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I usually consider purple heart kinda garish and hadn't considered using it. I don't necessarily stick with traditional designs though, and usually like a little flair in my builds. But, I saw these two boards at Woodcraft and they were very cheap and beautiful with a lot of curl. I paid around $6 for the long one and $8 for the other. The long one is suitable for binding and the other for additional uses. I'm even wondering if I could potentially use some for a fingerboard and bridge. Maybe I should use it for some other woodworking project other than a guitar.... Has anyone used purple heart and what do you think of it?

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Steve Sollod (pronounced sorta like "Solid")
www.swiftcreekguitars.com

It's certainly hard enough for a fretboard and I can't imagine it's any heavier than ebony. It's easy enough to toss a blank on a scale to compare the two. As for the aesthetic consideration.. It's not really my cup a meat.

Best, M

I've used it in laminated necks. I don't see why it wouldn't work as a fretboard and bridge.

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A man hears what he wants to hear, and disreguards the rest. Paul Simon

The purple color changes to brown after a while, which is either a plus or a negative depending on how you feel about purple wood.

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Tim Allen
"Never hurry, never rest."

It is very strident... I did see a lute where the builder had used purpleheart for the pegs which looked very smart. I guess you would have to think through the whole decorative scheme to make it work.

You'll have to show us the result if you decide to go with it.


Dave

I bought a 1"x 6" x 8' about 5 yrs. ago and have made several fretboards and bridges. It will turn a more rosewood look after a while. I think it will come back to the brighter color if put in the sun, but I'm not willing to experiment on that one.

Some purple heart turns brown fairly quickly , and some seems to stay purple fairly well. You might want to hang on to it for awhile to see which you have. I built a dresser where most of the wood stayed purple, except -part- of one board on the top. The wood all looked uniformly purple initially (after milling and having the purple color appear).
I've built dulcimers with it and they stayed purple.

I like it a lot for binding. Very hard, and nice hue contrast with most other woods. It bends surprisingly easily considering how dense and stiff it is. But you do have to get it bent just right since it won't flex at all to squeeze out gaps.

It's certainly hard enough for fingerboards, but I don't like the look. Back/sides would probably look good with a burst finish, though. Neck too, perhaps (headstock and heel shaded mostly black, with purple inbetween). But it would be a bit heavy.

Wasn’t there a guitar posted on there that was recently done w Purple Heart back and sides? I can’t remember the builder... but I thought it looked SLICK


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I have lots of customers who love it as back and side sets. I have built a couple guitars with it and personally love purpleheart. I am building a pair of matching guitars for my daughters with sets similar to this one. I have a nice stock of figured back and side sets like this for sale.

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Guitar Maker and Purveyor of the World's Finest Tonewoods
http://www.aaronhixguitars.com/
http://stores.ebay.com/A-Hix-Tonewood-a ... r-Supplies

I, personally love purple heart but have never been able to come to terms with the color it turns after oxidizing. It really seems not only to lose it’s fabulous purple color but also it’s beautiful figure seems to drown in a mash of fairly unattractive brown. I would pick from a plethora of woods available that will add a real zing and not degrade over time. Think yellow heart, blood wood, the rose woods etc.
Just my own thoughts.

I built an Irish Bouzouki around eight years ago using purpleheart but never got round to putting any finish on it. It is still purple. These photos were taken at around 4 years old.

I find Purple Heart to be very hard on edge tools. I like using it for bridge plates, because it is so dense. I have some sitting on a shelf in the shop for 10-12 years and it is still the same purple color as the day I got it.

Bob