Official Luthiers Forum!

I am looking for a set of curly maple and have checked the sponsors on this and other forums, ebay, the innerwebs, and everywhere else I can think of. Anybody you know of specialize in curly (flamed) (fiddleback) maple or have a few nice sets?

Ed

PM sent...

I have been getting my curly and quilted maple from The Woodwell. Highly recommend them.

Along these lines, does anyone know of a source of thick veneer in curly maple? The Woodwell doesn't actually cut their own veneer, so they can't do it. Constantines seems to only carry 1/16" maple in plain unfigured. Don't know where else I would look.

I don't need any right away, but for future projects it would be good. 1/16" or 1/20" is what I am hoping for.

Try this , https://www.certainlywood.com/results-w ... n.%20curly

_________________
My memory is so good, sometimes I remember things that never happened.

This is harder than I thought - I was thinking a wide selection of maple would be everywhere since it is one of the more common guitar woods. I think I have a set, but it is not exactly what I am after. I would like something like the picture below but I will finish it very pale

Ed

Hi Ed,
Grof and Grof lists Tiger (curly) maple on their domestic price list. You might call them and ask what they have on hand. It would need to be resawn, but even if done a little wastefully and sanded to thickness shouldn't push up the cost much. Sawing from the same board would give you matching back and sides.
It has been a while since I stopped in there, but they had some nice quilted maple also.

try
http://www.metmusic.com
Mike

_________________
Mike Collins

There isn't much of that grade of curly maple around, everybody wants that. The back even looks quartersawn making your quest more difficult.

I get my curly maple whenever I see the right piece locally because I live in the maple bush.

I've always kept these guys bookmarked just in case but I haven't ordered from them. You might find something that will work if you can resaw. I don't know if they will resaw for you. Browse around the private stock and luthier woods.

http://www.curlymaple.com/Luthier_Material_s/46.htm

_________________
Brian R, Wood Mechanic
N8ZED

We mill up stock from one of our local suppliers in Vienna, VA. They carry both soft and hard maple, so usually just a matter of working through the piles and finding stock which is wide enough and evenly figured. You are familiar with coordinating local resaw, so no mystery there. About $6.50/bf, so a back and side set runs about $20.

The instruments shown were built with stock sourced from that supplier, and a recent visit showed plentiful stockage of figured material. This might not be quite tight enough on figure, but worth a look if your search of the online sources comes up empty.

_________________
For the times they are a changin'

- Bob Dylan

Try this.

http://fiddlebackwoodshack.com/products.php?id=1

B

_________________
My memory is so good, sometimes I remember things that never happened.

I think you can get better stuff in their “Musical Billiet/Lumber” section, but they also do “sets”.

https://nwtimber.com/shop-all-wood-types/nwt9738a

Nice to resaw your own sometimes. . .

Thanks all for the answers. I have been a woodworker for about 50 years and long ago decided I was not going to horde wood. I buy what I need plus a little, so I have some nice stuff around in limited quantities. If I bought a board to get one guitar out of, I would never use the rest - I jut don't make that many. I have access to a 3HP Laguna SUV 14" bandsaw, and I recently split a piece of 8-1/4" redwood for a top - it had been panelling on a wall of a 1954 ranch house that she was renovating - soI know I could do it, but I just don't build enough guitars to make use of what would be left.

I had my eye on a set at, believe it or not, Stewmac, but did not want to pay the $164. 2 days ago I looked at it one more time, and when I opened the thumbnail, it was at $123, not the $164 of the thumbnail. I refreshed and the thumbnail was down to $123 - I hit them right as they were reducing the price. Then this morning the price was at $111, so I bought it.

Thanks all

Ed

One nice thing about Grof and Grof - they will cut and sell you the part of the board you want, unlike some wood dealers. But there is the risk they may not have the board you want, plus the cost of time and travel and milling the wood. $111 seems like a fair price to get what you want all things considered.
Hoarding wood can be a bad habit. I had some large pieces of curly maple that have become "worm wood" - unfortunate, but so it goes. The small exit holes don't show the devastation inside.

https://northridgehardwoods.com/SolidBodyTops.htm

Not sure if this one was already mentioned.

w

I wrote to them and asked for photos of actual sets and never got anything back.


Clay

I built one a year ago that had a walnut fretboard from a piece of walnut in my shop for at least 20 years, and 4 years ago I made a radius sanding batten from cherry I bought in 1984. Thanks for the G and G reference.

Ed