far0n Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 As a resident of Kilburn (home of the mouseman, Robert Thomson) I frequently pass the massive piles of oak sitting outisde, seasoning ready to be made into furniture. Then I started thinking, you never really see guitars made from oak !! Is it too heavy ? Rubbish tone wood ? Difficult to work with ? As usual, all opinions and thoughts welcome Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dood Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 I guess it's because it's really heavy! - I guess you could make a nice top slice for a guitar though? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gub Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 I love oak but it does tend to be on the heavy side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3below Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 Remembering a woodwork lesson - showing my age here - before design technology resistant materials - you will also need to use brass screws to anchor anything. Oak releases tannic acid which causes blue / black stains when it reacts with steel. My house has 300+ year old oak beams, they are hard as iron. Later pickup routes and alterations might be difficult. Oak also develops shakes, splits and is dense. However it does have nice grain and takes very pretty stains and colours. Finishing is easy, wax, wax, wax. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloodaxe Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 Pretty much all of the above, plus it takes ages to season properly. If it isn't (i.e. it's a bit 'green') oak can, and will, move how & where it wants - not ideal in a musical instrument. High-grade stainless or brass fittings are compulsory as it'll utterly destroy mild steel over time & have the plating off screws just for something to do. Vicious stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prosebass Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 Oak is great to work with , very similar to ash as regards weight and tone. Don't get confused with Green Oak for building which has high tannin levels as opposed to kiln dried which has very little. I have topped quite a few bass bodies with 15mm - 20mm Oak , used it in laminated necks and even as a board on a 3 octave fretless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roland Rock Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 (edited) Oak is very similar to ash in terms of weight. There are plenty of heavier woods used for basses, such as bubinga, walnut, mahogany etc. I've often wondered about why it's not used for instruments - perhaps something to do with resonance? (not much call for resonance knowledge in the furniture making trade ) Regarding tannins, yes, you will get the black staining, but only when it comes into contact with moisture too. From my experience, you can use steel screws for indoor oak furniture with no problems, but outdoors, best go for brass. Perhaps a particularly sweaty player might have problems Oak can be really beautiful, especially the quarter sawn stuff with its medulliary rays. Edited June 2, 2011 by Roland Rock Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmsjabb Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 We use steel screws in all our furniture with no problems. Oak tends to be a rougher / coarser grain timber favoured in country furniture as opposed to town furniture and mahogany, walnut etc. Ash is lighter in weight than Oak, equally as strong and more stable We also love Burr Oak, which would make a great 3/8" top. I guess, I am bored with oak and will be using Walnut and maple for my body when I make it. For nice Oak with steel screws, see www.rwfco.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RhysP Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 My Chapman Stick was made of oak. That was interesting wasn't it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stoker Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 didn't brian may use some oak in his red special? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Jack Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmccombe7 Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 [quote name='RhysP' post='1255416' date='Jun 3 2011, 01:28 PM']My Chapman Stick was made of oak. That was interesting wasn't it? [/quote] Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShergoldSnickers Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 My mate's infamous 'Table Bass' Made from an oak table, the sides hollowed out to save weight. There's even a fork hidden in it somewhere should anyone go delving inside, just to emphasise the domestic origins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wez Posted June 5, 2011 Share Posted June 5, 2011 So what sort of sound do get from an oak body? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Jack Posted June 5, 2011 Share Posted June 5, 2011 Sort of acorn-y. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad3353 Posted June 5, 2011 Share Posted June 5, 2011 [quote name='wez' post='1257255' date='Jun 5 2011, 01:30 PM']So what sort of sound do get from an oak body?[/quote] Oak-ay Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skej21 Posted June 5, 2011 Share Posted June 5, 2011 (edited) [quote name='wez' post='1257255' date='Jun 5 2011, 12:30 PM']So what sort of sound do get from an oak body?[/quote] A-corny sound Edit: Damn. HJ beat me too it! Edited June 5, 2011 by skej21 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmccombe7 Posted June 5, 2011 Share Posted June 5, 2011 (edited) oakily doakily very wooden sound usually played by cabinet ministers "Knot" forgetting the gold "leaf" fittings to match. Dave Edited June 5, 2011 by dmccombe7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vibrating G String Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 Oak has been used for many decades, sometimes renamed ash since most players buy based on names and reputation and not the way a guitar plays or feels. This renaming is very common in the wood trade, so many things get renamed mahogany or rosewood without being a true Swietenia or Dalbergia. Fodera and MTD made some oak necks and they were bordering on being trendy for a while. Apparently in most rainforests less than 10% of the wood is exportable because it is unknown and unmarketable regardless of it's timber qualities. Some South American luthiers are using woods with names we've never heard before with great success. And if you look at other instruments besides guitars you will see many more species being used. You have to keep in mind that what we consider blessed tonewoods today like rosewood and alder and ash were once cheap replacements for real tonewoods like ebony and mahogany. Oak can be used instead of other dense very hard woods with no discernible tonal difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pnefc42 Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 [quote name='stoker' post='1255457' date='Jun 3 2011, 02:03 PM']didn't brian may use some oak in his red special?[/quote] Yep, quite right. The main centre section of the RS is indeed oak (2 seperate pieces) onto which the tremolo, bridge, pickups and neck are mounted. The oak centre section was then complimented by blockboard wings (hollowed out with acoustic sound chambers) before the whole thing was covered with mahogany veneer - unique design giving a unigue tone! Cheers Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roland Rock Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 (edited) [quote name='Vibrating G String' post='1257990' date='Jun 6 2011, 01:33 AM']Oak has been used for many decades, sometimes renamed ash since most players buy based on names and reputation and not the way a guitar plays or feels. This renaming is very common in the wood trade, so many things get renamed mahogany or rosewood without being a true Swietenia or Dalbergia.[/quote] I understand what you mean about the rosewood, as there are many "rosewoods" that are not the real thing. In the UK at least, I've never come across oak being renamed ash or vice versa, and these are materials I buy and work with all the time, and if I ordered oak and got ash, they'd hear about it pretty quickly! Edited June 6, 2011 by Roland Rock Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.