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Very informative post, Stuart. You answered a number of questions I had about that style of CF reinforcement. I still have remaining questions but you've given me a lot to think about. Maybe I could give you a call sometime?



You can tell a woman, "When I look at you, time stands still." or you can say, "You have a face that could stop a clock." Both are nearly identical but I think you'll find that one response is well-received and the other, not so much To be specific, I believe you're coming across as a bit dismissive. To be fair, it is incredibly easy to come across that way in writing form, especially when you are well-versed on a subject (which you clearly are). I've spoken to you on the phone many years ago and you didn't strike me as that type of person; hence, the comment about "vibes". I've written stuff before and later gone back to edit because it didn't come across the way I wanted. So that's all I meant -- didn't want to make a big deal about it. And if you disagree, then that is fine.

And just to clarify, my questions were genuine questions - not at all meant to be an attack on your approach. I think what you are doing is interesting and may be a direction that I'd like to move in.

My only response could be that your are reacting to how I deliver what I deliver. I'm a blunt guy and I just deliver whatever it is. My wife would take either statement as a compliment. She knows me well enough to know my heart. I am dismissive of people that do things without a deep understanding of them but then argue their "expertise" in that subject. That's hard to walk past.

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I read Emerson on the can. A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds...true...but a consistent reading of Emerson has its uses nevertheless.

StuMusic

"I am dismissive of people that do things without a deep understanding of them but then argue their "expertise" in that subject. That's hard to walk past."

True dat!
However most of the people on this thread have not claimed to have expertise, but only reported their experiences using the material, generally in the form of premade "sticks" of unknown quality as you mentioned. For most that is as far as we are willing to go down that rabbit hole, and if we find it of limited value it may not be worth pursuing.
My own experience with using CF was laminating CF cloth between wood veneers to create a back and side set. I found that when jointing the back plates, every time I passed them over my jointer they made a small nick in the blades. The finished back and sides had a tupperware tap tone, but the finished (spruce topped) guitar sounded quite nice.
I don't use CF in necks, and generally use a light weight mild steel single acting rod - I guess I'm a bit of a luddite in this respect.
I have always found your posts well written and informative and have never been offended by how you said things, but then I have been known to wear elephant skin boots.
I would be interested in knowing how you fit and bond the CF core to the wood shell and how you make allowances for the movement of dissimilar materials. Are you willing to share this?

Hi Stuart,
Fair enough and thanks again for sharing your expertise on this subject. I'm going to try and give you a call to discuss dealing with neck relief with your approach.