Full wenge body

[NicosRebel]

Hello

I on the way for my next Warmoth Project and I want to know if anyone tried a full wenge body ?

Is it completely stupid ?

 

[swarfrat]

Not if you're used to fighting local gangs for charity.

 

[Cagey]

You could ask The Philosopher...

That doesn't look too stupid to me.

 

[Great Ape]

Heh-Heh...well put, Kev....

 

[NicosRebel]

This Tele have a mahogany body and a wenge top... But how about all wenge body ?

 

[Cagey]

According to the charts I've found, Wenge is roughly the same density as most varieties of Mahogany, so they would be close in weight. They're both known as "warmer" woods, which means they tend to absorb high frequencies. But, that applies more to necks than bodies. The body of a solid body electric doesn't have as much influence on the overall tone of a guitar as is often attributed to it. There's too much mass/inertia to them. It is a very sturdy wood, so if you want a Wenge body, I say go for it. Just be aware that the grain is pretty open on the stuff, so it'll collect up a lotta gunk over time.

 

[NicosRebel]

So if I understand it is not easy to clean this type of wood ?

 

[Cagey]

I've never had a piece here long enough to find out. But, that's what I'd expect. All those little nooks and crannies will fill up with dirt, dead skin cells, oil, sweat, hooker dust, stale beer, etc. and I don't know how you'd get it out.

I mean, you've seen what happens to Maple necks...

And that's a dense, tight-grained wood. The grain of Wenge looks like the Grand Canyon compared to most hardwoods...

Warmoth machines it pretty flat and it feels great. But, it's still an open grain.

I don't mean to talk you out of it; it's a great wood in many ways. I'm just telling you what I've seen in case you're a germophobe <grin>

 

[alterbridgefan]

I love the look of old maple necks and fretboards... :sad1:

 

[Orpheo]

I have a wenge backed les paul and a wenge topped les paul with the same top and back vice versa (padouk/wenge, wenge/padouk), and on both guitars, they were unfinished for YEARS, the wenge top is still unfinished. You can sand it with a bit of oil and then hope the oil and sand dust will stick to the pores. one final layer of oil or shellac and you're good to go. on my top it's sanded so smooth, like a baby's bum (and it's quarter sawn, aiding in the tighter grain, too).

Ok, now the tone. It's THICK with so much bite. It's actually amazing. It's like korina with obesity issues. I do not recommend a wenge neck to go cause that will make it too thick for a les paul, but it might work for a tele or LP junior style instrument.