Question: neck from Douglas Fir limb?

I had a bunch of limbs down from our fir trees, after our recent snowstorm. I was buzzing them all up for firewood when I noticed the tight grain. Some of these limbs are 4 to 6 inches in diameter, with sections that are straight enough to get a neck blank out of. Any reason not to dry one of these out, then use a quarter-section of it to make a tele neck? I've cut most of them up, but I'll bet I can still find a good piece or two.

Second question: should it be milled first, or dried first?

http://i824.photobucket.com/albums/zz167/hankstank/limbwood.jpg

I've never made a neck before, but after seeing so many builds in this year's Build Challenge, I think I'm ready to give it a shot.

I'd mill it roughly, then let it dry, then mill it to final dimension once it's dried; thing is, you're looking at 3-5 years' worth of drying 4" thick timber; enough for a neck blank will still take a couple years, and even then you might not have enough to work with if it cups too much. Rule of thumb is one year, covered and stickered, for each inch of thickness.

I understand and agree with the urge to use downed timber with some sentimental value, but the drawback is the time it takes before you can use it.

You can speed up the drying by putting it in the attic over the summer.

Having one of these helps. I check every piece of wood before I use it.

http://www.leevalley.com/en/images/item/woodworking/markmeasure/99n1501s1.jpg

I would be apprehensive about using pine for a neck. I would think it would be too soft, I've heard of anyone using it for a neck build.

I've heard of anyone using it for a neck build.

Yep... On the stability chart, in thin sections.... it's right after Margot Kidder and Randy Quaid..

Ron kirn

I would be apprehensive about using pine for a neck. I would think it would be too soft, I've heard of anyone using it for a neck build.
Douglas fir is a conifer, but is not pine. Quartersawn or riftsawn, 3/4" or thicker and well dried, it has an excellent stiffness to weight ratio, otherwise it would not be used for masts and spars for wooden boats (where it has a long history).
The following are my first,crude attempts at guitar building and neck making. I worked as a remodeler at the time and had doug fir baseboard stock and luan to play with. These are between 31 and 26 yrs old (though the pickups have been replaced), crude as hell, but still play just fine :smile:

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-LaUog0WINAI/TvyG8CovQ9I/AAAAAAAAAac/SPmJM-57HzQ/s800/Img_0006.JPG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-0CPT4mg0mvE/TvyG8X8T9zI/AAAAAAAAAag/2n394pfDEPM/s800/Img_0007.JPG


https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-tp7TuyuAbbg/TvyHQy2gBMI/AAAAAAAAAbw/_PCGq2jXlfU/s800/HEADLESS1.JPG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-43UVayxJUMU/TvyHRPcLv5I/AAAAAAAAAb0/c4_YPNQNiZ0/s800/HEADLESS3.JPG


https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-MNA8VqH7oXY/TvyHHLZUZ2I/AAAAAAAAAbY/7v28SB5Mj88/s800/IM000708.JPG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-mWEf7JL1OSw/TvyHHOfYsjI/AAAAAAAAAbI/yLblSR3XE2M/s800/IM000710.JPG





Dave

I think you would be fine if it was not limb wood. Limb wood has some of the same properties as wood from a tree grown on a steep slope. There is compression wood from the bottom of the limb and the top would be opposite of that. Think of the forces of gravity.
On a straight standing trunk of the tree all the forces acting on the wood are equal, on a tree limb there is reaction wood top and bottom.
But, even though this is all true, you may be all right if properly seasoned and if you quarter the wood. Hey this is an inexact science so I say give it a shot. I would also try to orient the top of the branch as the back of the neck. It should have a tendency to bow backwards against string tension, though this is theoretical because I've never used limb wood for a neck. All practice building is good building. ;-)

That's the Doug Fir I'm talking about. Not pine. It's classified as a hardwood, though I'm sure it's not as hard as maple or mahogany. I thought a quartersawn piece might be stiff enough to hold up as a neck.

I'm more interested in the idea of using wood that grows locally--I've had some myrtlewood slabs drying for bodies--than in necessarily using wood from my own property. Maybe I'll find a piece of fir that's already dry, and give it a shot.