said, I've always been told the "true" or "real" mahogany was Honduran, not Cuban. I was always told that Cuban was Cuban, and Honduran was "Genuine".

It doesn't really matter now, does it? Especially since in our lifetime it will all be almost impossible to get until they get growing more in plantations.
Author:  Colin S [ Sat Jan 15, 2005 9:25 pm ]
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I think the taxonomic name gives the clue as to which is the "genuine " mahogany! Swietenia mahogani was the first describe and named and thus becomes the "genuine" type plant. Honduran (S.macrophylla)and other members of the genus are just additonal named species. Mind you, if one of them had been studied and named first then that would become the "genuine" mahogany! It just goes to show that using common rather than scientific names can lead to confusion.

Because of this I wish that all suppliers of tonewoods would give the proper taxonomic name for the wood they supply. (mine in the UK does as does LMI) sometimes four or five different species have the same common name applied to them it so would mean that the buyer at least knows what they are getting.

ColinColin S38368.3210300926
Author:  Roy O [ Sun Jan 16, 2005 3:31 am ]
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A few months back I checked into the "Cuban Mahogany" that is available now. As near as I can tell the wood is the species "Swietenia Mahogoni" grown on plantations in Palau (quite a distance from the Carribean). I don't know how this compares with Cuba"s "Cuban Mahogany" but I doubt there are importation problems with wood from Palau as I believe we are on good diplomatic terms with that country.
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