Bloodwood vs Wenge vs Pau Ferro

[danimal997]

I just ordered a black korina chambered strat body and im trying to decide on the neck. I cant make up my mind between bloodwood, wenge, or pau ferro with probably an ebony fingerboard.  I cant try any of them out to get a feel for them. Any suggestions?

 

[DavyDave53]

Buy one of each?  You'll be glad you did.

 

[AutoBat]

I've got 2 Warmoth necks, one is bloodwood fretboard on wenge, the other is ebony on (gloss finished) mahogany.
fretboard feel between the bloodwood & ebony is quite similar, with the ebony feeling just ever so slightly glassier.
The wenge shaftwood is quite smooth despite the big pores.  It's an oily wood, so this must be what makes the magic happen.
Aside from the nut width & scale length the two necks differ in almost every option available and I love them both.

I have a bass with traditional rosewood on tint-gloss maple and it's not bad either, but it surely won't ever get anyone commenting on how cool it looks.
I have no experience with Pau Ferro, but I've heard from others that it's fantastic.

tl;dr they're all great choices.

 

[Cagey]

I cant make up my mind between bloodwood, wenge, or pau ferro with probably an ebony fingerboard.

I have or have had all three of those, and they're all absolutely wonderful. The Bloodwood and Pau Ferro necks I still have felt the best to me and are probably my favorite necks of all time, but that doesn't mean the Wenge isn't nice. I just don't care for that wide-open grain. Always makes me think cooties are going to hide in there. Stupid, I know, but that's me. Even smooth surfaces get gunked up with use, imagine if the gunk had hiding places. You'd never get it truly clean.

All of them had Ebony fretboards - it's a tough wood to beat for that. Feels great, sounds good, matches anything.

Of the three, though, I have to agree with Bagman - Wenge would probably look best with that body.

 

[danimal997]

what are your thoughts on canary?

 

[Cagey]

It's a great wood. Feels/plays well, sounds much like Maple, doesn't need a finish. I think it would look good on that body. If it was mine to do, that's probably the route I'd take.

 

[Great Ape]

"cooties"..."gunk"?!? Hey Kev--call the exterminator and go wash your hands!!  :icon_jokercolor:

 

[Cagey]

Actually, I'm rather fanatic about washing my hands and keeping my nails manicured. But, not everybody is that way. I've picked up guitars in music stores that were supposedly new that you could tell had been played by people who were somewhat less fastidious about such things. Then, some used ones I've picked up have been absolutely disgusting. I get instruments in here for repair/setup that I'd hate to put under a microscope for fear of what new alien life forms I'd discover.

It's just normal, really. It's not that people pick up their guitars after eating fried chicken and barbecued ribs by hand without bothering to wash. But, skin cells slough off, oils accumulate, dirt/smoke/humidity sticks, etc. The problem is more of a maintenance issue than anything else, and some things are easier to maintain than others.

 

[swarfrat]

I'm one of those people. In my early 20's when I was playing a lot - I'd kill a new set of strings in two weeks in the summer time. Now it's my son trying to eat the strings that kills them.  They must taste horrible - I know anytime I put my fingers near my mouth after playing guitar the metallic taste is just awful.

I'm kinda curious about bloodwood vs Padouk.

 

[Great Ape]

Actually, I'm rather fanatic about washing my hands and keeping my nails manicured. But, not everybody is that way. I've picked up guitars in music stores that were supposedly new that you could tell had been played by people who were somewhat less fastidious about such things. Then, some used ones I've picked up have been absolutely disgusting. I get instruments in here for repair/setup that I'd hate to put under a microscope for fear of what new alien life forms I'd discover.

It's just normal, really. It's not that people pick up their guitars after eating fried chicken and barbecued ribs by hand without bothering to wash. But, skin cells slough off, oils accumulate, dirt/smoke/humidity sticks, etc. The problem is more of a maintenance issue than anything else, and some things are easier to maintain than others.

Right you are, Kevin. You know I was just messin' with you, right?

 

[Cagey]

I figured as much, but wanted to get that out there anyway.

 

[danimal997]

the body finally arrived so here it is. Still not completely sure on the neck: canary, pau ferro, or wenge.

 

[Cagey]

If it was me, I'd be doing Ebony over Pau Ferro. Gotta be one of the nicest wood combinations for a neck I've ever put my paws on, and I go through a lot of them here. Some like to call it "sex on a stick", and rightfully so. You'll probably want to burnish it to bring out its best qualities.

The Canary is nice, too. It might accent that body better. It's nice and bright, like Maple, but doesn't need a finish. Same deal - sand it down to make it sexy, but you're done at that point. No finish necessary.

 

[croquet hoop]

Anything but a red wood would look great of this body. I agree with Cagey, you can't go wrong with ebony/pau ferro, but canary would bring more contrast and still look very nice. It would be a sort of exotic version of the classic sunburst/maple neck strat.

 

[danimal997]

what do you guys think about this neck with the body is it to much?

http://www.warmoth.com/Showcase/ShowcaseNeck.aspx?i=SN15348&Body=1&Path=Neck#.UyOADVFdW1w

 

[Cagey]

I think it would be perfect. I can't imagine you'd ever be sorry you went that route. It looks good, it's made of good woods... I wouldn't wait around. That one probably won't last long on the Showcase. Nice piece. I'm half tempted myself, but I don't have an application for it at the moment.