is white ash a good wood for neck making?

Hi all

I have been given some Ash wood from which i hope to make a good neck.

Is it hard to carve/work with?

It feels a very heavy and solid wood with nice grain.

Cheers

Simon

I am in the process of making my next banjo uke and am using American Ash for the neck and for the end cap on the rim, it is pretty easy to carve and so far looks like it might
turn out quite nicely.
Regards
Dennis
New Zealand

Yep. White ash is a very good banjo uke neck material. Some call the grain "open" like oak, but I think that's a bit of an exaggeration - if your finished neck had to feel like glass, then you might want to use a pore filler before it's all said and done.

It machines well, is pleasant to carve, and usually has a super straight grain.

Hey, 10,000 wooden baseball bats can't be wrong!

Oh yeah, it also glues well. Stains well too.

If its heavy it may be OK for a banjo neck, but I wouldn't use it. There are many other woods that are easy to get that will work better. Mahogany, maple and even walnut are better. Look around, how many banjo necks do you see made of white ash? Don't forget to add the graphite truss rods for stability.