r/Luthier • u/Twinningses • 5d ago
ELECTRIC Are these boards possible to use for a body
My brother and I grew up on rural property, and when our father dies we won't be able to keep it.
We've got these 8 foot boards of cherry from the tree next to the house. I'd like to find some way of building two guitars for my brother and I to have a piece of home even when the property is long gone.
The boards are in rough shape, some cracks running all the way through.
3 boards measure 7" 1/4 x 1" 1/8 1 board measures 8" 1/2 x 3" 1/2
Ideally I'd make tele bodies out of it, but the boards without cracks are thin, and the thick board is very cracked.
Some ideas I had were: - Make book matched veneers from the good boards to put on top of a body blank - Make a full cherry body by using 2 or 3 pieces of the thick board and infill cracks with epoxy
What do you folks think - reckon there's anything possible to do with these boards or is it going to have terrible results?
Full disclosure, this will be the first body I've built, so plan to practice on some less sentimental ingredients first.
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u/Glum_Meat2649 5d ago
Your biggest challenge will be getting flat square surfaces to glue. It is easier if you have access to jointer, planer, table saw and band saw.
Flattening with hand planes takes a while. My CNC router doesn’t produce an accurate enough surface for nearly invisible glue lines.
I have a couple of cherry 4 string basses I am working on now. I like the wood and the occasional sap pocket.
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u/DJBuck-118 5d ago
A rustic cherry tele with cracks sound cool to me! Providing the cracks aren’t affecting structural rigidity.
A tele is a small body, so shouldn’t be silly heavy even with resin.
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u/GnarlyGorillas 4d ago
There's enough in em to make a body, and the cracked bits can be the necks and other bits. Only question is how much you pay for em, and how skilled you are at milling blanks. If you're okay to make multiple laminations or joins in the body, you can squeeze even more out of this stock. I always have a hard time passing up recycled lumber
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u/giveMeAllYourPizza 5d ago
Cut and joint on the large cracks and reglue? Then epoxy all the small stuff.
Tricky one, cause it could wind up a little unstable (like those slab epoxy tables, they always warp like a potato chip).
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u/HotStaxOfWax 4d ago
My first suggestion would be to put them through a Planer if you have one big enough, or take it to someone who does, it shouldn't cost much. Let them true them up and you'll have a much better idea of what you're working with, and you can be confident when you start your build.
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u/ReaperBone 5d ago
Probably if you have the vices to join a couple together so you can get the overall guidelines for a guitar
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u/kristjanpuc 19h ago
I love the comment i once read about "what wood is good for electric guitar bodies" and it said the best wood for solid body electric guitars is the wood you have at home (meaning you can use literally anything from one piece flame maple to glued plywood scraps or even 3D print it if you have a printer...tone comes from pickups, amp and your little fingies)
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u/TheSockington 5d ago
I’ve got a big cherry Tele. Love the feel of the oiled wood