Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Around the Campfire => Topic started by: Tyke on September 03, 2014, 04:46:48 pm
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I didnt know where to ask i want to make an osage guitar does anyone know where to get 3/16"x26"x24 sheets of osage
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Check Grizzly Products. Along with their power tools they sell guitar building materials, wood included. Whether they have osage or not I don't know.
I'm gonna move this to around the campfire.
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Do you play guitar?
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I have never built a guitar, but have read several books about it and have spent many hours looking through luthier supply catalogs with the hope to one day make my own. I can say that it would not be typical to look for a board of the dimensions you list. The typical construction for the top and the back is to make them from two pieces of wood with a joint down the middle. Usually the top is made from a softwood such as spruce and the backs and sides from various hardwoods.
Rather than look for a board 3/16 x 26 x 24, you should instead look for a board more like 1/2 thick x 26 x 12, and then resaw it to form a "book-matched" pair. The 1/2 inch thick board would be sawn into two pieces 1/4 inch thick, and then "opened" as if it were a book. The result is two pieces with grain patterns that match almost exactly. One piece is essentially the mirror image of the other.
I don't know where to get the wood, but finding a good 12 inch wide board will be so much easier than finding a 24 inch wide board. Guitar woods are very often made from quarter sawn boards, so to get a 24 inch wide quarter sawn osage would require a tree over 4 ft in diameter.
Good luck, I would love to see an osage guitar!
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I built guitars for about 6 years at Bolin Guitars, in Boise Idaho. Osage is going to be hard to find in guitar dimensions. We would buy the wood and resaw, then thickness sand to close dimensions. Then do the final thickness by hand. For supplies you can't beat Luthiers Mercantile for acoustics and the Stewart McDonald for electrics. There are great books on the topic and both companies have kits you can get. I would recommend starting with a kit. Then use the wood you covet :). It would not be fun to ruin a hard to find piece of wood. You can use the osage for the top you will just get a brighter sound. Osage outlaw posted some pics of some curly osage a while back that was real neat. So it's out there somewhere. You could do a three piece back as well. That's a good way to use wood that is not quite as wide. Martin guitars have some models that have the three piece backs. If you have any other questions don't hesitate to ask. I will help any way I can :)
Matt Kulchak
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Yes pearls i do and bass i was gonna ask if you might of built you own drums yet
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Ive buit several guitars and dable in. Being a luthier
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I have an old hohner acoustic i wanted to redo the top and back. Its pretty beat up but the neck is staight and the side are fine my buddy just gave it to me
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Man I would love to own an Osage guitar I play guitar myself, but never built a guitar
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I have an old hohner acoustic i wanted to redo the top and back. Its pretty beat up but the neck is staight and the side are fine my buddy just gave it to me
Did Hohner actually make these or just put their name on them? I only ask cuz i collect harmonicas and its got me curious, lol.... Brian
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that would be a pretty guitar for sure.
a friend of mine builds custom guitars for a living, and we've been talking alot lately...
it will be a yew wood electric guitar in the PRS custom 24 style, but we may use a different wood for the neck.
will for sure be posting pics here once its started.
we'd have to have a yew guitar and osage guitar battle, see who the real king is!
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I have no idea koan
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I know someone who made an Osage Mandolin. He was in the process of making a guitar and using Osage in it somehow. I'll see if I can find out how to get ahold of him.
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No reason you can't make a CBG* with osage!
*Cigar Box Guitar
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No reason you can't make a CBG* with osage!
damn straight skippy, if you can build a guitar from a shovel you can build one from anything
*Cigar Box Guitar
[/quote]
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No reason you can't make a CBG* with osage!
damn straight skippy, if you can build a guitar from a shovel you can build one from anything
*Cigar Box Guitar
[/quote]
I love the Shovelman! His music rocks!
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I think you and me have the same taste in music JW
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Just found what i was looking for at a online music store will post pics when its done
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If y'all want to see a cool guitar check out my friends site - Little guitar works.
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Did Hohner actually make these or just put their name on them? I only ask cuz i collect harmonicas and its got me curious, lol.... Brian
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I worked for Kimball Piano back in the early 80's and we kept abreast of the industry as a whole back then. I know Hohner was making their qwn acoustics around that time but like many others I think they started affixing their label to the "standard" Korean and Japanese guitars of the day.
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do a google search for ...images of osage orange guitar...holy smokes!!!
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Just picked up my monthly box of cigars and the lady asked me what I was doing with my old cigar boxes. I guess a fellow makes guitars out of them and they sound great. Worth checking out.
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Hey, call Rosewood archery. He had a lot of osage last time I went, I'm sure he has something in the size you want.
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Well, I don't about the sound if you use it for the top, or back, it might very bright, or very dead. Sitka Spruce is still king, and some guitar makers like "Lund" are using Cedar. I would think that Osage would make a nice laminated neck, or a one piece neck, or even a fret board, and bridge, as it will darken over time. I think you are putting yourself in for some hard work, and frustration. Like they said, a 24 inch Osage board, will be like trying to finding an original Gibson D28 banjo, with the checker board perfeling, or however you spell it, and the gold flake finish, in mint condition, at a yard sale. Better to look for 12 inch wide, and go with re sawing, and sanding. But even a 12 inch wide Osage is not readily available. It will take some looking, as I am sure it is out there, it's just a question of where. I don't know if it would even make a good sound board/neck attachment block. But it does sound interesting. I know a guy down here, who did some repairs on my Martin, and he used to work for Ovation, and now is a warranted repair site for Martin, and other companies. Well he made a beautiful acoustic guitar out of some Hawaiian exotic wood, but it was very heavy. You would need a strap for sure. Good luck, and let us know how you progress. I too would like to eventually make a guitar, as I have some ideas, I would like to try.
Wayne