Posted on June 13, 2024May 15, 2025 by Dale Phillips Kiaat and Tambotie Kiaat and Tambotie by Ron Bushman Originally published in American Lutherie #90, 2007 During a trip to South Africa in 2002, I was fortunate to spend some time with Rodney Stedall, president of the Guild of South African Luthiers. Rodney gave generously of his time and took me to a local lumber dealer where we climbed atop huge stacks of indigenous woods. I selected several planks of kiaat and tambotie which he helped me prepare to carry back to California. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of the Articles Online featured on our website for Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 3 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. MEMBERS: login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on June 13, 2024May 15, 2025 by Dale Phillips Kiaat Kiaat by Rodney Stedall Originally published in American Lutherie #90, 2007 Kiaat (Pterocarpus angiolensisis) is found in south-central Africa. It is from the same family as padauk (Pterocarpus soyauxii) which is known to be a good tonewood with sound properties somewhere between Brazilian and Indian rosewood according to the LMI catalog. It does not have as intense a red coloring as padauk but varies in color from a pale uniform brown to having irregular reddish/orange streaks and occasional flame. It has a fairly large percentage of oatmeal-colored sapwood of an inferior quality. This is generally eliminated when building guitars. Grain can be quite variable, from wavy to straight. It has excellent drying properties and dry weight is about 640KG/M3. Its strength is generally about 30% lower than padauk. It cuts, sands, and bends easily. It is moderately porous and takes any finish or polish well. Kiaat is freely available in lumberyards in South Africa but it is very seldom quartersawn and of the necessary guitar back dimensions as is required for guitar making. Luthiers spend hours searching through piles of wood stock to find suitable size, grain, and cut. The sap of the kiaat tree has cultural and medicinal significance. The red sap is mixed with fat and used as red face paint in tribal rituals. It has been believed to have magical healing powers especially concerning blood disorders as well as other medicinal uses. ◆ Seeking lutherie wood in southern Africa. Camel thorn trees in Botswana. Both photos courtesy of Mervyn Davis. Crossing the Zambezi River.
Posted on June 6, 2024May 23, 2025 by Dale Phillips Questions: North American Wood Questions: North American Wood by Mark French, Ned Steinberger, and Alan Carruth Originally published in American Lutherie #94, 2008 See also, Questions: Nontropical Fingerboard Materials by Tom Theil Larry L. from the Internet asks: I’ve noticed that my choices in materials have evolved over the years to favor wood from North America. At this point I’d like to take the final step and eliminate all tropical hardwood. The two fingerboard materials that make the most sense to me are phenolic impregnated paper or cloth (Garolite, Micarta) and phenolic impregnated wood (Dymondwood, Pakkawood, Staminawood). I think I understand issues with machining these materials and fret installation, but I wonder how differential expansion/contraction with changes in humidity will affect the stability of necks with wood shafts and fingerboards made of these materials. Does anyone have experience here? Mark French from West Lafayette, Indiana responds: Any time you have differential expansion of two materials that are bonded, you have the possibility of large deformations. For example, one type of thermometer works by having a coiled bimetallic strip inside. When the temperature changes, the end of the coil moves a needle. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on June 6, 2024May 14, 2025 by Dale Phillips Opinion Opinion by Harry Fleishman Originally published in American Lutherie #74, 2003 As a builder of many years experience, I have my own methods and views. I try to teach, but more important, I try to learn. We each have our own approach and I’d never want to censor anyone’s right to spread their ideas. At this point in my career it is clear that some ideas may seem wrong, but only seem so because of my own limitations. That said, I do feel a need to respond to a recent article that purports to tell ``the truth,’’ exposing other views as false. John Calkin’s article “The Heretic’s Guide to Alternative Lutherie Woods” in AL#69 offers some very useful information about the working properties of a good assortment of materials. I appreciate the info and will refer to it as I build and teach. However, I think he does a disservice to many luthiers who have worked hard to train their ears and to understand tone. Yes, as John says, “Guitars sound like guitars.” They do not all sound alike, though, as he implies throughout the article. He asserts that, “The concept of tonewood is a hoax.” Then am I a charlatan? I teach that each tonewood has its own qualities that have small but discernible affects on the voice of a guitar. He asks, “Can you tell what a guitar is made of while listening to an unfamiliar recording?” and answers that no one can. Well, I often can. On more than one occasion I have correctly identified the woods used in guitars that I had not seen and was unfamiliar with. On many occasions I have even identified the luthiers who built guitars, based on listening to recordings and recognizing their “voice.” I’d be surprised if many well-trained, thoughtful, and sensitive luthiers cannot do the same. John should not assume that just because he cannot hear these subtleties, no one can. Many people are colorblind, but that does not negate the difference between red and green. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on June 6, 2024May 19, 2025 by Dale Phillips Letter: Poplar in Dan Electro Necks Letter: Poplar in Dan Electro Necks by Ron Lira Originally published in American Lutherie #20, 1989 Dear Guild Staff, I’m still alive and working too hard and reading your magazine! I believe there is an error in the identification of the wood used in Danelectro necks and current production solid body electric guitars in Bruce Harvie’s “Stalking Northwest Tonewoods” in AL#18. Lombardy Poplar (Populus nigra) is a member of the cottonwood family in which many members and their lumber are called poplar. The poplar used in the Danelectros and currently in use in many factories is yellow poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera.) The cottonwood family of woods has a rancid smell when being worked, mostly all cream colored to white wood, and warps and checks horribly in drying. (I know, I’ve cut and dried some cottonwood and Lombardy poplar.) The yellow poplar has a mostly cream to gray colored sapwood with a green tinted heartwood. It works easily, dries easily, has a pleasant smell, is inexpensive to buy, available in wide and long pieces and makes an ideal paint grade wood. I’ve seen it in Danelectro necks, Jackson electrics, Fender electrics (inexpensive old ones and any of the newer domestic and imported), Charvel electrics, and many imported instruments both high and low quality. Various types of cottonwood trees including aspens grow over much of the US. Yellow poplar grows only in the eastern half of the US with its most commercial areas in the east. Thank you ◆ Editor’s Note: Bruce Harvie agrees, the wood used in the Danelectro necks is yellow poplar. However, it is Lombardy poplar that he wants for fiddle making. He also mentions that Danelectro necks break very easily, and that he wishes to purchase some. Got any, Ron? The yellow poplar in question is the wood of the tulip tree, an enormous thing with distinctive four-lobed leaves, which happens to be the state tree of Indiana. Don’t confuse it with the magnolia tree, whose flowers closely resemble tulips.
