Tonewood Details: R-T
Begun as a private project, I was asked to make this available to others. For my own use, attribution was not a particular concern - which of course I regret now. If you see something you said or a photo or yours is in there, please first allow me the opportunity to properly credit it - or to remove it if you object.
Much of what has been said is highly subjective. We can post your experiences as well. My own are limited enough that they are best kept to myself. Two pieces of wood may exhibit very different characteristics; this is part of what makes wood so fascinating. And two luthiers may have differing opinions, based upon the wood they use, their techniques in handling it, and the level of their expertise. The more information that is gathered, the easier it will be to draw conclusions which help us all.
I have adopted a rating scale from the Elly Guitar site in which their ratings are given a numerical form of from 1 to 5. These numerical renditions of Highs ("H"), Mids ("M"), Bass ("B"), Sustain ("S"), Overtones ("O"), and Tone ("T") can give you a sense of the kind of sound which may be expected from any given wood. Remember, there is a vast amount of overlap and difference between each wood, each builder, and how they handle the woods. Like most everywhere here, we discuss in very broad generalities. You may wish to visit Elly Guitars and see for yourself their more graphical way of presenting this kind of material.
A click on each underlined wood takes you to a Sub-Page where photos are arranged alphabetically by wood.
Much of what has been said is highly subjective. We can post your experiences as well. My own are limited enough that they are best kept to myself. Two pieces of wood may exhibit very different characteristics; this is part of what makes wood so fascinating. And two luthiers may have differing opinions, based upon the wood they use, their techniques in handling it, and the level of their expertise. The more information that is gathered, the easier it will be to draw conclusions which help us all.
I have adopted a rating scale from the Elly Guitar site in which their ratings are given a numerical form of from 1 to 5. These numerical renditions of Highs ("H"), Mids ("M"), Bass ("B"), Sustain ("S"), Overtones ("O"), and Tone ("T") can give you a sense of the kind of sound which may be expected from any given wood. Remember, there is a vast amount of overlap and difference between each wood, each builder, and how they handle the woods. Like most everywhere here, we discuss in very broad generalities. You may wish to visit Elly Guitars and see for yourself their more graphical way of presenting this kind of material.
A click on each underlined wood takes you to a Sub-Page where photos are arranged alphabetically by wood.
Red Gum Euclyptus Eucalyptus camaldulensis Red River Gum
H=4.3, M=4.1, B=3.8, S=3.8, OP=2.5, T=2.8
Straight-grained with an occasional fiddleback figure, heavy, hard and lusterous.Tends to be bright though still balanced.
Red Heart - Erythhooxylon mexicanum Chakte Kok
Fine textured and dense Central American wood whose heartwood is quite red and, like other red woods will fade to the brown side if not treated properly. Both difficult to find and to dry, it is very similar in weight and texture to Maple. Expect a strong well balanced tap tone. Straight grained and fine textured, it will bend easily and finish nicely, a woodworker's dream to use. An oxidized brown surface will yield red once planed or sanded. It may be found figured, but this is far less common.
Weighs 31-40lb/ft3, Janka = 1210-1400
From Wood Database: "Color/Appearance: Aptly named, in some instances freshly surfaced Redheart can be a very bright, watermelon red—though color can vary in intensity and hue from board to board: anywhere from a light orange/pink, to a darker brownish red. In some cases, it can look quite similar to Bloodwood, though usually with a more visible and figured grain pattern. Redheart’s vibrant color quickly fades to a reddish brown in direct sunlight, though this color change can be slowed (but usually not stopped entirely) by using a finish with UV inhibitors, and keeping the wood away from strong lighting.
Grain/Texture: Grain is usually straight or irregular, with a fine, even texture. Low to medium natural luster.
Workability: Redheart has good working characteristics, and planes, machines, and sands well. Turns, glues, and finishes well, though a brown color shift is to be expected.
Odor: Redheart can have a distinct, rubber-like smell when being worked depending on species.
Sustainability: This wood species is not listed in the CITES Appendices or on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species."
Red Myrtle Nothofagus Cunninghamii, Myrtle Beech, Southern Beech, Tasmanian Tiger Myrtle
Tasmanian Red Myrtle is not technically a member of the Myrtle family. It exhibits deep rich colors of red, pink, and orange, occasionally with curly figuring. Tasmanian Red Myrtle is becoming a highly sought after tonewood for its wide tonal range and warm overtones. Myrtle is a striking wood with rich reds, browns and almost orange tones; the color is vibrant combining subtle variations in tone with the texture and sheen of wavy and fiddleback features to produce a surface alive with character and individuality. Myrtle produces beautiful Burl and is becoming a highly sought after tonewood for acoustic and solid body electric guitars. Bends well, easy to work, and finishes to a high luster, Robust tap tone. A slow growing tree reaching a maximum height of 30 or 40 meters, the Myrtle tree can live for five hundred years. Nothofagus cunninghamii, does not resemble the European Myrtle, and is not related. It became known as "Myrtle" only through common usage of the early lumbermen. Myrtle is a beautiful timber with deep rich colors of red, orange, brown and also pink. Myrtle produces beautiful burl wood and also Tiger Myrtle which is created by spalting. Tasmanian Tiger Myrtle and Red Myrtle are quickly becoming highly sought after tonewoods, noted for warm overtones and a wide tonal range. Tiger Myrtle is a superb tonewood.
*Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens, endl) H=3.7, M=3.5, B=4.5, S=3.7, OP=3, T=4
Another tonally superior wood from the coastal mountains of Northern California, the only significant alternative to cedar tops is redwood. Redwood has come into its own as a legitimate tonewood. It is richer in color than cedar with darker reds. Though similar tonally to cedar, some say redwood is more robust & brighter, especially in the upper mids, dry and clear with some warmth, with fine projection. Works well fingerpicked, but compresses some when strummed, more like Sitka Spruce. It splits and splinters more easily than Sitka and will dent more like cedar. In the hands of a less-skilled luthier, redwood can be over-edgy and somewhat harsh, with a ceiling to its sound. "Sinker" redwood (ie salvaged from sunken logs) can be striking in appearance due to mineral deposits, but may be tonally inconsistent.
Salvaged old growth Redwood can be found in burl, straight and curly grain. This beautiful tight grain wood provides the finest quality acoustic guitar soundboards, highly resonate solid bodies. Redwood has long been used for decking and other architectural features, and for fancy furniture when burled or figured. Redwood also makes very high quality acoustic guitar soundboards, highly resonate solid bodies, and stunning, intensely figured tops for electric guitars.
This is among the largest living organisms on the earth, often reaching a staggering 300 plus feet in height. It is extremely resilient to rot and infestation, so we are fortunate to be able to salvage very old stumps, (often 50 or more years old), and reclaimed beams, which still yield high quality monster curl and tight, straight grain old growth wood, without endangering the few remaining old growth groves.
The timber has a deep red hue with straight grain and can often have curly grain. Coastal Redwood is valued for its straight grained beauty, light weight, and resistance to decay. Due to old age and large size of the logs, tops can vary greatly from soft to very stiff and whilst the very best tops can display an exceptional stiffness to weight ratio, some can physically resemble cardboard. It is used for soundboards for guitars and the burls as top plates for electrics. Redwood is extremely light, but soft and brittle, so care must be used when working with Redwood. and stunning, intensely figured tops for electric guitars.
You could characterize the tone of Coastal redwood as being a crisper than Cedar with all the rich, complex overtones of cedar. Sinker redwood sounds like across between cypress and regular redwood. When the present supply of it is used, there will be no more due to changes in California environmental law. Use it with light gauge strings.
Noted luthier, Dana Bourgeois says: “Redwood is usually darker in color than cedar and often displays the same general tonal characteristics, leaning slightly toward darker tones, less definition in the bass, and lower velocity of sound.”
Michael Bashkin: “Assuming the quality of the redwood is good, it can have an excellent strength to weight ratio and longitudinal and cross grain stiffness. In fact I find the cross grain stiffness is stiffer than many other top woods. It works well but is prone to splitting along the grain which is a bit off a mystery to me as the woods exhibits a high degree of cross grain medullary rays, or cross-grain silk.”
Allan Carruth:" Both cedar and redwood have notably low damping, in general, and that gives the sound a lot of similarity. OTOH, all of the redwood I've gotten so far has been denser than the cedar I've used; much more in line with average Euro or Sitka spruce, while Cedar tends to be less dense. There's a lot of variation, of course, but, in general, a denser top tends to give more 'headroom', while a less dense one will tend to be more 'responsive'. The redwood I've used has also been harder, so it's less likely to dent. However, it splits about like Cedar. " James Goodall has been quoted as saying he did not like sinker redwood as he has found tonal responses all over the place, due to mineral deposits.
Redwood (Northern California) is more rich in the bass than cedar and responds to subtle playing with a round, piano-like crisp balanced sound. Lacquer and glue do not bond quite as well as the spruces. Because of this (as with Cedar), light gauge strings are recommended only on guitars with these tops. Many luthiers (i.e. Breedlove) get redwood from recycled lumber and timber salvage.
The janka of redwood is around 450 and it has a specific gravity of 0.45.
Rengas (Malanorrhoea Laccifera), Borneo Rosewood, Rengas Tiger Wood
Not a Rosewood at all, but could be called "rosewood-like", it has a deep red hue with darker streaks which all darken with age. The sapwood is pinkish to white. It is fine-grained and dense, with a glassy tap tone and a sustain which is loud and ringing. It may have a striking appearance. Like many woods, it's high silica content dulls tools quickly and contact with it can prove irritable to some. It finishes well. Janka scale position is 1720 and it is 48/lbft3. Grace Guitars has discovered that one can be highly allergic to the dust. You can guess how they learned that.
Requia (Guarea guidonea)
Requia is a light-reddish wood whose grain, figure, and weight is similar to Honduras (genuine) mahogany. Requia weighs 33 pounds per cubic foot (Honduras mahogany is 34 pounds per cubic foot) and Requia has similar working and tonal properties to that of Honduras Mahogany. The color is a bit lighter and slightly more reddish than its mahogany counterpart. While the weight and color of Requia is similar to Honduras mahogany, it appears to be a bit more rigid. Requia is ideal for backboards, rims, lining, as well as head- and tail-blocks. (from "Forgotten Woods")
33-34lb/ft3
Rosewood - all are in the Dalbergia genus, but much confusion exists in the common names. Even experts can get confused, and you know not all loggers have experts on their staff. Once the lumber has been cut, it becomes more difficult to determine exactly what species it is. Many luthiers rely upon the integrity of their supplier, who may in turn rely upon the integrity of their suppliers. And, being dalbergias, two different species may exhibit great similarities, with the individual piece of wood varying enough to obscure what we think are the differences between them. Honduras rosewood may grow in Guatemala and Guatemalan Rosewood may grow in Honduras. What I am doing is trying to explain why even expects may be confused. All told, there are more than 300 rosewood species.
This came from luthier Bruce Sexauer, someone I respect greatly: "Yes, there is a great deal of tonal difference between the Rosewoods, particularly on lighter builds." Some statistics from him:
1,270 kg/m3 - African Blackwood (Dalbergia melanoxylon)
1,200 kg/m3 - Kingwood (Dalbergia cearensis)
1,095 kg/m3 - Cocobolo (Dalbergia retusa)
1,085 kg/m3 - Amazon Rosewood (Dalbergia spruceana)
1,040 kg/m3 - Burmese Blackwood (Dalbergia cultrata)
1,035 kg/m3 - Siamese Rosewood (Dalbergia cochinchinensis)
1,020 kg/m3 - Honduran Rosewood (Dalbergia stevensonii)
970 kg/m3 - Tulipwood (Dalbergia cultrata)
940 kg/m3 - Burmese Rosewood (Dalbergia oliveri)
935 kg/m3 - Madagascar Rosewood (Dalbergia baronii, greveana, madagascariensis, monticola)
930 kg/m3 - Boise de Rose (Dalbergia maritima)
835 kg/m3 - Brazilian Rosewood (Dalbergia nigra)
830 kg/m3 - East Indian Rosewood (Dalbergia latifolia)
770 kg/m3 - Sissoo (Dalbergia sissoo)
745 kg/m3 - Panama Rosewood (Dalbergia tucarensis)
iim7V7IM7 said this about the confusion of species: There are at least 21 identified rosewood trees indigenous to Guatemala and 15 are not CITES listed. After spending a bit of time researching the historic botany papers underlying their identification, I think it is fair to say that it is one of the more inexact fields in science. To think that loggers and sawyers have botanists on site to differentiate between all of these species is an optimistic fantasy. The wood does need an official ID for purposes of an import license, CITES etc., but given the wide variety of figure, density and stiffness we see between sets all recently called "Guatemalan rosewood" or "D. tucarensis", I would submit that it is likely that they are different dalbergia. " For instance, tucarensis is regularly called both Panama and Guatemalan Rosewood.
Dalbergia agudeloi
Dalbegia calderonii
Dalbergia calycina - Appendix III
Dalbergia chongalensis
Dalbergia cubilquitzensis - Appendix III
Dalbergia cuscatlanica
Dalbergia ecastaphyllum
Dalbergia funera
Dalbergia glabra
Dalbergia glomerata - Appendix III
Dalbergia luteola
Dalbergia melenocardium
Dalbergia monetaria
Dalbergia retusa (Cocobolo) - Appendix II
Dalbergia Stevensonii (Honduran Rosewood) - Appendix II
Dalbergia tucarensis (Yucatan Rosewood) - Appendix III
Here's a surprising fact: As the world’s most trafficked wildlife product, rosewoods' value in trade is higher than elephant ivory, rhino horn and tiger parts combined.
Sacha (or Peruvian Rosewood) micrandra spruceana
Not a Rosewood at all despite that fact that some folks use that word for it. It's properties have more in common with koa, palo escrito, or mahogany. It's stiffness compares with koa, it's density with mahogany, and it's tone with Palo Escrito. Peruvians call it higuerilla negra. It is visually striking. Bruce Sexauer: "I have seen many sets, and they are pastel colors compared to most RW's, though there is a quality almost like landscaping which can be intriguing." Local name may be conoco, like the petroleum company.
See "Higuerilla" for more details and pictures.
Sandalwood
"Sandalwood is a class of woods from trees in the genus Santalum. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and, unlike many other aromatic woods, they retain their fragrance for decades. Sandalwood oil is extracted from the woods for use. Sandalwood is often cited as one of the most expensive woods in the world." (musicman 1951)
May have a rich well balanced tonal structure and absolutely gorgeous figuring. My guess is less than stunning on the figuring.
Sapele West Africa (Entandrophragma cylindricum) H=3.5, M=3.1, B=3.2, S=2.8, O=2.5, T=2.5
Tonally, this African wood is in the mahogany family and as such as acceptable to guitarists. Clear stock is more brittle than Central American mahogany and often darker in color, and the price is about the same. Kt iks a middle brown or reddish brown and darkens with age. Flatsawn sapele often displays a wild quilt.
Allan Corlew: "The two wood genera to which true/genuine mahogany belong are Swietenia and Khaya; however, Sapele belongs to the genus Entandrophragma. I think the reason people call Sapele 'mahogany is that but all three genera belong to the the broader family category of Meliaceae. As such, Sapele possesses many of the characteristics of a true mahogany, making it a useful substitute for mahogany. It is more readily available and about the same cost (and at tines less costly)."
This is the other alternative tonewood that joined the Taylor fold over a decade ago. It’s sometimes mistakenly referred to as African mahogany because it closely resembles the West African wood khaya, which is commercially known as African mahogany. Sapele is a highly sustainable, relatively fast-growing wood. Tonally, it does everything that mahogany does, with a little extra treblezing. We’ll be able to use it for a long, long time. Better-sounding than today's Honduran mahogany.
Goes well with everything. Like ovangkol, it’s a great all-purpose tonewood that will deliver a consistent, balanced tone in a variety of playing applications, from fingerstyle to strumming. Its high sustainability will appeal strongly to players who want a solid wood guitar with an especially environmentally friendly outlook.
Comments: Sapele is a member of the same family (Meliaceae) that includes mahogany. Sapele also shares the warm, rich, woody mahogany tone. Premium Sapele sets show a broad range of extraordinary figure that gives it a three-dimensional appearance. This includes quilted, pommele, fiddleback, striped, blistered,and wavy. Sapele has a lustrous appearance with shades of reddish brown. It isn't a “NEW” tonewood as it has been used for some time.
As traditional Honduran Mahogany rises in price and is nearing placement on the CITES treaty, instrument makers have been experimenting more and more with other variations of Mahogany. Sapele is an African mahogany that is beautiful, plentiful, and produces wonderful guitars. Tonally Sapele is very similar to Honduran Mahogany, but cosmetically it tends to exhibit more figure. Almost all Sapele exhibits strong "ribbon" figure that is much coveted, and for an additional charge sets exhibiting intense fiddleback or quilt patterns are available.
Specific gravity is 0.55, 42lb/ft3
Satinwood Chloroxylon swietenia Common Name(s): East Indian Satinwood, Ceylon Satinwood
Distribution: Central and southern India, and Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon)
Tree Size: 40-50 ft (12-15 m) tall, 1-1.5 ft (.3-.5 m) trunk diameter
Average Dried Weight: 61 lbs/ft3 (975 kg/m3)
Specific Gravity (Basic, 12% MC): .80, .98
Janka Hardness: 2,620 lbf (11,650 N)
As you can see the SG is right up there with the densest woods such as Honduran RW, African Blackwood, and of course the Ebonies so expect similar results. Quite dense and resonant. (Bob Cefalu)
Ceylon Satinwood has all the acoustic potential of the best rosewoods. It was the wood used on the finest French furniture in the 17th Century. Because of the high regard in which it was held, any light colored, yellow wood came to be called "satinwood," such as movingui, even though they are unrelated and very different. (Howard Klepper)
East Indian (Ceylon) Satinwood is a light colored hardwood with a beautiful mottled/striped figure, interlocking grain, and lusterous, chatoyance to its surface. The whole "hearing with your eyes" paradigm is a senseless, albeit a real market phenomenon.
Other lighter colored hardwoods such as cherry, maple, myrtle, oak, and pear are far less dense, stiff and glassy. Ceylon Satinwood is more like a dense, glassy rosewood in its physical properties. In the hands of a talented luthier will certainly result in fantastic guitar. It is one of the tonewoods in this enthusiast's opinion that has great potential. (iim7V7IM7)
Sequoia Sequoia giganteum
Not the same as it's better known relative, Redwood. This is the fat one, not the tall one - and is generally protected from harvesting. This wood has no major commercial uses as it is known to be extremely brittle - a tree falling down can shatter so much that there is nothing usable from it. Grain may be very tight and the sound lively. It is also known to be weak and to split and dent easily. However I have seen a top (paired with Claro Walnut) made from it that was absolutely stunning (see photo) both in coloration and in figure and it had an unique sound the seemed to lay between that of a resonator guitar and that of a normal acoustic. Interesting, huh? That particular wood was harvested legally from a tree whose center had rotted and had been filled with cement. Theoretically the chemicals created by the cement center gave it its amazing appearance and it's characteristic sound. Sequoia has not been used enough that I was unable to gather more information on it to see what normal wood would be like.
Shedua - see Ovankol
Combines the Rosewoods' warmth and depth with Maple's high end.
Shihuahuaco (Dipteryx micranta)
Shihuahuaco is one of the densest woods, weighing 57 pounds per cubic foot. It is a stiff hardwood with a beautiful image of light-tan fine-grain stripes that run parallel to the grain between stripes of an orange/brown speckley texture. The combination of Shihuahuaco’s density and stiffness should provide a bright and powerful tone when used for rims and backboards. This wood has similar acoustical properties, but a very different appearance from our Isigo and Pumaquiro. (from "Forgotten Woods")
57lb/ft3
Silver Acacia Acacia dealbata
Colonial Tonewoods: "Silver Acacia also known as Australian Silver Wattle or Blue Wattle occurs throughout Eucalyptas forests and woodlands in New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania. The heartwood is honey brown colored similar in appearance to its distant cousins acacia koa and acacia melanoxylon. It is straight grained with a porous even texture and often displays a distinctive fiddle-back figure on quartersawn surfaces. Silver wattle works well with machine or hand tools, has a medium weight and has excellent bending properties. It glues easily, accepts finishes readily and polishes to a smooth, lustrous surface. Luthiers describe the tone of Silver Wattle as well balanced with rich tones similar to that of Black Walnut, Honduran Mahogany and Indian Rosewood.
It has an average weight of 44 lbs. per cubic foot and a specific gravity of .66"
Silver Oak Grevillea robusta, Silky Oak, Lacewood
Variously known as Silver oak, Silk oak, and Lacewood, this beautiful wood is a native of Australia, but is now found throughout tropical and subtropical climates. Similar in density to Bigleaf maple, but easier to work, we've heard good things about this as a guitar wood. It is virtually identical to Sycamore in many characteristics, and that is a wood that we know has been used in guitar builds.
Grevillea Robusta is often referred to as Silky Oak or Silver Oak even though it is not part of the oak genus. It has its natural habitat in Australia, but has been introduced to subtropical regions around the world commencing in the mid to late 19th century and is widely planted in India, Sri Lanka, Central & South America and Africa.
Dubbed the most workable wood in the World in the 1800s, Silver Oak was originally from Australia. Now it grows in various other regions of the tropics to as far north as L.A. The dust from this wood is an irritant in 20% of the population. Beautiful pinks, reds, and golden tones combine with exceptional iridescent qualities to make this an excellent choice for instruments. Unique grain patterns with beautiful rays set this exotic hardwood apart from other woods. It is a relatively inexpensive choice, but is viewed by some Luthiers as preferable due to its great acoustical properties.
Jean Larrivee: “I find some people fall into the trap of "listening with their eyes" when it comes to evaluating esoteric tonewoods. If the color of the wood is light, some people prepare themselves to hear a colder sound ... if the color is dark they want to hear a warm sound. Don't fall into that trap with this Grevillea Robusta. If anything, it has a slightly more rounded attack transient, excellent bass/mid/treble balance and a very transparent midrange register. The overall sound seems to have a less aggressive edge with a few more delicate nuances ... very pleasing to the ear! “
Silver Spruce - look under Englemann Spruce
Sipo Entandrophragma utile
"Sipo is from the same family of Mahogany-like woods from Africa that includes Sapele. It is one of the most promising Mahogany substitutes for use as a neck wood and for electric blanks and it is already in common use by one of the larger high-end electric guitar makers. ... The color is a little richer than most Sapele and it is a bit more porous. (They may) show more dramatic ribbon figure than most common Sapele and feature a lively bees-wing figure also." (LMI)
Siris acacia
"Siris delivers excellent bass response reminiscent of East Indian rosewood, as well as a clear midrange and treble making it an excellent guitar wood for recording and for playing live. Lighter in color yet denser than rosewood, it produces a slightly longer sustain than rosewood. Siris is typically dark orange, contrasting beautifully with the Sitka Spruce tops, tortoise colored pickguards,and grained Ivoroid bindings."(from Martin Guitar) Tonewise, it seems to fit between mahogany and Rosewood. Good sustain. The trees are not large, perhaps not much more than glorified shrubs.
*Sitka Spruce NW North America (Coastal Rain forests of Alaska and Canada) (Picea Sitchensis)
H=3.5, M=3.2,B=4.5, S=3.5,O=3.2, T=4.2
Sitka spruce is the top wood standard of the modern era. It’s used on 85-90 percent of the guitars that Taylor makes. Its dynamic range is very broad, allowing for everything from aggressive strumming and flatpicking to fingerpicking. Sitka spruce is Bob Taylor’s personal favorite for an all-around great guitar.
Sitka spruce is creamy white with a pink tinge. It has long wood fibers, great resonance, dimensional stability and good gluing properties. These provide it with resilience and elasticity. Sitka spruce is stiff along and across the grain with a characteristically light weight. This creates a high velocity of sound. Sitka spruce has a strong fundamental tone with relatively few overtones. This leads to a direct, punchy tone with great headroom.
Sitka spruce has long been the staple choice for steel-string guitars made in the United States, though a handful of classical builders like it as well. It is well known for its pinkish-white color that tans nicely over the years. Sitka Spruce is an excellent choice for just about any steel-stringed flattop guitar. It is light, strong, and tends to be consistently stiffer than other varieties of spruce. In master grades the color and grain are very tight and even. Sitka is probably the most popular top selection, due to its availability and to the high yield from its characteristically large-diameter logs. Quartersawn Sitka is quite stiff along and across the grain; high stiffness, combined with the relatively light weight characteristics of most softwoods, is a recipe for high velocity of sound. A strong fundamental to overtone ratio gives Sitka a powerful, direct tone that is capable of retaining its clarity when played forcefully. Sitka Spruce (Northwest Canada & Alaska) Is the primary top wood for Martin Guitars. It provides consistent quality and straight uniform grain, longevity, and tensile strength. Tonally, it provides vibrant transmission of sound.
"Sitka Spruce is a well-rounded tonewood, one suited for many styles of playing. It’s known for its tight grain pattern and its high stiffness and relative lightness, translating to a broad dynamic range that stands up well when strummed heartily. At the same time, it’s also quite responsive to fingerpicking, though a light touch may result in a thin sound. Sitka tends to have stronger fundamentals than overtones, and this means that it can sound not quite as robust when played with the lightest touch." (Fellowship of Acoustics)
Dana Bourgeois wrote: “Sitka is an excellent choice of top wood, then, for players whose style demands a wide dynamic response and a robust, meaty tone. On the other side of the balance sheet, the lack of a strong overtone component can result in a “thin” tone when played with a relatively light touch-depending, of course, upon the design of the guitar and the other woods used in its construction. The break-in period for a new Sitka guitar can also be longer than that of other spruces.”
Bear Claw Sitka Spruce (Pacific Northwest) A variety of Sitka Spruce that looks like a bear has clawed across the grain of the wood. Highly appreciated for it's unique patterns.
It has a Janka rating of 510 and a specific gravity of 0.35
Ancient Glacial Sitka - Wood Knot: this sitka is "from a tree that was unearthed during the excavation of ASW's new production facility in Craig, Alaska. A sample of the tree was sent to a testing facility, and through radio carbon testing, it was determined that this tree was entombed during a landslide ~2850 years ago. The tree was ~250 years old when it died..... so this tree germinated and began its life on the Earth in 1100 BC." About the same wood, Symphontree says, "The tap tone of these tops can be quickly summarized as deep, resonant bass with a clear high finish. If you tap these tops and compare accordingly you will hear a deeper bass response immediately but in addition a very clearly defined upper range...To understand the coloring first we need to discuss glacier flour. Typically, rock or glacial flour is formed during glacial migration, where the glacier grinds against the sides and bottom of the rock beneath it. Glacial flour is also produced by freeze-and-thaw action, where the act of water freezing and expanding inside cracks helps break up rock formations. This flour is then deposited into the river systems and lakes. The result for the glacial-buried Spruce is a spectacular looking top with colors and figuring never seen before on any instrument."
Snakewood Brosimum guianense letterwood, lacewood, amourette Is it the same as Lacewood or Leopardwood? H=4, M=3.2, B=4.2, S=4, O=3, T=3
The difficult thing about this amazing tonewood is to decide whether it looks more like a Snake or a Leopard's skin. The grain is simply amazing. Tridimensional spots on all its surface that reflect the light differently according to the angle at which it is illuminated. Spectacular! 3-dimensional and the luster is high. The sound of Snakewood is in the same league as Brazilian rosewood, African Blackwood, Cocobolo. It produces extremely clear trebles and deep guttural basses. A top notch tonewood on all fronts. Good sustain and projection. Hard and strong wood. Heartwood is reddish brown with speckles of black appearing as hieroglyphics or snakeskin markings. Straight grain. Texture fine and even and the luster is high. Snakewood is brittle and splits easily. Very smooth when finished; has natural polish. Snakewood can be expensive. One reason is that far less of a log is usable than one might first expect. And not many logs are found that are large enough for backs. Normally, only the heartwood is used and it typically ranges between 4 and 7 inches in diameter.
Very clear trebles, deep and guttural basses, with projection and sustain.
Specific gravity is 0.82-1/3, 81lb/ft3, extremely heavy.
Sneezewood - Ptaeroxylon obliquum
"Sneezewood (Ptaeroxylon obliquum) from South Africa and Mozambique. The Chopi people use it to make their incredible Timbila xylophones. Sneezewood is a resinous timber containing Nieshoutol, an inflammatory agent that causes sneezing when worked. Baking Sneezewood blocks alters the composition of the wood, distributing the resin more evenly throughout, curing it, and making the wood harder and glassier. Mature stands of Sneezewood trees were almost wiped out by the Boers, who used them for fenceposts to enclose lands confiscated from the indigenous black natives. Since the end of apartheid, many of these fences have been ripped out, and Sneezewood is available as reclaimed wood, although it is forbidden to cut down standing trees. I have imported blocks of reclaimed Sneezewood from Hugh Tracey of African Musical Instruments (AMI), the only company licensed to export it. It is impressive wood!" (David Montara)
Mostly from the Wood Database:
Color/Appearance: Heartwood is medium red to dark reddish brown, aging to a more moderate golden brown. The lumber it yields has a heartwood which is generally comprised of light to medium golden brown hues (although the brownish hues can sometimes be dark, toward the tree’s center).
Grain/Texture: Grains are generally either straight or wavy, although they can be interlocked. A fine, uniform texture and good natural luster. However, the wood is strong, rot resistant, and is quite dimensionally stable with changes in humidity.
Rot Resistance: Rated as very durable; excellent insect and borer resistance. (Lumber is also reported to have good fire resistance.) It can outlast brass and iron when usead for bearings.
Workability: Tends to be difficult to work on account of its density and wavy grain. Turns well. Gluing can be problematic because of oils present in the wood. The wood is quite dense, which makes it somewhat difficult to work, but renders excellent dimensional stability when dried. It turns and finishes well, although gluing can be problematic, due to the natural oil content of the wood.
Odor: Has a distinct, highly irritating, but aromatic pepper-like smell.
Allergies/Toxicity: True to its name, sneezewood contains a special chemical compound called nieshoutol that has been shown to cause violent sneezing among workers processing the wood. Aptly named, sneezewood should be handled with care, and respiratory protection should be used to avoid violent sneezing attacks which the wood’s sawdust is known to cause. See Wood Allergies and Toxicity and Wood Dust Safety for more information.
Pricing/Availability: The wood is available within its natural range. However, because of the highly irritating nature of the wood’s sawdust, its commercial potential is severely capped.
Sustainability: This wood species is not listed in the CITES Appendices, and is reported by the IUCN as being a species of least concern.
There are some traditional medicinal uses and when burned, it has been compared to parafin. Its use as firewood and for fenceposts contributes greatly to it's scarcity today.
62.4 lb/ft3, Janka rating - 3080
** Southern Yellow Pine
Dave in Tejas built one and reported," The tone was not sophisticated either, but it was one of the loudest guitars that I ever built, it could literally hurt your ears." Marc Johnson owns one, "This guitar is not heavy in fact its substantially lighter than the Bocote/cedar guitar.... Not only is it a stellar looking instrument, its tone, and sustain are incredible." This was one of 8 or 9 that Aubade Acoustics made. He says, "they all are stable and sound great.... I can tell you it is hard as nails to bend. 350 degrees and twice in the blanket just to get it to hold a shape. " And Steve Kinnaird had this to say, "Lots of experience with the wood, and lots of appreciation for the tree. It is striking, and strong, but very heavy. It has a tendency to move, and in thin pieces grain orientation would be critical. I have often thought, that given a really fine piece, SYP would work nicely for back and side material. But for soundboards? I feel it is too dense." It has been used more often for solid-bodied guitars.
Janka scale is 870 for Longleaf Yellow Pine and 670 for the Loblolly and Short Leaf varieties.
Spanish Cedar Cedrela odorata H=3.7, M=3.5, B=3.6, S=4.6, O=3, T=2.3
Ranges from pinkish to a reddish-brown which will darken with oxidation to red brown or even a purplish tone. Fine texture, uniform grain, though denser, it's tone is similar to mahogany and produces a light and rich sound with outstanding sustain and resonance coupled with excellent balance. Candy-like fragrance.
**Spanish Cypress
An attractive, close grained blonde timber that is very light and which gives Flamenco Blanca guitars their characteristic brittle sound. They are light and give a clean and bright tone which is percussive, immediate, rich & earthy with immense character and faster attack. It was much used by early Spanish makers (including Torres) because it was an indigenous wood of low cost and ready availability. Can be used to make a surprisingly fine-sounding classical guitar too!
Striped Ebony New Guinea, Diospyros ebenum/crassiflora
Is exclusively government controlled, and is not an endangered species. Deeper and richer sounding than East Indian Rosewood, it is very similar to Brazilian rosewood for its reflective properties, and also has a high specific gravity. It has a striking, distinctive vertical stripe pattern, variegated dark brown, black and green. Macassar Ebony is also called Striped Ebony. Lines may swirl or be straight. Lighter lines could be sparse or may cover the entire piece as if it had a black background. There can be any number of variations of this. It works well and handles the same as black ebony.
Sweet Cherry Prunus avium H=4.2, M=3.7, B=4.1, S=4, O=2.6, T= 4.5
Darkening to a deep golden brown over time, it is light pink when cut, with a moderate to fine texture and a close straight or nearly straight grain. Tonally, it is light and warm with decent sustain, similar to the American Black Cherry. But not similar, the tone is brighter and more percussive. Articulate, good bass and mids.
Sycamore Plantanus occidentalis H=4, M=3.5, B=2.5, S=2.6, O=1.7, T=4
Quartered sycamore displays a prominent and striking pinkish/tan lace. The heartwood usually displays straight, even textured fine grain which is pale reddish brown. Interlocked grain, fine texture. When quarter sawn, possesses a distinctive fleck figure. It has good workability but may bind on saws and may display high shrinkage with warping tendency. Air drying takes long….and it is very stable in service once dry. There is much volumetric shrinkage and quartersawn is the most stable. It's low density makes it prone to denting. As a tonewood, it is moderately easy to work with and produces a striking guitar.
The sapwood of Sycamore is white to light yellow, while the heartwood is light to dark brown. It is classified as moderate in weight, hardness, stiffness, shock resistance, strength in bending, endwise compression and nail holding ability. It has a close texture, glues well and resists splitting due to interlocked grain. It holds its shape well after steaming and machines well, but requires high speed cutter heads to prevent chipping. It shrinks moderately in drying and is inclined to warp when flat sawn. It is odorless, stain free and tasteless. It has a close texture, glues well and resists splitting due to interlocked grain. It holds its shape well after steaming and machines well, but requires high speed cutter heads to prevent chipping.
Rick Davis of Running Dog guitars says: ”In density, stiffness and hardness, is closer to mahogany than to the maples. It can be as soft as cardboard, floppy and generally a terrible wood for anything other than pulp. Some trees seem to produce harder, denser wood and that’s the stuff for guitars. It may be somewhat tighter-grained, but grain alone isn’t indicative of the better wood. I can only say that I weigh each board (by hefting it, not quantitatively), knock on it, push a fingernail into the surface — generally get a feeling for the individual piece before purchasing it for guitars... Tonally I liken it to good mahogany: it’s more clean, trebly, and melodic than dark and complex. Projection is OK. The softer sycamore does not produce much volume and gets muddy; I avoid it. As with mahogany, I like to use it with Engelmann or European spruce rather than the denser spruces. I don’t think sycamore’s lightness of tone would couple well with, i.e., red spruce’s bassiness or with cedar’s or redwood’s darkness”.”
“Quartersawing is essential for the sycamore look: the rays and fleck only show up when the wood’s pretty well quartered. Some is reddish in color and, in limited experience, seems to be very dense and stiff. But the light colored wood can be equally stiff, too. Or not. Individual pieces have to be evaluated. It’s pretty easy to work. Sands and scrapes cleanly, bends well, is easy on edge tools. It is porous though so use excess glue and expect to add an extra coat or two of lacquer. I found that rewashing it was OK but it’s fibrous and tends to clog the lower guides.”
This wood is somewhere between mahogany and maple- good clean overtones like maple but with that punch and elasticity of mahogany. It would pay to protect yourself from breathing its dust.
Janka rating is 770, no CITES listing. Specific gravity is 0.46
Tambotie (Spirostachys africana) Tamboti / African Cocobolo, Sandalo, Mtomboti, Tambotie, Muconite, Sandalo africano and African Sandalwood
"As tonewood, it is a surprising one. Very powerful and good presence. Very good and defined basses, well defined midrange and well balanced high frequencies. Voices very clear and defined along the instrument. Can be matched with any type of top on Classical acoustic guitars. Used in fingerboards it has great to excellent tonal properties on fretless basses. Conclusion: it can be very versatile according to the set match, bright but perhaps harsh too; a crisp sound attenuator.
The grain is straight but often wavy with a very fine texture helping very much with the resonance and sustain overall. Can be sometimes difficult to saw due to the high density but it has good workability, glues and finishes extraordinarily well. It is very dense, stiff and very resistant with an average dried weight nearly of 60 lbs/ft3 or 955 kg/m3.
It grows in woodlands, in savanna forests and the coastal belt of the tropical zone, on poor and acidic soil, where the specie is often dominant. Is a medium sized deciduous tree with a straight, clear trunk. The tree reaches a height of 12 to 15 m. The bole is straight, fluted, up to 6 m in length. The trunk diameter is 40 to 80 cm.
The color of the heartwood is mainly golden brown with grayish red brown, with black marks spread all over the wood. Pale yellow sapwood sharply demarcated from heartwood. Usually has figured patterns." (Lagrima Tonewood). "The heartwood is brown to dark brown, with darker markings and streaks, clearly demarcated from the whitish to pale yellow sapwood. Its grains are usually straight to slightly wavy, with a fine, even texture. The wood has a beautiful banded figure and a satin-like lustre, with an oily surface. Known for its durability, dimensional stability and exceptional rot and insect resistance. Tamboti emits a fragrant, spicy smell when worked, and the smell can actually persist for years. Between the tree’s natural oils and latex production, resawing the wood tends to gum up saw blades. Difficulties aside, the wood turns and finishes well." (Rare Woods, SA)
Tamarac
Tamarac (Larch) is a conifer (but not an evergreen) which turns gold in the late Fall, then loses it's needles, looking dead until Spring. It is our last splash of Fall color. I have not seen it used for a top wood, but see no reason why, in the hands of a talented luthier, it would not work. The wood is strikingly colored, with reds mixing with the shades of yellow and brown that one associates with Southern Yellow Pine. With time, the reds merge into brown. It is soft, dents easily, and is easy to work, but care must be taken to work with the grain.
Tamarind Tamarindus Indica
Spalted Tamarind is a beautiful wood from Africa, India & Southeast Asia and is landed in South America as well. While primarily cultivated for its fruit, Tamarind is a dense wood. . Much comes from logs that were either found on the forest floor or were cut and then allowed to spalt in the damp and warm jungle conditions. The colors and various line patterns are truly unique from one piece to another. Truly striking, a mixture or lights and darks. The patterns are created as a result of insects, so you will find insect holes in any spalted wood. Wide boards are rare, despite the trunk dimensions of old trees, since they tend to become hollow-centered. The sapwood offers a beautiful platinum tone accented with dark streaks or ribbons of ashy gray marking, a pale-yellow. The heartwood is rather small, dark purplish-brown, very hard, heavy, strong, durable and insect-resistant. It bends well and takes a good polish. It is highly prized for furniture, paneling, and musical instruments. It has at times been sold as "Madeira mahogany". Tonal characteristics approach that of Indian Rosewood. Present bass, powerful, super vibrato on the upper strings. Use a good dust mask with any type of spalted wood when you work on it. Edwinson says it has a tap tone like "corregated cardboard", but is still tempted to build from it as it is so beautiful.
"I made a classical guitar with Tamarind back and sides, and it has lots of overtones, similar to what you would want to get out of a Rosewood guitar. But if you are working with Tamarind you have to be careful. I think the key to getting a Rosewood sound is getting a wood that is dense and hard. With Tamarind, almost all the Tamarind you find will be spalted, because of its beauty. So any Tamarind piece will have brown spots, which correspond to the wood itself and white spots, which correspond to the spalt. The brown wood is heavy and hard and quite difficult to cut through. The spalt is extremely soft and cuts almost like pudding. So if your Tamarind piece has higher white content, it'll probably be less Rosewood like, while if it has more brown content, it'll be more Rosewood like. "("koolimy", 8/16/23)
Tasmanian Blackwood Acacia melanoxion, Black Acacia
Superb species from Southern Australia. It ranks right up with African Blackwood, but is scarce and hard to come by. The looks and sound of Tasmanian Blackwood guitars are among the best that can be produced on a classical guitar. The grain varies between samples. Known for deep dark green patterns and a warm mellow tone. Sweet trebles, a pronounced midrange and a clear and warm and round bass, with good separation of voices. A faster attack than Rosewood. The grain varies quite a bit from one tree to the next but the sonorous properties are very consistent and always top of the line. Koa on sterioids. A bit denser and often lower dampening than Koa. Hard to bend.
Tasmanian Tiger Myrtle Nothofagus Cunninghamii H=4.1, M=3.5, B=4, S=3.8, O=3.8, T=3.8 (See also "Red Myrtle"
A slow growing tree reaching a maximum height of 30 or 40 meters, the Myrtle tree can live for five hundred years. It does not resemble the European Myrtle and is not related. Like red myrtle, it became known as "Myrtle" only through common usage of the early timbermen. Myrtle is a beautiful timber with deep rich colors of red, orange, brown and also pink. Myrtle produces beautiful burl wood and also Tiger Myrtle which is created by spalting. Both Tasmanian Tiger Myrtle and Red Myrtle are quickly becoming highly sought after tonewoods. Tiger Myrtle is a superb tonewood. Not only is the grain spectacular but the sound the instrument puts out is tremendous, producing a wide tonal range with big bass lines, clear trebles and a separation of voices worthy of the very best tonewoods. Does not need to have pores filled. Finishes with a high luster. The number of trees that produce this unique figure is confined to a very small area and occurs in a limited number of standing forests. Tasmanian myrtle is fine grained, even textured and works easily. It is a dense wood and tonally responsive; it has many of the same sonic properties as rosewoods. Tiger Myrtle has less sustain than Rosewood. In terms of dampening, it's somewhere between Rosewood and Mahogany but closer to Rosewood. You can expect a bright, responsive high end with a well defined low end.
Tiger Myrtle is a specific type of timber from within the myrtle species, which grows in the rain forests of Tasmania. In some myrtles a black heart staining produces a figuring, which is known as tiger myrtle because of its striking lined effect reminiscent of the stripes of a tiger. Sometimes the figuring takes a more dotted form like the spots of a leopard. The figuring also goes from light to dark, creating the appearance of a landscape, which can be quite spectacular.
Mangore: “Tasmanian Tiger Myrtle is without any doubt one of the best looking tonewoods on the planet and when it comes to sound, it ranks with THE VERY BEST ! The wood offers an array of color tones that you will not hear on any other tonewood and this makes her amazingly versatile and complete as a concert instrument. Each one of the sets I used to build turned into a top notch concert guitar. The grain and fibers of the wood are so compact that the sound bounces back at an excellent speed offering the punch and presence I have felt with each single set.
NA Cluth: "Tasmanian Myrtle would be most similar to Big Leaf Maple to my ear. Not as stiff as Oregon Myrtle but with some of the crispness of Mahogany. Anyone who knows how much we love maple would know this is a compliment. Warmth but not too reverb-y. It makes a fine guitar, but maybe not as “bright” as some might like."
Tigerwood
Not well known, it exhibits clear and crisp bass, great mids and "rampant" trebles. Striking mixture of brown to honey stripes.
Tigrillo (Amburana cearensis)
Tigrillo is considered to be a distant cousin of Ishpingo (Amburana cearensis), but while its basic coloration is very similar, its appearance is vastly different. Tigrillo is laden with a series of wispy dark-brown stripes that gives this wood a very interesting appearance. However, its 41 pounds per cubic foot weight is similar to Ishpingo and the similar coloration of these two woods makes them ideal partners to be used in combination for the same instrument, either as wedges for a backboard, or using one for rims and the other for backboards. Tigrillo is a rigid wood and imparts a rich clear tone. (from "Forgotten Woods")
(from LMI) "The allure of this wood is obvious – striking, sharp stripe patterns and rich gold color. What might not be apparent in photos is a uniquely three dimensional ribbon texture in the grain. The wood is porous but rigid..... Tonally, expect a clear, rich tone with the punchiness of good Mahogany."
"According to Pedro Rodríguez, Peru’s premier Cajón maker, the best wood he has ever used is Tigrillo (Tiger Stripe), which is not generally available in Lima." (David Montara)
41lb/ft3
Tornillo (Cedralinga catenaeformis)
Tornillo is a beautiful wood of a golden-tan color with a field of long shimmering stripes populated with thin dark-brown flecks. Tornillo is a very stiff wood and imparts a bright, clear tone when used for backboards and rims. It weights 42 pounds per cubic foot. Dark brown flecks are the results of open pores which have to be filled before the finish is applied. (from "Forgotten Woods")
42lb/ft3
Trembesi (see MonkeyPod)
The Javanese name for a huge tree (think the treehouse tree of the Swiss Family Robinson) found in many warm places throughout the world. Originally South American, it is now found throughout many Pacific countries. Known for a naturally warm sound, a bit punchy, and, though not related, can be a mahogany substitute. Somewhat higher high end response than mahogany.
Tulip Magnolia Lirodendron Tiulipfera (also called tulip poplar, yellow poplar)
Bruce Sexauer has used this paired with a catalpa top, talk about "outside the box"! It can exhibit some figure. Some say it is the greenish wood sold in the big box lumber stores as "poplar". It certainly shares characteristics if it isn't the same. It turns and bends well, sands smooth, stains well, and will quickly turn brown when exposed to sunlight. Sometimes it is spalted.
Tulipwood H=3.7, M=3.7, B=4.4, S=4, O=3.8, T=4
1)Dalbergia variabilis, Tulip poplar, yellow poplar - from N America
Tulip wood is botanically closely related to rosewood, but has a different appearance caused by its pink stripes and its overall lighter appearance, used for bindings. Tulipwood is a creamy white color and may be streaked with the heartwood varying from pale yellowish brown to olive green. The green color in the heartwood will tend to darken on exposure to light and turn brown. The wood has a medium fine texture and is straight grained with an appearance similar to that of Maple. A versatile timber that is easy to machine and plane. I have seen very eye-catching wood called "tulip" which displayed whites and red, next to each other.
2)Dalbergia decipularis, Tulipwood, Brazilian Tulipwood
Brazilian tulipwood is a different species from other common tulipwood. A classic high-quality and fragrant wood, it is very dense with a lovely figure. Cream colored with red or salmon stripes, and the texture varies from fine to coarse. Loud, warm and good separation of notes. Strong bass, rich overtones and a sustained resonance.
T'zalam (Lysiloma spp. - L. bahamense and L. latisiliquum) Caribbean Walnut, False Tamarind, Sabicu
(from the Wood Database) -
Color/Appearance: Heartwood light to medium brown, sometimes with a reddish or purplish hue. Darker brown streaks common. Thin sapwood is a pale grayish white, clearly demarcated from heartwood. Sometimes seen with curly grain patterns.
Grain/Texture: Straight grain with an open, uniform texture. Medium luster.
Workability: Overall working properties are good, though Tzalam may blunt tool edges faster than usual. Turns, glues, and finishes well. Able to take a high natural polish.
From Mexico and Central America, Tzalam has a Janka hardness rating of 1400. I have seen it used with great effect on an octave mandolin made by Joe Mendel. Savage Woods reports, "Sometimes compared to Hawaiian Koa, Tzalam has variegated heartwood consisting of medium and light brown colorations with sporadic hues ranging between orange, amber and red. Over time, these colors will mute down to a more subdued nature. Tzalam sapwood is a pale white, and exhibits a straight, open grain that can be lively at times. Tzalam readily takes a high polish and is considered an easy wood to work with....Tonal Qualities are reported to be good. In 1999 Martin Guitars released 30 Dreadnoughts utilizing Tzalam Back and Sides before tombstoning the effort due to production complications."
H=4.3, M=4.1, B=3.8, S=3.8, OP=2.5, T=2.8
Straight-grained with an occasional fiddleback figure, heavy, hard and lusterous.Tends to be bright though still balanced.
Red Heart - Erythhooxylon mexicanum Chakte Kok
Fine textured and dense Central American wood whose heartwood is quite red and, like other red woods will fade to the brown side if not treated properly. Both difficult to find and to dry, it is very similar in weight and texture to Maple. Expect a strong well balanced tap tone. Straight grained and fine textured, it will bend easily and finish nicely, a woodworker's dream to use. An oxidized brown surface will yield red once planed or sanded. It may be found figured, but this is far less common.
Weighs 31-40lb/ft3, Janka = 1210-1400
From Wood Database: "Color/Appearance: Aptly named, in some instances freshly surfaced Redheart can be a very bright, watermelon red—though color can vary in intensity and hue from board to board: anywhere from a light orange/pink, to a darker brownish red. In some cases, it can look quite similar to Bloodwood, though usually with a more visible and figured grain pattern. Redheart’s vibrant color quickly fades to a reddish brown in direct sunlight, though this color change can be slowed (but usually not stopped entirely) by using a finish with UV inhibitors, and keeping the wood away from strong lighting.
Grain/Texture: Grain is usually straight or irregular, with a fine, even texture. Low to medium natural luster.
Workability: Redheart has good working characteristics, and planes, machines, and sands well. Turns, glues, and finishes well, though a brown color shift is to be expected.
Odor: Redheart can have a distinct, rubber-like smell when being worked depending on species.
Sustainability: This wood species is not listed in the CITES Appendices or on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species."
Red Myrtle Nothofagus Cunninghamii, Myrtle Beech, Southern Beech, Tasmanian Tiger Myrtle
Tasmanian Red Myrtle is not technically a member of the Myrtle family. It exhibits deep rich colors of red, pink, and orange, occasionally with curly figuring. Tasmanian Red Myrtle is becoming a highly sought after tonewood for its wide tonal range and warm overtones. Myrtle is a striking wood with rich reds, browns and almost orange tones; the color is vibrant combining subtle variations in tone with the texture and sheen of wavy and fiddleback features to produce a surface alive with character and individuality. Myrtle produces beautiful Burl and is becoming a highly sought after tonewood for acoustic and solid body electric guitars. Bends well, easy to work, and finishes to a high luster, Robust tap tone. A slow growing tree reaching a maximum height of 30 or 40 meters, the Myrtle tree can live for five hundred years. Nothofagus cunninghamii, does not resemble the European Myrtle, and is not related. It became known as "Myrtle" only through common usage of the early lumbermen. Myrtle is a beautiful timber with deep rich colors of red, orange, brown and also pink. Myrtle produces beautiful burl wood and also Tiger Myrtle which is created by spalting. Tasmanian Tiger Myrtle and Red Myrtle are quickly becoming highly sought after tonewoods, noted for warm overtones and a wide tonal range. Tiger Myrtle is a superb tonewood.
*Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens, endl) H=3.7, M=3.5, B=4.5, S=3.7, OP=3, T=4
Another tonally superior wood from the coastal mountains of Northern California, the only significant alternative to cedar tops is redwood. Redwood has come into its own as a legitimate tonewood. It is richer in color than cedar with darker reds. Though similar tonally to cedar, some say redwood is more robust & brighter, especially in the upper mids, dry and clear with some warmth, with fine projection. Works well fingerpicked, but compresses some when strummed, more like Sitka Spruce. It splits and splinters more easily than Sitka and will dent more like cedar. In the hands of a less-skilled luthier, redwood can be over-edgy and somewhat harsh, with a ceiling to its sound. "Sinker" redwood (ie salvaged from sunken logs) can be striking in appearance due to mineral deposits, but may be tonally inconsistent.
Salvaged old growth Redwood can be found in burl, straight and curly grain. This beautiful tight grain wood provides the finest quality acoustic guitar soundboards, highly resonate solid bodies. Redwood has long been used for decking and other architectural features, and for fancy furniture when burled or figured. Redwood also makes very high quality acoustic guitar soundboards, highly resonate solid bodies, and stunning, intensely figured tops for electric guitars.
This is among the largest living organisms on the earth, often reaching a staggering 300 plus feet in height. It is extremely resilient to rot and infestation, so we are fortunate to be able to salvage very old stumps, (often 50 or more years old), and reclaimed beams, which still yield high quality monster curl and tight, straight grain old growth wood, without endangering the few remaining old growth groves.
The timber has a deep red hue with straight grain and can often have curly grain. Coastal Redwood is valued for its straight grained beauty, light weight, and resistance to decay. Due to old age and large size of the logs, tops can vary greatly from soft to very stiff and whilst the very best tops can display an exceptional stiffness to weight ratio, some can physically resemble cardboard. It is used for soundboards for guitars and the burls as top plates for electrics. Redwood is extremely light, but soft and brittle, so care must be used when working with Redwood. and stunning, intensely figured tops for electric guitars.
You could characterize the tone of Coastal redwood as being a crisper than Cedar with all the rich, complex overtones of cedar. Sinker redwood sounds like across between cypress and regular redwood. When the present supply of it is used, there will be no more due to changes in California environmental law. Use it with light gauge strings.
Noted luthier, Dana Bourgeois says: “Redwood is usually darker in color than cedar and often displays the same general tonal characteristics, leaning slightly toward darker tones, less definition in the bass, and lower velocity of sound.”
Michael Bashkin: “Assuming the quality of the redwood is good, it can have an excellent strength to weight ratio and longitudinal and cross grain stiffness. In fact I find the cross grain stiffness is stiffer than many other top woods. It works well but is prone to splitting along the grain which is a bit off a mystery to me as the woods exhibits a high degree of cross grain medullary rays, or cross-grain silk.”
Allan Carruth:" Both cedar and redwood have notably low damping, in general, and that gives the sound a lot of similarity. OTOH, all of the redwood I've gotten so far has been denser than the cedar I've used; much more in line with average Euro or Sitka spruce, while Cedar tends to be less dense. There's a lot of variation, of course, but, in general, a denser top tends to give more 'headroom', while a less dense one will tend to be more 'responsive'. The redwood I've used has also been harder, so it's less likely to dent. However, it splits about like Cedar. " James Goodall has been quoted as saying he did not like sinker redwood as he has found tonal responses all over the place, due to mineral deposits.
Redwood (Northern California) is more rich in the bass than cedar and responds to subtle playing with a round, piano-like crisp balanced sound. Lacquer and glue do not bond quite as well as the spruces. Because of this (as with Cedar), light gauge strings are recommended only on guitars with these tops. Many luthiers (i.e. Breedlove) get redwood from recycled lumber and timber salvage.
The janka of redwood is around 450 and it has a specific gravity of 0.45.
Rengas (Malanorrhoea Laccifera), Borneo Rosewood, Rengas Tiger Wood
Not a Rosewood at all, but could be called "rosewood-like", it has a deep red hue with darker streaks which all darken with age. The sapwood is pinkish to white. It is fine-grained and dense, with a glassy tap tone and a sustain which is loud and ringing. It may have a striking appearance. Like many woods, it's high silica content dulls tools quickly and contact with it can prove irritable to some. It finishes well. Janka scale position is 1720 and it is 48/lbft3. Grace Guitars has discovered that one can be highly allergic to the dust. You can guess how they learned that.
Requia (Guarea guidonea)
Requia is a light-reddish wood whose grain, figure, and weight is similar to Honduras (genuine) mahogany. Requia weighs 33 pounds per cubic foot (Honduras mahogany is 34 pounds per cubic foot) and Requia has similar working and tonal properties to that of Honduras Mahogany. The color is a bit lighter and slightly more reddish than its mahogany counterpart. While the weight and color of Requia is similar to Honduras mahogany, it appears to be a bit more rigid. Requia is ideal for backboards, rims, lining, as well as head- and tail-blocks. (from "Forgotten Woods")
33-34lb/ft3
Rosewood - all are in the Dalbergia genus, but much confusion exists in the common names. Even experts can get confused, and you know not all loggers have experts on their staff. Once the lumber has been cut, it becomes more difficult to determine exactly what species it is. Many luthiers rely upon the integrity of their supplier, who may in turn rely upon the integrity of their suppliers. And, being dalbergias, two different species may exhibit great similarities, with the individual piece of wood varying enough to obscure what we think are the differences between them. Honduras rosewood may grow in Guatemala and Guatemalan Rosewood may grow in Honduras. What I am doing is trying to explain why even expects may be confused. All told, there are more than 300 rosewood species.
This came from luthier Bruce Sexauer, someone I respect greatly: "Yes, there is a great deal of tonal difference between the Rosewoods, particularly on lighter builds." Some statistics from him:
1,270 kg/m3 - African Blackwood (Dalbergia melanoxylon)
1,200 kg/m3 - Kingwood (Dalbergia cearensis)
1,095 kg/m3 - Cocobolo (Dalbergia retusa)
1,085 kg/m3 - Amazon Rosewood (Dalbergia spruceana)
1,040 kg/m3 - Burmese Blackwood (Dalbergia cultrata)
1,035 kg/m3 - Siamese Rosewood (Dalbergia cochinchinensis)
1,020 kg/m3 - Honduran Rosewood (Dalbergia stevensonii)
970 kg/m3 - Tulipwood (Dalbergia cultrata)
940 kg/m3 - Burmese Rosewood (Dalbergia oliveri)
935 kg/m3 - Madagascar Rosewood (Dalbergia baronii, greveana, madagascariensis, monticola)
930 kg/m3 - Boise de Rose (Dalbergia maritima)
835 kg/m3 - Brazilian Rosewood (Dalbergia nigra)
830 kg/m3 - East Indian Rosewood (Dalbergia latifolia)
770 kg/m3 - Sissoo (Dalbergia sissoo)
745 kg/m3 - Panama Rosewood (Dalbergia tucarensis)
iim7V7IM7 said this about the confusion of species: There are at least 21 identified rosewood trees indigenous to Guatemala and 15 are not CITES listed. After spending a bit of time researching the historic botany papers underlying their identification, I think it is fair to say that it is one of the more inexact fields in science. To think that loggers and sawyers have botanists on site to differentiate between all of these species is an optimistic fantasy. The wood does need an official ID for purposes of an import license, CITES etc., but given the wide variety of figure, density and stiffness we see between sets all recently called "Guatemalan rosewood" or "D. tucarensis", I would submit that it is likely that they are different dalbergia. " For instance, tucarensis is regularly called both Panama and Guatemalan Rosewood.
Dalbergia agudeloi
Dalbegia calderonii
Dalbergia calycina - Appendix III
Dalbergia chongalensis
Dalbergia cubilquitzensis - Appendix III
Dalbergia cuscatlanica
Dalbergia ecastaphyllum
Dalbergia funera
Dalbergia glabra
Dalbergia glomerata - Appendix III
Dalbergia luteola
Dalbergia melenocardium
Dalbergia monetaria
Dalbergia retusa (Cocobolo) - Appendix II
Dalbergia Stevensonii (Honduran Rosewood) - Appendix II
Dalbergia tucarensis (Yucatan Rosewood) - Appendix III
Here's a surprising fact: As the world’s most trafficked wildlife product, rosewoods' value in trade is higher than elephant ivory, rhino horn and tiger parts combined.
Sacha (or Peruvian Rosewood) micrandra spruceana
Not a Rosewood at all despite that fact that some folks use that word for it. It's properties have more in common with koa, palo escrito, or mahogany. It's stiffness compares with koa, it's density with mahogany, and it's tone with Palo Escrito. Peruvians call it higuerilla negra. It is visually striking. Bruce Sexauer: "I have seen many sets, and they are pastel colors compared to most RW's, though there is a quality almost like landscaping which can be intriguing." Local name may be conoco, like the petroleum company.
See "Higuerilla" for more details and pictures.
Sandalwood
"Sandalwood is a class of woods from trees in the genus Santalum. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and, unlike many other aromatic woods, they retain their fragrance for decades. Sandalwood oil is extracted from the woods for use. Sandalwood is often cited as one of the most expensive woods in the world." (musicman 1951)
May have a rich well balanced tonal structure and absolutely gorgeous figuring. My guess is less than stunning on the figuring.
Sapele West Africa (Entandrophragma cylindricum) H=3.5, M=3.1, B=3.2, S=2.8, O=2.5, T=2.5
Tonally, this African wood is in the mahogany family and as such as acceptable to guitarists. Clear stock is more brittle than Central American mahogany and often darker in color, and the price is about the same. Kt iks a middle brown or reddish brown and darkens with age. Flatsawn sapele often displays a wild quilt.
Allan Corlew: "The two wood genera to which true/genuine mahogany belong are Swietenia and Khaya; however, Sapele belongs to the genus Entandrophragma. I think the reason people call Sapele 'mahogany is that but all three genera belong to the the broader family category of Meliaceae. As such, Sapele possesses many of the characteristics of a true mahogany, making it a useful substitute for mahogany. It is more readily available and about the same cost (and at tines less costly)."
This is the other alternative tonewood that joined the Taylor fold over a decade ago. It’s sometimes mistakenly referred to as African mahogany because it closely resembles the West African wood khaya, which is commercially known as African mahogany. Sapele is a highly sustainable, relatively fast-growing wood. Tonally, it does everything that mahogany does, with a little extra treblezing. We’ll be able to use it for a long, long time. Better-sounding than today's Honduran mahogany.
Goes well with everything. Like ovangkol, it’s a great all-purpose tonewood that will deliver a consistent, balanced tone in a variety of playing applications, from fingerstyle to strumming. Its high sustainability will appeal strongly to players who want a solid wood guitar with an especially environmentally friendly outlook.
Comments: Sapele is a member of the same family (Meliaceae) that includes mahogany. Sapele also shares the warm, rich, woody mahogany tone. Premium Sapele sets show a broad range of extraordinary figure that gives it a three-dimensional appearance. This includes quilted, pommele, fiddleback, striped, blistered,and wavy. Sapele has a lustrous appearance with shades of reddish brown. It isn't a “NEW” tonewood as it has been used for some time.
As traditional Honduran Mahogany rises in price and is nearing placement on the CITES treaty, instrument makers have been experimenting more and more with other variations of Mahogany. Sapele is an African mahogany that is beautiful, plentiful, and produces wonderful guitars. Tonally Sapele is very similar to Honduran Mahogany, but cosmetically it tends to exhibit more figure. Almost all Sapele exhibits strong "ribbon" figure that is much coveted, and for an additional charge sets exhibiting intense fiddleback or quilt patterns are available.
Specific gravity is 0.55, 42lb/ft3
Satinwood Chloroxylon swietenia Common Name(s): East Indian Satinwood, Ceylon Satinwood
Distribution: Central and southern India, and Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon)
Tree Size: 40-50 ft (12-15 m) tall, 1-1.5 ft (.3-.5 m) trunk diameter
Average Dried Weight: 61 lbs/ft3 (975 kg/m3)
Specific Gravity (Basic, 12% MC): .80, .98
Janka Hardness: 2,620 lbf (11,650 N)
As you can see the SG is right up there with the densest woods such as Honduran RW, African Blackwood, and of course the Ebonies so expect similar results. Quite dense and resonant. (Bob Cefalu)
Ceylon Satinwood has all the acoustic potential of the best rosewoods. It was the wood used on the finest French furniture in the 17th Century. Because of the high regard in which it was held, any light colored, yellow wood came to be called "satinwood," such as movingui, even though they are unrelated and very different. (Howard Klepper)
East Indian (Ceylon) Satinwood is a light colored hardwood with a beautiful mottled/striped figure, interlocking grain, and lusterous, chatoyance to its surface. The whole "hearing with your eyes" paradigm is a senseless, albeit a real market phenomenon.
Other lighter colored hardwoods such as cherry, maple, myrtle, oak, and pear are far less dense, stiff and glassy. Ceylon Satinwood is more like a dense, glassy rosewood in its physical properties. In the hands of a talented luthier will certainly result in fantastic guitar. It is one of the tonewoods in this enthusiast's opinion that has great potential. (iim7V7IM7)
Sequoia Sequoia giganteum
Not the same as it's better known relative, Redwood. This is the fat one, not the tall one - and is generally protected from harvesting. This wood has no major commercial uses as it is known to be extremely brittle - a tree falling down can shatter so much that there is nothing usable from it. Grain may be very tight and the sound lively. It is also known to be weak and to split and dent easily. However I have seen a top (paired with Claro Walnut) made from it that was absolutely stunning (see photo) both in coloration and in figure and it had an unique sound the seemed to lay between that of a resonator guitar and that of a normal acoustic. Interesting, huh? That particular wood was harvested legally from a tree whose center had rotted and had been filled with cement. Theoretically the chemicals created by the cement center gave it its amazing appearance and it's characteristic sound. Sequoia has not been used enough that I was unable to gather more information on it to see what normal wood would be like.
Shedua - see Ovankol
Combines the Rosewoods' warmth and depth with Maple's high end.
Shihuahuaco (Dipteryx micranta)
Shihuahuaco is one of the densest woods, weighing 57 pounds per cubic foot. It is a stiff hardwood with a beautiful image of light-tan fine-grain stripes that run parallel to the grain between stripes of an orange/brown speckley texture. The combination of Shihuahuaco’s density and stiffness should provide a bright and powerful tone when used for rims and backboards. This wood has similar acoustical properties, but a very different appearance from our Isigo and Pumaquiro. (from "Forgotten Woods")
57lb/ft3
Silver Acacia Acacia dealbata
Colonial Tonewoods: "Silver Acacia also known as Australian Silver Wattle or Blue Wattle occurs throughout Eucalyptas forests and woodlands in New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania. The heartwood is honey brown colored similar in appearance to its distant cousins acacia koa and acacia melanoxylon. It is straight grained with a porous even texture and often displays a distinctive fiddle-back figure on quartersawn surfaces. Silver wattle works well with machine or hand tools, has a medium weight and has excellent bending properties. It glues easily, accepts finishes readily and polishes to a smooth, lustrous surface. Luthiers describe the tone of Silver Wattle as well balanced with rich tones similar to that of Black Walnut, Honduran Mahogany and Indian Rosewood.
It has an average weight of 44 lbs. per cubic foot and a specific gravity of .66"
Silver Oak Grevillea robusta, Silky Oak, Lacewood
Variously known as Silver oak, Silk oak, and Lacewood, this beautiful wood is a native of Australia, but is now found throughout tropical and subtropical climates. Similar in density to Bigleaf maple, but easier to work, we've heard good things about this as a guitar wood. It is virtually identical to Sycamore in many characteristics, and that is a wood that we know has been used in guitar builds.
Grevillea Robusta is often referred to as Silky Oak or Silver Oak even though it is not part of the oak genus. It has its natural habitat in Australia, but has been introduced to subtropical regions around the world commencing in the mid to late 19th century and is widely planted in India, Sri Lanka, Central & South America and Africa.
Dubbed the most workable wood in the World in the 1800s, Silver Oak was originally from Australia. Now it grows in various other regions of the tropics to as far north as L.A. The dust from this wood is an irritant in 20% of the population. Beautiful pinks, reds, and golden tones combine with exceptional iridescent qualities to make this an excellent choice for instruments. Unique grain patterns with beautiful rays set this exotic hardwood apart from other woods. It is a relatively inexpensive choice, but is viewed by some Luthiers as preferable due to its great acoustical properties.
Jean Larrivee: “I find some people fall into the trap of "listening with their eyes" when it comes to evaluating esoteric tonewoods. If the color of the wood is light, some people prepare themselves to hear a colder sound ... if the color is dark they want to hear a warm sound. Don't fall into that trap with this Grevillea Robusta. If anything, it has a slightly more rounded attack transient, excellent bass/mid/treble balance and a very transparent midrange register. The overall sound seems to have a less aggressive edge with a few more delicate nuances ... very pleasing to the ear! “
Silver Spruce - look under Englemann Spruce
Sipo Entandrophragma utile
"Sipo is from the same family of Mahogany-like woods from Africa that includes Sapele. It is one of the most promising Mahogany substitutes for use as a neck wood and for electric blanks and it is already in common use by one of the larger high-end electric guitar makers. ... The color is a little richer than most Sapele and it is a bit more porous. (They may) show more dramatic ribbon figure than most common Sapele and feature a lively bees-wing figure also." (LMI)
Siris acacia
"Siris delivers excellent bass response reminiscent of East Indian rosewood, as well as a clear midrange and treble making it an excellent guitar wood for recording and for playing live. Lighter in color yet denser than rosewood, it produces a slightly longer sustain than rosewood. Siris is typically dark orange, contrasting beautifully with the Sitka Spruce tops, tortoise colored pickguards,and grained Ivoroid bindings."(from Martin Guitar) Tonewise, it seems to fit between mahogany and Rosewood. Good sustain. The trees are not large, perhaps not much more than glorified shrubs.
*Sitka Spruce NW North America (Coastal Rain forests of Alaska and Canada) (Picea Sitchensis)
H=3.5, M=3.2,B=4.5, S=3.5,O=3.2, T=4.2
Sitka spruce is the top wood standard of the modern era. It’s used on 85-90 percent of the guitars that Taylor makes. Its dynamic range is very broad, allowing for everything from aggressive strumming and flatpicking to fingerpicking. Sitka spruce is Bob Taylor’s personal favorite for an all-around great guitar.
Sitka spruce is creamy white with a pink tinge. It has long wood fibers, great resonance, dimensional stability and good gluing properties. These provide it with resilience and elasticity. Sitka spruce is stiff along and across the grain with a characteristically light weight. This creates a high velocity of sound. Sitka spruce has a strong fundamental tone with relatively few overtones. This leads to a direct, punchy tone with great headroom.
Sitka spruce has long been the staple choice for steel-string guitars made in the United States, though a handful of classical builders like it as well. It is well known for its pinkish-white color that tans nicely over the years. Sitka Spruce is an excellent choice for just about any steel-stringed flattop guitar. It is light, strong, and tends to be consistently stiffer than other varieties of spruce. In master grades the color and grain are very tight and even. Sitka is probably the most popular top selection, due to its availability and to the high yield from its characteristically large-diameter logs. Quartersawn Sitka is quite stiff along and across the grain; high stiffness, combined with the relatively light weight characteristics of most softwoods, is a recipe for high velocity of sound. A strong fundamental to overtone ratio gives Sitka a powerful, direct tone that is capable of retaining its clarity when played forcefully. Sitka Spruce (Northwest Canada & Alaska) Is the primary top wood for Martin Guitars. It provides consistent quality and straight uniform grain, longevity, and tensile strength. Tonally, it provides vibrant transmission of sound.
"Sitka Spruce is a well-rounded tonewood, one suited for many styles of playing. It’s known for its tight grain pattern and its high stiffness and relative lightness, translating to a broad dynamic range that stands up well when strummed heartily. At the same time, it’s also quite responsive to fingerpicking, though a light touch may result in a thin sound. Sitka tends to have stronger fundamentals than overtones, and this means that it can sound not quite as robust when played with the lightest touch." (Fellowship of Acoustics)
Dana Bourgeois wrote: “Sitka is an excellent choice of top wood, then, for players whose style demands a wide dynamic response and a robust, meaty tone. On the other side of the balance sheet, the lack of a strong overtone component can result in a “thin” tone when played with a relatively light touch-depending, of course, upon the design of the guitar and the other woods used in its construction. The break-in period for a new Sitka guitar can also be longer than that of other spruces.”
Bear Claw Sitka Spruce (Pacific Northwest) A variety of Sitka Spruce that looks like a bear has clawed across the grain of the wood. Highly appreciated for it's unique patterns.
It has a Janka rating of 510 and a specific gravity of 0.35
Ancient Glacial Sitka - Wood Knot: this sitka is "from a tree that was unearthed during the excavation of ASW's new production facility in Craig, Alaska. A sample of the tree was sent to a testing facility, and through radio carbon testing, it was determined that this tree was entombed during a landslide ~2850 years ago. The tree was ~250 years old when it died..... so this tree germinated and began its life on the Earth in 1100 BC." About the same wood, Symphontree says, "The tap tone of these tops can be quickly summarized as deep, resonant bass with a clear high finish. If you tap these tops and compare accordingly you will hear a deeper bass response immediately but in addition a very clearly defined upper range...To understand the coloring first we need to discuss glacier flour. Typically, rock or glacial flour is formed during glacial migration, where the glacier grinds against the sides and bottom of the rock beneath it. Glacial flour is also produced by freeze-and-thaw action, where the act of water freezing and expanding inside cracks helps break up rock formations. This flour is then deposited into the river systems and lakes. The result for the glacial-buried Spruce is a spectacular looking top with colors and figuring never seen before on any instrument."
Snakewood Brosimum guianense letterwood, lacewood, amourette Is it the same as Lacewood or Leopardwood? H=4, M=3.2, B=4.2, S=4, O=3, T=3
The difficult thing about this amazing tonewood is to decide whether it looks more like a Snake or a Leopard's skin. The grain is simply amazing. Tridimensional spots on all its surface that reflect the light differently according to the angle at which it is illuminated. Spectacular! 3-dimensional and the luster is high. The sound of Snakewood is in the same league as Brazilian rosewood, African Blackwood, Cocobolo. It produces extremely clear trebles and deep guttural basses. A top notch tonewood on all fronts. Good sustain and projection. Hard and strong wood. Heartwood is reddish brown with speckles of black appearing as hieroglyphics or snakeskin markings. Straight grain. Texture fine and even and the luster is high. Snakewood is brittle and splits easily. Very smooth when finished; has natural polish. Snakewood can be expensive. One reason is that far less of a log is usable than one might first expect. And not many logs are found that are large enough for backs. Normally, only the heartwood is used and it typically ranges between 4 and 7 inches in diameter.
Very clear trebles, deep and guttural basses, with projection and sustain.
Specific gravity is 0.82-1/3, 81lb/ft3, extremely heavy.
Sneezewood - Ptaeroxylon obliquum
"Sneezewood (Ptaeroxylon obliquum) from South Africa and Mozambique. The Chopi people use it to make their incredible Timbila xylophones. Sneezewood is a resinous timber containing Nieshoutol, an inflammatory agent that causes sneezing when worked. Baking Sneezewood blocks alters the composition of the wood, distributing the resin more evenly throughout, curing it, and making the wood harder and glassier. Mature stands of Sneezewood trees were almost wiped out by the Boers, who used them for fenceposts to enclose lands confiscated from the indigenous black natives. Since the end of apartheid, many of these fences have been ripped out, and Sneezewood is available as reclaimed wood, although it is forbidden to cut down standing trees. I have imported blocks of reclaimed Sneezewood from Hugh Tracey of African Musical Instruments (AMI), the only company licensed to export it. It is impressive wood!" (David Montara)
Mostly from the Wood Database:
Color/Appearance: Heartwood is medium red to dark reddish brown, aging to a more moderate golden brown. The lumber it yields has a heartwood which is generally comprised of light to medium golden brown hues (although the brownish hues can sometimes be dark, toward the tree’s center).
Grain/Texture: Grains are generally either straight or wavy, although they can be interlocked. A fine, uniform texture and good natural luster. However, the wood is strong, rot resistant, and is quite dimensionally stable with changes in humidity.
Rot Resistance: Rated as very durable; excellent insect and borer resistance. (Lumber is also reported to have good fire resistance.) It can outlast brass and iron when usead for bearings.
Workability: Tends to be difficult to work on account of its density and wavy grain. Turns well. Gluing can be problematic because of oils present in the wood. The wood is quite dense, which makes it somewhat difficult to work, but renders excellent dimensional stability when dried. It turns and finishes well, although gluing can be problematic, due to the natural oil content of the wood.
Odor: Has a distinct, highly irritating, but aromatic pepper-like smell.
Allergies/Toxicity: True to its name, sneezewood contains a special chemical compound called nieshoutol that has been shown to cause violent sneezing among workers processing the wood. Aptly named, sneezewood should be handled with care, and respiratory protection should be used to avoid violent sneezing attacks which the wood’s sawdust is known to cause. See Wood Allergies and Toxicity and Wood Dust Safety for more information.
Pricing/Availability: The wood is available within its natural range. However, because of the highly irritating nature of the wood’s sawdust, its commercial potential is severely capped.
Sustainability: This wood species is not listed in the CITES Appendices, and is reported by the IUCN as being a species of least concern.
There are some traditional medicinal uses and when burned, it has been compared to parafin. Its use as firewood and for fenceposts contributes greatly to it's scarcity today.
62.4 lb/ft3, Janka rating - 3080
** Southern Yellow Pine
Dave in Tejas built one and reported," The tone was not sophisticated either, but it was one of the loudest guitars that I ever built, it could literally hurt your ears." Marc Johnson owns one, "This guitar is not heavy in fact its substantially lighter than the Bocote/cedar guitar.... Not only is it a stellar looking instrument, its tone, and sustain are incredible." This was one of 8 or 9 that Aubade Acoustics made. He says, "they all are stable and sound great.... I can tell you it is hard as nails to bend. 350 degrees and twice in the blanket just to get it to hold a shape. " And Steve Kinnaird had this to say, "Lots of experience with the wood, and lots of appreciation for the tree. It is striking, and strong, but very heavy. It has a tendency to move, and in thin pieces grain orientation would be critical. I have often thought, that given a really fine piece, SYP would work nicely for back and side material. But for soundboards? I feel it is too dense." It has been used more often for solid-bodied guitars.
Janka scale is 870 for Longleaf Yellow Pine and 670 for the Loblolly and Short Leaf varieties.
Spanish Cedar Cedrela odorata H=3.7, M=3.5, B=3.6, S=4.6, O=3, T=2.3
Ranges from pinkish to a reddish-brown which will darken with oxidation to red brown or even a purplish tone. Fine texture, uniform grain, though denser, it's tone is similar to mahogany and produces a light and rich sound with outstanding sustain and resonance coupled with excellent balance. Candy-like fragrance.
**Spanish Cypress
An attractive, close grained blonde timber that is very light and which gives Flamenco Blanca guitars their characteristic brittle sound. They are light and give a clean and bright tone which is percussive, immediate, rich & earthy with immense character and faster attack. It was much used by early Spanish makers (including Torres) because it was an indigenous wood of low cost and ready availability. Can be used to make a surprisingly fine-sounding classical guitar too!
Striped Ebony New Guinea, Diospyros ebenum/crassiflora
Is exclusively government controlled, and is not an endangered species. Deeper and richer sounding than East Indian Rosewood, it is very similar to Brazilian rosewood for its reflective properties, and also has a high specific gravity. It has a striking, distinctive vertical stripe pattern, variegated dark brown, black and green. Macassar Ebony is also called Striped Ebony. Lines may swirl or be straight. Lighter lines could be sparse or may cover the entire piece as if it had a black background. There can be any number of variations of this. It works well and handles the same as black ebony.
Sweet Cherry Prunus avium H=4.2, M=3.7, B=4.1, S=4, O=2.6, T= 4.5
Darkening to a deep golden brown over time, it is light pink when cut, with a moderate to fine texture and a close straight or nearly straight grain. Tonally, it is light and warm with decent sustain, similar to the American Black Cherry. But not similar, the tone is brighter and more percussive. Articulate, good bass and mids.
Sycamore Plantanus occidentalis H=4, M=3.5, B=2.5, S=2.6, O=1.7, T=4
Quartered sycamore displays a prominent and striking pinkish/tan lace. The heartwood usually displays straight, even textured fine grain which is pale reddish brown. Interlocked grain, fine texture. When quarter sawn, possesses a distinctive fleck figure. It has good workability but may bind on saws and may display high shrinkage with warping tendency. Air drying takes long….and it is very stable in service once dry. There is much volumetric shrinkage and quartersawn is the most stable. It's low density makes it prone to denting. As a tonewood, it is moderately easy to work with and produces a striking guitar.
The sapwood of Sycamore is white to light yellow, while the heartwood is light to dark brown. It is classified as moderate in weight, hardness, stiffness, shock resistance, strength in bending, endwise compression and nail holding ability. It has a close texture, glues well and resists splitting due to interlocked grain. It holds its shape well after steaming and machines well, but requires high speed cutter heads to prevent chipping. It shrinks moderately in drying and is inclined to warp when flat sawn. It is odorless, stain free and tasteless. It has a close texture, glues well and resists splitting due to interlocked grain. It holds its shape well after steaming and machines well, but requires high speed cutter heads to prevent chipping.
Rick Davis of Running Dog guitars says: ”In density, stiffness and hardness, is closer to mahogany than to the maples. It can be as soft as cardboard, floppy and generally a terrible wood for anything other than pulp. Some trees seem to produce harder, denser wood and that’s the stuff for guitars. It may be somewhat tighter-grained, but grain alone isn’t indicative of the better wood. I can only say that I weigh each board (by hefting it, not quantitatively), knock on it, push a fingernail into the surface — generally get a feeling for the individual piece before purchasing it for guitars... Tonally I liken it to good mahogany: it’s more clean, trebly, and melodic than dark and complex. Projection is OK. The softer sycamore does not produce much volume and gets muddy; I avoid it. As with mahogany, I like to use it with Engelmann or European spruce rather than the denser spruces. I don’t think sycamore’s lightness of tone would couple well with, i.e., red spruce’s bassiness or with cedar’s or redwood’s darkness”.”
“Quartersawing is essential for the sycamore look: the rays and fleck only show up when the wood’s pretty well quartered. Some is reddish in color and, in limited experience, seems to be very dense and stiff. But the light colored wood can be equally stiff, too. Or not. Individual pieces have to be evaluated. It’s pretty easy to work. Sands and scrapes cleanly, bends well, is easy on edge tools. It is porous though so use excess glue and expect to add an extra coat or two of lacquer. I found that rewashing it was OK but it’s fibrous and tends to clog the lower guides.”
This wood is somewhere between mahogany and maple- good clean overtones like maple but with that punch and elasticity of mahogany. It would pay to protect yourself from breathing its dust.
Janka rating is 770, no CITES listing. Specific gravity is 0.46
Tambotie (Spirostachys africana) Tamboti / African Cocobolo, Sandalo, Mtomboti, Tambotie, Muconite, Sandalo africano and African Sandalwood
"As tonewood, it is a surprising one. Very powerful and good presence. Very good and defined basses, well defined midrange and well balanced high frequencies. Voices very clear and defined along the instrument. Can be matched with any type of top on Classical acoustic guitars. Used in fingerboards it has great to excellent tonal properties on fretless basses. Conclusion: it can be very versatile according to the set match, bright but perhaps harsh too; a crisp sound attenuator.
The grain is straight but often wavy with a very fine texture helping very much with the resonance and sustain overall. Can be sometimes difficult to saw due to the high density but it has good workability, glues and finishes extraordinarily well. It is very dense, stiff and very resistant with an average dried weight nearly of 60 lbs/ft3 or 955 kg/m3.
It grows in woodlands, in savanna forests and the coastal belt of the tropical zone, on poor and acidic soil, where the specie is often dominant. Is a medium sized deciduous tree with a straight, clear trunk. The tree reaches a height of 12 to 15 m. The bole is straight, fluted, up to 6 m in length. The trunk diameter is 40 to 80 cm.
The color of the heartwood is mainly golden brown with grayish red brown, with black marks spread all over the wood. Pale yellow sapwood sharply demarcated from heartwood. Usually has figured patterns." (Lagrima Tonewood). "The heartwood is brown to dark brown, with darker markings and streaks, clearly demarcated from the whitish to pale yellow sapwood. Its grains are usually straight to slightly wavy, with a fine, even texture. The wood has a beautiful banded figure and a satin-like lustre, with an oily surface. Known for its durability, dimensional stability and exceptional rot and insect resistance. Tamboti emits a fragrant, spicy smell when worked, and the smell can actually persist for years. Between the tree’s natural oils and latex production, resawing the wood tends to gum up saw blades. Difficulties aside, the wood turns and finishes well." (Rare Woods, SA)
Tamarac
Tamarac (Larch) is a conifer (but not an evergreen) which turns gold in the late Fall, then loses it's needles, looking dead until Spring. It is our last splash of Fall color. I have not seen it used for a top wood, but see no reason why, in the hands of a talented luthier, it would not work. The wood is strikingly colored, with reds mixing with the shades of yellow and brown that one associates with Southern Yellow Pine. With time, the reds merge into brown. It is soft, dents easily, and is easy to work, but care must be taken to work with the grain.
Tamarind Tamarindus Indica
Spalted Tamarind is a beautiful wood from Africa, India & Southeast Asia and is landed in South America as well. While primarily cultivated for its fruit, Tamarind is a dense wood. . Much comes from logs that were either found on the forest floor or were cut and then allowed to spalt in the damp and warm jungle conditions. The colors and various line patterns are truly unique from one piece to another. Truly striking, a mixture or lights and darks. The patterns are created as a result of insects, so you will find insect holes in any spalted wood. Wide boards are rare, despite the trunk dimensions of old trees, since they tend to become hollow-centered. The sapwood offers a beautiful platinum tone accented with dark streaks or ribbons of ashy gray marking, a pale-yellow. The heartwood is rather small, dark purplish-brown, very hard, heavy, strong, durable and insect-resistant. It bends well and takes a good polish. It is highly prized for furniture, paneling, and musical instruments. It has at times been sold as "Madeira mahogany". Tonal characteristics approach that of Indian Rosewood. Present bass, powerful, super vibrato on the upper strings. Use a good dust mask with any type of spalted wood when you work on it. Edwinson says it has a tap tone like "corregated cardboard", but is still tempted to build from it as it is so beautiful.
"I made a classical guitar with Tamarind back and sides, and it has lots of overtones, similar to what you would want to get out of a Rosewood guitar. But if you are working with Tamarind you have to be careful. I think the key to getting a Rosewood sound is getting a wood that is dense and hard. With Tamarind, almost all the Tamarind you find will be spalted, because of its beauty. So any Tamarind piece will have brown spots, which correspond to the wood itself and white spots, which correspond to the spalt. The brown wood is heavy and hard and quite difficult to cut through. The spalt is extremely soft and cuts almost like pudding. So if your Tamarind piece has higher white content, it'll probably be less Rosewood like, while if it has more brown content, it'll be more Rosewood like. "("koolimy", 8/16/23)
Tasmanian Blackwood Acacia melanoxion, Black Acacia
Superb species from Southern Australia. It ranks right up with African Blackwood, but is scarce and hard to come by. The looks and sound of Tasmanian Blackwood guitars are among the best that can be produced on a classical guitar. The grain varies between samples. Known for deep dark green patterns and a warm mellow tone. Sweet trebles, a pronounced midrange and a clear and warm and round bass, with good separation of voices. A faster attack than Rosewood. The grain varies quite a bit from one tree to the next but the sonorous properties are very consistent and always top of the line. Koa on sterioids. A bit denser and often lower dampening than Koa. Hard to bend.
Tasmanian Tiger Myrtle Nothofagus Cunninghamii H=4.1, M=3.5, B=4, S=3.8, O=3.8, T=3.8 (See also "Red Myrtle"
A slow growing tree reaching a maximum height of 30 or 40 meters, the Myrtle tree can live for five hundred years. It does not resemble the European Myrtle and is not related. Like red myrtle, it became known as "Myrtle" only through common usage of the early timbermen. Myrtle is a beautiful timber with deep rich colors of red, orange, brown and also pink. Myrtle produces beautiful burl wood and also Tiger Myrtle which is created by spalting. Both Tasmanian Tiger Myrtle and Red Myrtle are quickly becoming highly sought after tonewoods. Tiger Myrtle is a superb tonewood. Not only is the grain spectacular but the sound the instrument puts out is tremendous, producing a wide tonal range with big bass lines, clear trebles and a separation of voices worthy of the very best tonewoods. Does not need to have pores filled. Finishes with a high luster. The number of trees that produce this unique figure is confined to a very small area and occurs in a limited number of standing forests. Tasmanian myrtle is fine grained, even textured and works easily. It is a dense wood and tonally responsive; it has many of the same sonic properties as rosewoods. Tiger Myrtle has less sustain than Rosewood. In terms of dampening, it's somewhere between Rosewood and Mahogany but closer to Rosewood. You can expect a bright, responsive high end with a well defined low end.
Tiger Myrtle is a specific type of timber from within the myrtle species, which grows in the rain forests of Tasmania. In some myrtles a black heart staining produces a figuring, which is known as tiger myrtle because of its striking lined effect reminiscent of the stripes of a tiger. Sometimes the figuring takes a more dotted form like the spots of a leopard. The figuring also goes from light to dark, creating the appearance of a landscape, which can be quite spectacular.
Mangore: “Tasmanian Tiger Myrtle is without any doubt one of the best looking tonewoods on the planet and when it comes to sound, it ranks with THE VERY BEST ! The wood offers an array of color tones that you will not hear on any other tonewood and this makes her amazingly versatile and complete as a concert instrument. Each one of the sets I used to build turned into a top notch concert guitar. The grain and fibers of the wood are so compact that the sound bounces back at an excellent speed offering the punch and presence I have felt with each single set.
NA Cluth: "Tasmanian Myrtle would be most similar to Big Leaf Maple to my ear. Not as stiff as Oregon Myrtle but with some of the crispness of Mahogany. Anyone who knows how much we love maple would know this is a compliment. Warmth but not too reverb-y. It makes a fine guitar, but maybe not as “bright” as some might like."
Tigerwood
Not well known, it exhibits clear and crisp bass, great mids and "rampant" trebles. Striking mixture of brown to honey stripes.
Tigrillo (Amburana cearensis)
Tigrillo is considered to be a distant cousin of Ishpingo (Amburana cearensis), but while its basic coloration is very similar, its appearance is vastly different. Tigrillo is laden with a series of wispy dark-brown stripes that gives this wood a very interesting appearance. However, its 41 pounds per cubic foot weight is similar to Ishpingo and the similar coloration of these two woods makes them ideal partners to be used in combination for the same instrument, either as wedges for a backboard, or using one for rims and the other for backboards. Tigrillo is a rigid wood and imparts a rich clear tone. (from "Forgotten Woods")
(from LMI) "The allure of this wood is obvious – striking, sharp stripe patterns and rich gold color. What might not be apparent in photos is a uniquely three dimensional ribbon texture in the grain. The wood is porous but rigid..... Tonally, expect a clear, rich tone with the punchiness of good Mahogany."
"According to Pedro Rodríguez, Peru’s premier Cajón maker, the best wood he has ever used is Tigrillo (Tiger Stripe), which is not generally available in Lima." (David Montara)
41lb/ft3
Tornillo (Cedralinga catenaeformis)
Tornillo is a beautiful wood of a golden-tan color with a field of long shimmering stripes populated with thin dark-brown flecks. Tornillo is a very stiff wood and imparts a bright, clear tone when used for backboards and rims. It weights 42 pounds per cubic foot. Dark brown flecks are the results of open pores which have to be filled before the finish is applied. (from "Forgotten Woods")
42lb/ft3
Trembesi (see MonkeyPod)
The Javanese name for a huge tree (think the treehouse tree of the Swiss Family Robinson) found in many warm places throughout the world. Originally South American, it is now found throughout many Pacific countries. Known for a naturally warm sound, a bit punchy, and, though not related, can be a mahogany substitute. Somewhat higher high end response than mahogany.
Tulip Magnolia Lirodendron Tiulipfera (also called tulip poplar, yellow poplar)
Bruce Sexauer has used this paired with a catalpa top, talk about "outside the box"! It can exhibit some figure. Some say it is the greenish wood sold in the big box lumber stores as "poplar". It certainly shares characteristics if it isn't the same. It turns and bends well, sands smooth, stains well, and will quickly turn brown when exposed to sunlight. Sometimes it is spalted.
Tulipwood H=3.7, M=3.7, B=4.4, S=4, O=3.8, T=4
1)Dalbergia variabilis, Tulip poplar, yellow poplar - from N America
Tulip wood is botanically closely related to rosewood, but has a different appearance caused by its pink stripes and its overall lighter appearance, used for bindings. Tulipwood is a creamy white color and may be streaked with the heartwood varying from pale yellowish brown to olive green. The green color in the heartwood will tend to darken on exposure to light and turn brown. The wood has a medium fine texture and is straight grained with an appearance similar to that of Maple. A versatile timber that is easy to machine and plane. I have seen very eye-catching wood called "tulip" which displayed whites and red, next to each other.
2)Dalbergia decipularis, Tulipwood, Brazilian Tulipwood
Brazilian tulipwood is a different species from other common tulipwood. A classic high-quality and fragrant wood, it is very dense with a lovely figure. Cream colored with red or salmon stripes, and the texture varies from fine to coarse. Loud, warm and good separation of notes. Strong bass, rich overtones and a sustained resonance.
T'zalam (Lysiloma spp. - L. bahamense and L. latisiliquum) Caribbean Walnut, False Tamarind, Sabicu
(from the Wood Database) -
Color/Appearance: Heartwood light to medium brown, sometimes with a reddish or purplish hue. Darker brown streaks common. Thin sapwood is a pale grayish white, clearly demarcated from heartwood. Sometimes seen with curly grain patterns.
Grain/Texture: Straight grain with an open, uniform texture. Medium luster.
Workability: Overall working properties are good, though Tzalam may blunt tool edges faster than usual. Turns, glues, and finishes well. Able to take a high natural polish.
From Mexico and Central America, Tzalam has a Janka hardness rating of 1400. I have seen it used with great effect on an octave mandolin made by Joe Mendel. Savage Woods reports, "Sometimes compared to Hawaiian Koa, Tzalam has variegated heartwood consisting of medium and light brown colorations with sporadic hues ranging between orange, amber and red. Over time, these colors will mute down to a more subdued nature. Tzalam sapwood is a pale white, and exhibits a straight, open grain that can be lively at times. Tzalam readily takes a high polish and is considered an easy wood to work with....Tonal Qualities are reported to be good. In 1999 Martin Guitars released 30 Dreadnoughts utilizing Tzalam Back and Sides before tombstoning the effort due to production complications."
Go to Woods: U - Z
