Corkcaster or Birkencaster?

Okay, I'm thinking reading all these partscaster builds. Has anyone ever built a Corkcaster?
I've worn Birks since I was nineteen. Worked as a manager at a zen Birkenstock retail store. See the worlds collide in that sentence.
Anyhoo. Cork and jute, neck thru body.Sweet pups,nice bridge,etc.

Whaddiyuh think that would sound like?

I am he as you are he as you are me and we are all together.

je suis, h2otorched

Drink and smoke Pot much?? What are you on about?

I doubt it would sound too good, but it would be a fun idea. I've been wearing Birks since my knee surgeries about 15 years ago. Love them.

kiwi_caster, I am sitting here trying to have a 'light' frame of mind.
I spent the day sitting at my Moms' side in Critical Care, where she was given 3 units of blood last night.
Her hemoglobin level was just over 3. It should of been 12+. It 's now 9.
My Mom has hepatic encelopathy.
All I'm trying to do is relax and read about Telecasters, before I face another day sitting next to a hospital bed holding my Moms' hand.
Really.
h2otorched aka Don

Don, best of luck to your mother, and my she come through it unharmed. Then build as many corkcasters as you like.

Thank you MatthewK

Don

Maybe do a wood core with the edges wrapped with a cork veneer with jute binding and full front leather pickguard.

Best wishes for your Mom !

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_P09jpHp5b_U/RcuZHK--GgI/AAAAAAAAAXI/QHyAeBOEAQY/s400/tie%2Bdye%2BGary.jpg

Do it.

Please.

Put an end to tone arguments! or start a million more?

I bet you can do it, have it sound good and be super comfy to hold/play, and it'll take falls really well!

My wishes are with your mother.

I'm liking the idea of a wood body with cork veneer. Or cork around the edges and a jute "binding", might be a kind of cool look. I know cork flooring is supposed to be an excellent sound deadener so I would be weary of building the whole body of cork, that being said you never know till you try it.

Ooo, and you have to have a leather pickguard to carry on the Birk theme. Do a suede strap with Birk buckles. I'm a big fan of Birks so I'm loving the whole theme idea. How sweet would it be to get a sheet of the soul material to put on the back for the full on Birk look. OK, maybe too much, just sayin'

I hope your Mom gets better and soon. Thinking about guitars is a great distraction.

Use wine bottle corks or premium whisky stoppers for control knobs.

I'm in the "veneer" camp myself. Don't see why you couldn't build a nice looking Tele that way. Not sure about the neck-through, but that's just a matter of personal taste.

Best wishes sent for your mom.

First of all: Best of luck to your mom...

My first thoughts were along the lines that cork, being less dense than wood, would soak up a lot of the string's energy and damp considerably. But then I remember working with cork paneling and how it has a certain resonance to it when you thump it. I would bet that it will accentuate certain lower frequencies and damp out certain highs. Maybe the only way to find out is to do it and give us a clip of what it sounds like, eh? (Caution: I suspect you'll need some sort of rigid backbone to counteract string tension as cork IMO won't)

Thanks all for your best wishes for my Mom. Yes, guitars can be a good distraction.
I like the strap buckle idea, that's cool. Leather pickguard yep! My beginning thought was Birks are made under a lot of pressure, taking the bark of a tree
Compressing it with layers of jute and glue. Compressed fibers sorta like a tree. If you could make a Heidi Klum Birkencaster maybe Seal would play it!
: )
Thanks again, Don

Cork controls check! Crazy now, could you use a glass pickguard to add highs?
Would that do anything?

Well, the only thing I would be concerned about is the absorbency of cork. It is used quite a bit as a sound insulator in music studios. So it may very well "absorb" all of the natural tone. It may just make the electrical tone muddy. I have been contemplating on using cork as a guitar body for a while as well.

Maybe you could just do a cork pickguard or inlay sections of cork onto the face. Just a thought. I'm a big fan of unusual pickguard materials.