Different Woods/Glues/Stuff...

[MikeAlbaugh]

Hey Guys,

Thinking serious about building my own guitar and perhaps even my own body design. A few body/building wood questions if you don't mind...

Any major issues to look for when glueing two different woods together? I was thinking more about sonic than aesthetics and going with a Mahogany top over Ash.

What type of glue is recommended? What about modern adhesives...yay/nay?

Thanks

 

[line6man]

Every luthier has a preference on glue. Though I've seen a lot of build threads mention a few varieties of Titebond.

 

[bagman67]

Here are the differences among varieties of Titebond explained.  Looks like original Titebond would suffice,if you want to go with that.


http://www.thewoodwhisperer.com/articles/differences-between-titebond-glues/

 

[MikeAlbaugh]

Thanks guys...

 

[SustainerPlayer]

For that purpose I actually think most luthiers will prefer to use hide glue.

 

[greywolf]

Most luthiers I know swear by Titebond.    The problematic woods for bonding tend to be the oily ones like cocobolo .  As far as the sonic impact , denser woods tend to have a brighter tone .  Mahogany /Ash is a nice combo as  both tend to have similar resonance

 

[bagman67]

For that purpose I actually think most luthiers will prefer to use hide glue.

Hide glue has been used for centuries and remains useful for many lutherie applications, such as setting necks, applying bridge plates,  and being all traditional n' whatnot.  The reason is that the bond can be easily reversed through the application of heat. and repairs can be effected more easily as a result.


For bonds that are intended to be permanent (i.e., the joints between the chunks of wood you glue together to make a solid guitar body, scarf joint where headstock meets neck shaft) I would use Titebond or some other glue that is less likely to fail under more extreme conditions (for example, if , despite your best planning, you have no choice but to leave the guitar in the trunk of your car during hot weather, or you have no choice but to store your gear in the tour van during January in North Dakota).

 

[SustainerPlayer]

But it has more tone and sustain! http://mcknightguitars.com/glue-hardness.html  :icon_jokercolor:

I can assure you that hide glue will not fail under such extreme conditions as you describe them (nor will Titebond). What I like is that hide glue seems to "pull" two pieces of wood together whereas Titebond seems to be more of a "layer" between them.

But the Titebond vs hide glue debate is on par with Apple vs. Microsoft/ Fender vs Gibson/ Fender vs Marshall/ Tubes vs modeling and so on.

One thing is sure. They will both stick ...  :sign13:

 

[bagman67]

That's awesome:  Here's how a variety of glues behave when being deployed in some fashion having nothing to do with their intended implementation!  Therefore, conclusions unrelated to the actual deployment!


But he measured stuff, so it must be science!


But to respond to your substantive assertions:  I agree, a lot of this stuff boils down to personal preference, given that minimal lutherie performance requirements are far exceeded by all the products I'm ever likely to get my hands on.  I'm not interested in taking sides in yet another Internet jihad.  I'll leave that to the Youtube commentariat.