Well, I never knew that...

The Big Kahuna

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sawn_wood1.jpg

Don't know where I came across it, but it illustrates something that I didn't know I didn't know that I probably should have known.
 
Also...

"Curly Koa" - is it from a certain part of the tree, is it a specific variety of Koa tree or is it just a "cut it open and see if we got lucky" type of grain ?
 
Thanks, I didn't know either! Can anyone say why builders build with quarter sawn wood?
 
According to the infallible Wikipedia,

"Quartersawn boards have two advantages: they are more resistant against warping with changes in moisture and, while shrinkage can occur, it is less troublesome.

In high-end string instruments, the neck and fretboards can be made from quartersawn wood since they must remain stable throughout the life of the instrument, to keep the tone as invariable as possible. In acoustic guitars, quartersawn wood is also often used for the sides which must be steam bent to produce compound curves. This is partly for structural reasons, but also for the aesthetics of highly figured timbers being highlighted when sawn this way. On high-end electric guitars and bass guitars quartersawn wood is often used as the base material for the neck of the guitar, since this makes for a stronger and straighter neck which aids tuning and setup stability. In acoustic guitars, quartersawn wood is often used, especially for the sides which must be steam bent to produce compound curves. This is partly for structural reasons, but also for the aesthetics of highly figured maples being highlighted when sawn this way.

The second advantage of quartersawn wood is the decorative pattern on the board, although this depends on the timber species. Flat sawn wood (especially oak) will often display a prominent wavy grain (sometimes called a cathedral-window pattern) caused by the saw cutting at a tangent to a growth ring; since in quartersawn wood the saw cuts across the growth rings, the visible grain is much straighter; it is this evenness of the grain that gives quartersawn wood its greater stability."

Makes sense.....
 
Good info, thanks for sharing
 
Nice Kahuna. man I didn't know you didn't know you didn't know that. Thanks for letting us know. Oh....and you need to get out more. :eek:ld:
 
So what's the difference between rift sawn and flat sawn? Is rift sawn just not the entire width of the log?
Look at the diagram again. Quarter sawn is cut into the quarter at a different angle than the rift sawn.
 
Rift is just a little of of quarter. the grain is not running at a perfect 90% .For great tops you want quarter sawn I will use some rift on neck wood but not more than 15% off 90
 
I once read an explanation of quarter sawn wood, but that nice graphic really makes it clear. Mahalo!
 
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