Korina for acoustic ukulele

I have an instrument for sale in the market place which has caused some discussion for one reason and another. However a question about Korina arose and a reference pointed to an article about Gibson's use of this wood in the 70s.

I have several different boards of this stuff - some of it is over 30 years in storage and some is recently out of the kiln. First off, I would not compare it with mahogany since its working properties are different, or at least different in the pieces I have. Unlike mahogany, the stuff I have has a density similar to that of African cedar. Also the stuff I have is the 'spalted' kind, tho this term is the best one to apply to the 'black limba' description, it is not a spalting that causes rot or pockets of soft grain. When cut, it is very stable. I always resaw then leave on the bench the cut pile to see if it will cup - the top slice of any resawing usually does but this stuff remains flat. It does not have the coarse pore structure that you get with some mahoganies and when sanding produces a good surface quickly with quite 'chalky' dust. Grain filling is minimal. Unlike mahogany it bends very easily but again, like all wood, there are times when you need a back strap when hand bending. Acoustically, and as far as I am concerned, it is superior to mahogany. Like all woods you can get flame and really nice figure with the black line contrast. It's great for necks because of its stability but the one hue advantage it has over the traditional exotics is it is not yet on the CITES list! I pair this wood up with mgurure for fingerboards and bridges and hey presto, a uke with a full travel permit without the need for paperwork. What also makes this a special wood is its rarity. I just happened to stumble upon a source and you will see quite a few PHU tenors in this stuff come of my bench in the next year.

Cool! I always love learning about a "new" tonewood. I hope we get to see the 1st one soon. Maybe a build progress?

Thank you for that information, Pete. I've got a couple of pretty decent boards and am now encouraged to give them a try.

I used to know a girl named Korina ..But that was long ago Here is a little artical by Gibsons on the use of Korina'
http://www.gibson.com/News-Lifestyle/Features/en-us/korinawoodmakesgreatguitar.aspx

I just read that marketplace thread and who would have thought a for sale post could result in an argument. How do you manage it Pete?
Makes me laugh how some people think an instrument that doesn't have loads of added bling (shell etc) is somehow inferior.
I bet if you had put a rossette and a bit of binding on it and charged double they would not have commented on the price.
Guess it goes to show people buy with their eyes not their ears.

Andyk said:

I just read that marketplace thread and who would have thought a for sale post could result in an argument. How do you manage it Pete?
Makes me laugh how some people think an instrument that doesn't have loads of added bling (shell etc) is somehow inferior.
I bet if you had put a rossette and a bit of binding on it and charged double they would not have commented on the price.
Guess it goes to show people buy with their eyes not their ears.

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You know what makes me laugh ? Getting taunted but not being allowed to react. I would love to answer to your ignorant posting but I bet that Mr. Howlett doesn't want to see the discussion being continued in this thread.

Ukador said:

You know what makes me laugh ? Getting taunted but not being allowed to react. I would love to answer to your ignorant posting but I bet that Mr. Howlett doesn't want to see the discussion being continued in this thread.

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My apologies if the wording my posting offended you. I will refrain from posting anything more on this subject to avoid stoking the fire.

Just quite Ukador. You are embarrassing yourself. It was the moderator wwho called you out for your inappropriate post not me. I'very no interest in arguing with someone who clearly acting like a trolley is also grossly uninformed. You need to watch the interview I posted to get a clear idea of what the industry thinks of my work. You wanna fight? Go to some other playground....

For obvious reasons, I am closing this thread.