Good body wood to keep an SG balanced?

[Ace Flibble]

I'm looking to build an SG and I'm stuck on what wood to go with for the body (obviously, or the title of this thread would have said something different!)

My problem is I like the SG shape but I hate the neck dive. I hate neck dive of any amount, I have to have my bodies much heavier than the necks. I've owned and gotten rid of five SGs before simply because I find any amount of neck dive unplayable.
I know the Warmoth SG body is an extra 1/4" thicker than a Gibson SG is, but I'm wondering if that's really enough to counter the weight of a '59 Roundback contour mahogany neck?

My first thought was a hard ash body, as I've got a hard ash Tele body from Warmoth before and that was fantastically heavy, but I intend to use P-90 pickups with this SG and I'm thinking hard ash with P-90s could get a bit ear-splittingly bright. I then thought mahogany, but if the mahogany SGs I've had before are any indication, this won't weigh anywhere near enough.

So in short, need a body wood that will easily out-weigh a '59 roundback contour mahogany neck and which will give a fairly even to slightly dark tone for the P-90s it's going to have.

So yeah, any ideas?

 

[JaySwear]

hm i think Koa is supposed to be pretty solid. and it looks AWESOME. but i've seen some solid strat bodies weighing in around 4 lbs 8 oz (about) and with a maple top (or even ash) you'd be guaranteed to get a decently heavy guitar. that paired with a mahogany neck would not only look awesome, but should be pretty well balanced. just my 2 cents worth

 

[tfarny]

Don't worry about the tone of the body wood so much - and P90s are not really bright in general anyhow. Gibson SGs are very light guitars - I think you'd find a thicker warmoth body quite a bit different. But if you hate neck dive, and you've been through 5SGs, maybe you should consider a different shape, seeing as how SGs are notorious for neck dive due to the strap button placement. If you're set on the SG, just get mahogany and go for lightest weight tuners you can. If need be, stick a slug of lead in the control cavity to balance things out, and move the strap button to the neck plate spot. I've seen both solutions on the board, not sure where to point you for pics though.

Other option: get an LP flat top body with P90s. Great vibe and something you don't see quite as often.

 

[Ace Flibble]

Well, I've already got 4 LPs so I'm after something different :icon_biggrin: Also I fell in love with the Gibson SG Goddess in Sky Burst but never got round to buying one when they were made, so a Warmoth blue burst SG will fit the bill nicely!

Yeah, I've heard changing the position of the front strap button can help with the balance, I know Epiphone did an SG with the strap button on the tip of the upper horn which apparently sorted it out quite a lot.

Maybe I'll just go for it with the traditional mahogany then and mess with the strap position and I'll just go with the suggest of extra weights if it does become a problem.