Spalted Mahogany?

[Murkar]

So this is the story...I found a fantastic price on some Mahogany. Beautiful wood when I got there, I paid $60 for enough mahogany to make probably four or five guitars. Not sure whether it is African or Cuban.

However, the guy who sold it to me said he had a 'strange piece' of mahogany that he would throw in for free. It was unusually light. It was rough cut and pretty tattered so I couldn't see any of the grain detail. I couldn't deny free mahogany, so I took it home and immediately put it through the planer to clean it up.

So this thing was a very nice block, looks cool - covered in spalt figure. Enough wood to build another two guitar bodies at least, maybe I can squeeze three if I do a three-piece body for the third. Has anyone ever seen this before?

And if yes, would you use it for a body? I can't see why not but I have never run across spalted mahogany before. It feels nice and light, and the spalt feels solid in many places (although some are a bit soft like spalted maple).

I would love to see more of this stuff if anybody has used something similar before, I googled it and came up with nothing.

 

[TKOjams]

I would love to see some pictures of said wood.

If you were building acoustic guitar bodies with it, I would say stay away from spalted wood. For an electric solid body guitar, I don't believe it's all that critical as long as it isn't too unstable or punky. It would look cool as hell.

 

[gator payne]

Spalt is caused by a fungus. this Fungus deteriates the cell structure in the affected areas making them soft due to loss of fiberious tissue. If you stop and think about it this means that the wood has become like sponge. Structurally week and major loss of density. Due to the loss of mass in the cell structure it now is a poor transmitter of energy as compaired to a health section of the same species. Frankly dispite the esthetic appearance I would never use Spalted mahogany because it goes aginst the very attributes tht i would chose mahogany for in the first place.

It is pretty rare to see spalted mahogany. The fungus involved is more typical in hardwoods of cold wet shady climates

 

[evolved_insanity]

Although I agree with most everything said by Gator, I would still use it as long as it is not punky. A few places purposely spalt maple and there is a point in time in which they can cut it without any structural compromise. I've never seen them do it to Mahogany on purpose though so definitely check it to make sure it isn't too soft. I too would love to see pics of this interesting wood.

 

[Murkar]

Hmm...I am debating whether or not to use it.

@Gator I definitely see what you mean; it is not at all like spalted maple or anything for the most part, however - there are a few spots where it is soft but those few spots are small enough to be well avoided when I cut. I don't think the majority of the stuff would require stabilizing or anything, most of it has remained pretty much the consistency of mahogany, but with visible spalt pattern (but a few small places are clearly too soft and would have to be cut off - these make up a vast minority of the board; it is not compromisingly soft and spongy like some spalt maple can be).

Overall though it doesn't feel so light that I would have noticed if there were not the comparison with the other boards. However I obviously don't want to make something that would not last or sound good here (although the overall contribution of the wood density and structure to tone in an electric guitar can be debated for hours on end).

Difficult decision. Maybe this would make a nicer guitar stand instead

Anyways, I'll have to think about this one for a bit. I'll post some pictures in a day or two when I can (my camera is not working right now).

 

[evolved_insanity]

If it's nicely spalted and not crazy punky, I have some nice caps I would be willing to maybe work out a trade on.

 

[Murkar]

Unfortunately only one side is pretty, I planed it a bit today to clean it up and some of the figure disappeared but here are some pics so you can decide for yourself how it looks

The other side would likely need to be covered with a cap of some sort. There are some pinholes and some spots that have holes about 1/8" to work around - well chosen placement could probably put them in the control cavity though

Front 1
Front 2
Front 3

I think by selecting the spots with the most spalt and making a joined body it could look pretty cool Drives me nuts...of course...it is less than one inch too narrow to make a one piece body.

Here is the side I would cover up.

back 1
back 2
back 3

Shoot me a PM if you still think it is worth the while for a trade

 

[evolved_insanity]

Well, its not for me, but its definitely useable. Put a nice cap on that and clear the back.

 

[Murkar]

I am thinking a cocobolo cap for this one but we will see what becomes of it. If it becomes a guitar I will post it!

 

[evolved_insanity]

There is some live edge Cocobolo at Exotic right now that is being sold for a decent price. I saw it last night and thought of bookmatched caps for flat tops.

 

[Murkar]

I found somebody sellign some for $10 bd/ft, unfortunately while I love the store it is a 1.5 hour drive :'(