what kind of pine?

I want to build a pine tele. So I started checking out wood and it became clear that there's more than one pine out there. I got lost searching all the past posts on the subject so I thought I would ask the experts. What are the better/best species of pine for the build? Many,many thanks,
D F

I made one out of construction grade crappy pine. I put a nice quality spruce top on it.
The key to using crappy pine is that it must be dry dry dry. My board was at least ten years old.

You should not use fresh wood in any case. Pine is very wet when new. You need a good wood supplier. There are some good mills in North Carolina.

Any pine will do but northern white pine, sugar pine and Ponderosa pine have all been used successfully.

As Hackworth pointed out, the key is to have it be dry as possible. I like it to be as clear w/o knots, etc but choose what suits you. I buy 2" stock, plane a smidgen off each face, then stack & sticker then for awhile. A week to a couple of months. This gives the wood a chance to acclimate to your environment. The longer you can wait the better.

Let us know how you do and post some pix!

I went into Homebase and found treated and untreated pine planks/boards, does this mean "seasoned?"

Luke.

You don't want treated!! That means it is loaded with chemicals to keep it from rotting when used outdoors(decks and stuff).

Maybe check out a local lumbert mercahant's yard for a piece of off-cut. I got lucky and got Brazilian Rosewood 20" by15" and nearly 2" thick!

Any pine will do but northern white pine, sugar pine and Ponderosa pine have all been used successfully.

As Hackworth pointed out, the key is to have it be dry as possible. I like it to be as clear w/o knots, etc but choose what suits you. I buy 2" stock, plane a smidgen off each face, then stack & sticker then for awhile. A week to a couple of months. This gives the wood a chance to acclimate to your environment. The longer you can wait the better.

Let us know how you do and post some pix!

I appreciate the pointers, I'm going to a hardwoods supply in Winston this weekend and see what they have and what they can get. I'll keep in touch.
D F

I use Eastern White Pine.

I've read that some species can be soft. So far I've seen Northern White Pine, Sugar Pine, Ponderosa and Eastern White Pine. How do these rate from soft to hard? I don't want the wood to be so soft it easily dents, and possibly muffles the vibrations. But I don't want something so hard it can't be worked.
D F

But I don't want something so hard it can't be worked.D F


No pine yo could get or use except maybe old growth and or petrified should present a too hard issue I would think.

I've read that some species can be soft. So far I've seen Northern White Pine, Sugar Pine, Ponderosa and Eastern White Pine. How do these rate from soft to hard? I don't want the wood to be so soft it easily dents, and possibly muffles the vibrations. But I don't want something so hard it can't be worked.
D F

All varieties of wood vary greatly from piece to piece. I've worked mainly w/ the white pines so here's my take on them.

They can be soft. Yes, you can dent them with a fingernail. Yes, if you aren't careful about cleaning up wood chips as you work on a body you'll find "worm" trails on that side you just carefully sanded! Been there, done that, got the scars. But don't equate soft with bad tone or muffled sound. The 3-4 pine bodies I've done so far are very acoustically resonant. Fairly bright w/ good clarity. The same qualities that makes its cousin, spruce, a popular tone wood for acoustics.

I'd use whichever species is available to you and looks good. Do keep an eye on keeping your work area clean while working on it. Find something soft to put it on while you work on it. I used old folded flannel sheets. Soft and easy to brush off. DO not use the rubbery mesh router pad material. Somehow it leaves the mesh pattern in the wood. To the point of causing you to have to sand it out.

Hope this helps. Have fun!

Thanks to all who replied. I'm going pine shopping this weekend! let's see what I can find I'll keep checking this thread to see if anyone else has something to add. Again, Thanks to all!
D F

I have made 7 bodies so far out of some pine from a water bed frame made in the early 70s I reclaimed. ice bg this boards, yum. The pitch is so long gone it is pretty reasonably hard, not alder hard but good and hard mostly.

I an attest to the little chunks of debris and wood working debris resulting in some real issues in the heart wood between the sap wood in the rings.

Also, do not sand with a padded sander. I use a 24x3" poplar sanding leveler I made with 120 sticky paper to level the front and back. This after the first one I used my Wool Padded Milwalkie sander on. It wound up being a 1-1/2" body by the time I salvaged it after the Milwakie made saw dust out of the heart wood, and polishing the high spots it created where ever a ring's sapwood was. Live and learn. Hey, Melody Makers are 1-3/8" so no biggie as long as you don't want to redo the routes deeper after the fact I guess ;)

Good advise. I wish I new what I did with my old waterbed. That was a long time ago
Never saw one, but I was told the original Esquires were 1-1/2 or maybe 1-5/8
D F

Good advise. I wish I new what I did with my old waterbed. That was a long time ago
Never saw one, but I was told the original Esquires were 1-1/2 or maybe 1-5/8
D F

I have made most of mine so far 1-9/16" out of this pine stash. A few with a drop top to get it to 1-3/4, but I like thinner lighter bodies, and so do the few players that have one of my creations that are in the 6lb range +/- .3 lb. ;)

Yeah I need a light guitar 2 back surgeries, got a plate in my neck 'cause I'm missing 2 discs ( doctor removed) some nerve damage in my left arm. My current Tele is ungodly heavy at 10+ pounds. I can play 1 maybe 2 songs standing up before my arm goes completely numb. I've got parts to build most of a Tele, just missing the body. I was thinking last night maybe I should get a pine body and let the soon to be purchased blank aclimate in my shed. Or maybe one of those super light Palowima(?) bodies. But I know nothing about how those sound. Anybody heard one of those? Generally speaking, is Palowina closer to an angel singing or a dog farting?
D F

If you encounter pine from your state of North Carolina, it's likely to be some variety of long leaf, southern, yellow pine, known in the lumber trade as SYP. Yellow pine is wonderful stuff for some applications, but there are some cautions to watch for. During the kiln drying process, SYP often tends to twist and check (crack in the direction of the grain). There is a big difference in texture between the summer and winter growth, causing alternating bands of hard and soft that can make chipping of the winter wood a possibility.

Even in kiln dried material, SYP can contain high levels of sap that will ooze right through some finishes. Avoid pieces that have a sticky feel or smell like turpentine.

Most SYP is heavier and harder than northern or western pine. Weight is a consideration for you, and somewhat better workability of the softer pine may be a factor. Ponderosa pine will be far more expensive, but it's mild and creamy in texture and is a real pleasure to work with. Sugar pine is in the same category and has excellent stability. It is a favorite of pattern makers due to it's ability to maintain it's shape. The extra dollars will be worth it.

Even in kiln dried material, SYP can contain high levels of sap that will ooze right through some finishes. Avoid pieces that have a sticky feel or smell like turpentine.

I use Polycrillic min-wax as my sealer exactly for that reason.

Plus the pine [40 year old+] I used farts gasses, and the softened [by the nitro's solvents] no wax shellac as the sealer I used on the first few just allowed some real bubble issues as a result.

The polycrillic as a sealer fixes this. A guitar builder told me about this, forget who it was, and it is one of the best finising tips I have heard received to date.

I fully understood the need for Fender to invent ans use Fullerplast after these experiences. ;O

If you want to fashion a tele out of pine to play country, it must be Lonesome Pine surely?

If you want to fashion a tele out of pine to play country, it must be Lonesome Pine surely?



Ba-dum-bum... :mrgreen:

If you encounter pine from your state of North Carolina, it's likely to be some variety of long leaf, southern, yellow pine, known in the lumber trade as SYP. Yellow pine is wonderful stuff for some applications, but there are some cautions to watch for. During the kiln drying process, SYP often tends to twist and check (crack in the direction of the grain). There is a big difference in texture between the summer and winter growth, causing alternating bands of hard and soft that can make chipping of the winter wood a possibility.

Even in kiln dried material, SYP can contain high levels of sap that will ooze right through some finishes. Avoid pieces that have a sticky feel or smell like turpentine.

Most SYP is heavier and harder than northern or western pine. Weight is a consideration for you, and somewhat better workability of the softer pine may be a factor. Ponderosa pine will be far more expensive, but it's mild and creamy in texture and is a real pleasure to work with. Sugar pine is in the same category and has excellent stability. It is a favorite of pattern makers due to it's ability to maintain it's shape. The extra dollars will be worth it.


Great post, absolutely on the money.

SYP is plentiful and cheap in the South (and it takes Copper Quat and other rot resisting chemicals super well for exterior use; avoid all treated wood for guitars, obviously) but it simply is so unstable that a guitar made of it would be heavier than necessary, most likely and would be a bear as the wood shrunk and expanded, twisted and checked over time.

I have some 70 year old first cut SYP and it is heavy and rock hard. And brittle. I bet it would blow out the first and every chance it got. So, love Dixie but don't use her pine for guitars. That would include Slash and Loblolly Pine timber, also (yes, there's a pine called Slash; Boy Scout's Honor).

When I was a kid my dad was building our house and used alot of yellow pine in the build. Remembering those days is why I posted the question in the first place. That was some nasty wood. Some of it was so hard you could hardly drive a nail through it. Warps and splits, oh yeah. Looked at acouple of places today first was a hardwoods specialty store, mostly flooring but they were willing to order some to meet my needs. Second didn't have much more than some guy with a hangover. Think I'm going to look online for some ponderosa if that doesn't work I'll go back to number one and have them order some.
I thank all of you for the info.this place is a wealth of information and has been a real blessing for me.
D F