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I could easily see cherry becoming an extremely popular neck wood. Hasn't Seagull been using it for necks for a while already? I know they've used it for back and sides for many years.

The trouble with cherry is you never know when you'll uncover dark streaks and splotchy areas in it. Fine if it fits the aesthetic of your guitar, but not if you want a homogeneous appearance. But I do like it a lot. Cheap, easy to carve, and no pores.

I just looked at the offerings and hung my head down, darn that border.

I have used poplar, cherry, maple, spruce, fir, one dense interlocked waxy tropical wood that was a real pain to carve but came out nice. As long as the grain is straight I'll give it a try.

Honduran.
For a domestic, I like walnut, red maple or cherry. The occasional pitch pockets in cherry don't bother me. IMHO, it is part of the deal.

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John

FWIW, I'd advise a new person to make it easy on themselves and score a win rather than bog down with exotic woods and processes until they learn more. this is a pretty important point because I'm sure we've all seen a first time builder try to outdo Somogyi on their first and give up. it's always the new ones that make it so hard on themselves . knowing what I know now I'd advise a green to stick with the basic stuff. btw, i build light and small so it's cedro on necks for me with an occasional mahogany one.

IMO, for a proven basic guitar:

top:
plain jane sitka spruce.

back/sides:
mahogany, eir, walnut

neck:
mahogany, cedro

brace wood:
spruce (top & back) or mahogany (back)

kerfing:
mahogany or spruce -reverse with one edge rounded

blocks:
mahogany or cedro

fretboard:
eir

bridge:
eir

bridge plate:
eir or maple

headstock:
paddlehead

bindings:
wood (because i'm highly biased towards it)

fb inlays:
basic dots.

trussrod:
low profile double action. adjust through the soundhole.

finish:
something applied by hand.

frets:
nickel or evo

neck joint:
simple bolt-on (added per Ruby50)

etc:
tuners, nut and saddle material, pins, rosette -your call. FWIW, I find segmented rosettes easier than the typical Martin multi-ring thing -but that's just me

I have had good luck with both these woods as well. I recently made a 2 piece cherry neck-very nice and inexpensive.

Arie

You forgot neck joint. Let me suggest bolt-on with threaded inserts in the neck heel. I am on #8 and have done the last three with a single bolt, down low on the theory that the upper bolt area is in compression. I make my tenons 3/8" long as they are just there to register the neck location.

Ed

added. -thx!

I've been using a lot of cherry for necks of late. It's very much like Caribbean mahogany, but not nearly as expensive. It may also be a bit better than walnut, although I've used lots of that as well.

Since we are mentioning domestic alternatives for neck wood. . . in addition to walnut, cherry and maple, I'll mention American sycamore. I have not used this one for a neck yet but it is on my list. I had some correspondence with William Cumpiano who spoke very favorably of it as a neck wood. I'm just waiting for the right project to use it on.

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Bryan Bear PMoMC

Take care of your feet, and your feet will take care of you.

2 piece Birch with walnut stripe....






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Here’s a 2 piece cherry neck







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I love the cherry neck, it's a beautiful piece of wood.

I made some maple mandolin necks with the walnut stripe. I had trouble filling the pores for a gloss finish. I guess I'm going to have to up my game for my EIR dreadnaught I'm about to build.

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Hutch

Get the heck off the couch and go build a guitar!!!!

Experience with cherry neck...

viewtopic.php?f=10101&t=50259&p=662934&hilit=pocket#p662934

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

That is one gorgeous cherry neck!

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Peter Havriluk

It is fact, not just theory. IMHO, there is no need for a second bolt. Attaching the fingerboard is all you need to hold the upper part of the neck. When I did a few bolt-ons, I liked having the tenon because the extra wood is stronger, helping guard against a cracked heel. The other thing I did was to insert a 1/2" maple dowel vertically in the heel to reinforce it. I later learned that Collings does likewise.

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John

Common Name: Genuine Mahogany
Botanical Name: Swietenia macrophylla

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Beautiful and unusual tone woods at a reasonable price.
http://www.rctonewoods.com/RCT_Store
The Zootman
1109 Military Rd.
Kenmore, NY 14217
(716) 874-1498

Really lie the look of this! 2 piece? Bookmatched along the center seam? Need more info!

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Tony Thatcher
Bozeman, Montana

That little black sap,pocket beside the neck turns up a lot in cherry. People see it as a flaw. I've got a pike of cherry blanks with those spots I've been afraid to use...

Google cherry stain and click on images. You will find "cherry" is any color imaginable. If you stain cherry a dark red brown as it often is stained, the black spots will be less noticable.
Personally, few characteristic black spots lets me know it's the real thing and not some "fruitwood" dyed to resemble cherry. If you "sell" it to your customers that way they may not buy anything that doesn't have the black marks.

Yes, terrible. Anyone would think it was made of wood, shudder the thought!

It's much different when it's your living.

"It's much different when it's your living."

Very true. That is what often constrains a company's choices. Not only must a material be good quality and proven for the use, it must also be perceived as desirable by the buying public.
Dark red mahogany stain has been used by some manufacturers to add some color to otherwise bland mahogany guitars, and has been accepted by the buying public. You could do the same with cherry. If the dark marks really bother you , you could dig them out and fill the divot with bondo. Bondo takes stain beautifully and if you use the typical red cream hardener is almost a perfect match for cherry. A cherry neck on a cherry body shouldn't be too hard of a sell.
But you know your market better than I do, and if they demand a one piece genuine mahogany neck that may be what you need to make.

I'm told that the black sap stains are not considered a 'flaw' in cherry lumber, since they are so common, so long as they as small. I have gotten 'enriched' cherry that had shot in it at one time, with really large sap pockets. The lead dissolves fairly quickly in the tree, and I've never found any of the metal in a piece of cherry, but you can clearly see the tracks in the wood. Often this wood has an interesting characteristic figure that makes it worth using even with a few 'flaws'. I've never had trouble selling the guitars. I did have to reject a cherry neck once when I carved into a big sap pocket, though.

This Ed’s point, we as hobbyests, are fortunate enough to e able to assume more risk in materials. Part of the charm of cherry is the occasional black pocket. But that probably won’t play with most people in the market for a handmade guitar. Especially so when it is a “non traditional neck wood.” If you were working on a commission and the buyer was interested in and understanding of the look of cherry, it would be a different story than making a run of guitars to find buyers for.

People are slowly becoming more accepting of non-traditional back and sides, necks will likely follow. I’m just glad I don’t have to worry about pleasing the guitar playing public. My friends and family are just impressed when they are shiney and hold together no matter what they’re is made of

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Bryan Bear PMoMC

Take care of your feet, and your feet will take care of you.