Official Luthiers Forum!

Hi all,

I am thinking of buying a set of Padouk for back and sides and I was wondering whether anybody of you has used it already and can give me some advices on bending properties and tonal characteristics.

I find it beautiful aesthetically and I know that it has been widely used in Africa for instruments but my knowledge ends there.

I am sure you know much more than me.

Thanks

_________________
Andy

Italian spruce if you look for the best!!

I've heard it's great but have never personally built or played one of Padouk.

_________________
Time is a great teacher, but unfortunately it kills all its pupils - Louis Hector Berlioz

Chansen / C hansen / C. Hansen / Christian Hansen - not a handle.

Christian

Andy, Padauk is a pretty common guitar tonewood. I think it's a good beginners wood too. It's inexpensive, easy to work and finish. As for tone, think IRW. Go for it.

_________________
Jim Womack

"Be thankful we're not getting all the government we're paying for. "
Will Rogers

I’ve heard it can be a bit brittle and can have a tendency to crack when bending. I have a set but haven’t used it yet.

Andy,

I have built one guitar using Padauk and I found it to be somewhat difficult to bend. Very stiff along the grain. It is bright orange in color when freshly cut, I toned the color down with color tone stains in an air brush. The guitar had a good deep tone similar to IRW.

MarkL.

Wonderful wood .. tough to bend though, some pieces just dont !!! Thin to 80-85, it will be easier, cutaways are brutal .... Big pores or should I say canyons, but sands nicely. Looks great under a finish. You can hear a small parlour padauk/cedar top I made on my website - not the longest samples, but that guitar was NICE ....

_________________
Tony Karol
www.karol-guitars.com
"let my passion .. fulfill yours"

My second guitar was Padauk...it's a nice, inexpensive wood. I had no trouble bending, but it requires some substantial pore filling. Long, deep grain in that stuff!

Orange in the raw, it deepens to a nice brick red under Zpoxy and nitro. See the "OM Twins" in my gallery pages for a sample...there's a good shot of the padauk back.

The color change can be drastic over time. In my marquetry work, I no longer use padauk for this reason (I now use bloodwood instead). A picture I made of the Golden Gate Bridge a couple of years ago is now a picture of the Brown Gate Bridge Some marquetarians call padauk "firewood"! I guess if you're happy that your beautiful orangy-red guitar will eventually end up brown, then go for it.

Dave F.

_________________
Cambrian Guitars

"There goes Mister Tic-Tac out the back with some bric-brac from the knick-knack rack"

Padouk is a fair tonewood but the wood can vary so much in its bending characteristcs. Use plenty of heat 400 degrees or so and don't even think of bending till you see 380 degrees. This wood tends to be brackish and often breaks across the grain , sometimes during cooling
good luck. I would tell you to use blood wood if you can
john hall

_________________
John Hall
blues creek guitars
Authorized CF Martin Repair
Co President of ASIA
You Don't know what you don't know until you know it

What about tonal properties? Is it similar to IRW?

I would like to combine it with an italian spruce top. Do you think it can be a good combination or I should use something else.

_________________
Andy

Italian spruce if you look for the best!!

Only used it once, but I would agree with most of what has been said. One last thing, don't wear anything light - that you want to keep anyway - when sanding.

I attempted to use it for bindings once, but I tried bending about a dozen pieces and couldn't get 4 that didn't break. I also found that it likes to straighten back out after you take it out of the bender. It is phenomenal for endgrafts though

380-400??? Do you mean 280-300?

I'm betting he means 380 -400. I know I found out Zebrawood likes it up there. It didn't even start bending until around 350, and did best at around 400. Didn't even scorch at that temp.

_________________
Waddy

Photobucket Build Album Library

Sound Clips of most of my guitars

I purchased a padauk board at a woodworkers fair. lovely piece. I re-sawed into 3/16" bookmatch. What a wondeful aroma. Vanilla, and cinamon. Orange dust in places I never knew I even had. I still find caches of dust 3 years later. Any way back to the guitar. I had major problems with bending. It developed fracture lines accross the grain. I ended up "laminating" some parts but Epoxy left very visible marks in the grain. I eventually managed a pair of ribs which I glued to heel and tail blocks. I still have the 'frame" of the guitar hanging frm the rafters of my shop and a 15' radiused back. I was not happy with the result so it sits waiting for a time when I am desperate for some difficult project.

I have not used padauk when purchased from a tonewood suppliler. The result may be different but I am not keen to recommend this wood, beautiful as it looks, when there are other woods such as EIRW, Mahogony. and sappele! i love sappele!!

Is see many of you have had successful outcomes withpadauk.

_________________
Greg
http://garibaldiinstruments.com/

Wow, everything Ive read has been between 280-320. What else likes it way up there?

I've built three guitars using Padouk (Padauk--whichever) and have loved the instruments. It has a glassy tap, and a heavenly aroma when worked. However, I found it a bear to bend, and ruinous to clothing, as Bob mentions. That said, I would use it again, and gladly. It's a wonderful wood!

Steve

_________________
From Nacogdoches...the oldest town in Texas.

http://www.stephenkinnaird.com

Padauk is my go-to bridge plate material. Hard, stiff and glassy tone. I have been warned that it is prone to splitting but have seen none of it in 4 years and 7 guitars.

I would love to try it in a guitar...it's on the list.

_________________
JJ
Napa, CA
http://www.DonohueGuitars.com

Andy, if you're new to guitar making I think there are better choices for back and sides because of the bending issues, though the padauk would probably sound great with the italian spruce. You might look in the archives about double sides. That should make bending easier.

_________________
Ken Franklin
clumsy yet persistent
https://www.kenfranklinukulele.com

I just thought padouk was a cheaper alternative to IRW that is quite expensive. What other alternatives with similar tone do you suggest for back and sides without going broke?

What about sapele, khaya, ovangkol or bubinga?

_________________
Andy

Italian spruce if you look for the best!!

Sapele is a good choice, certainly more forgiving than most padauk. It often has more punch than mahogany but still has warmth. Avoid sets with a lot of ribbon figure that are harder to bend.