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Alembic Club » Dreaming... for now » Archive through July 12, 2006 » Neck stringers.. what else? « Previous Next »

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trekster
Member
Username: trekster

Post Number: 84
Registered: 7-2004
Posted on Wednesday, April 19, 2006 - 5:51 am:   Edit Post

Ok, I've seen the exaltations about ebony all over the site, and have of course seen walnut, purpleheart, and vermillion stringers on various pics here and elsewhere.

I was wondering what else has been used or experimented with, and if experimented what results were acheived. What makes a good stringer laminate vs not?

What I am *really* curious about is that a lot of people also swear by cocobolo for tops..every use cocobolo in stringers?

--T
mica
Moderator
Username: mica

Post Number: 3264
Registered: 6-2000
Posted on Wednesday, April 19, 2006 - 12:22 pm:   Edit Post

We've tried lots of woods, and the ones that you mentioned seeing are the ones that we've had the best results with, so it's why you see them the most. There's also a good bit of Birch, Cherry and Beech.

There were other experiments that were not as successful. We prefer straight grained woods for necks, also dense woods. One glaring failure for a neck wood was Osage Orange, which would not be held by glue. It's possible that modern adhesives or epoxies would not delaminate.

Coco Bolo, while dense, is usually not very straight grained for the length needed in a neck. Its physical properties make it challenging to glue. As a structural part of a neck, it's got 2 strikes against it. I don't remember seeing Coco Bolo or any Rosewood used in an Alembic neck before. I've only been here since 1987, but I also have run across it in the instrument files either.
jaurigemma
Member
Username: jaurigemma

Post Number: 82
Registered: 3-2003
Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 8:16 pm:   Edit Post

Hey, don't forget my Burl Redwood Excel! It's got Pau Ferro stringers, and they seem to be working most excellently!

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