What's with our obsession with wood?

I love leather as well, the older and more patina on it the better. theres a natural reaction we have to organic materials and enviroments. I live in a big city, but when I have a chance to go upstate and be in nature I feel better, more centralized within myself, I dont know if that sounds strange but its the way I feel.
 
This is a fantastic discussion.

I'll tell you I can't play a lick on a guitar but have almost bought one on a few occasions because it was so damn pretty.

My taste in cues has changed over the years as well. I'd like to think it's because I've matured but many would argue with that idea.

Wood and other natural things or formations can be quite elegant in their simplicity. They also can be quite abstract. And of course, some things in nature are incredibly complex.

What I like about cues (and many other things) is that some amazingly talented people can blend nature and fine craftsmanship. I'm often awestruck by the outcome. Eric Crisp, Murray Tucker, and others have more than talent and skill. Some people set themselves apart by having vision. I suppose wood sometimes surprises you, but I believe you guys see things in wood that others can't imagine is there. Thanks for sharing your gifts with us!
 
I live in a big city, but when I have a chance to go upstate and be in nature I feel better, more centralized within myself, I dont know if that sounds strange but its the way I feel.
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Not strange at all. I used to make it a habit to drive thru the Rockies every summer.
When I'm in the mountains, I get energized for the rest of the year.
 
qbilder said:
I am fortunate to have the experience of seeing wood cut fresh from the tree. Having a sawmill, I get to open a log for the first time. It's incredible the changes that occur over a period of several minutes. Walnut is green & vivid, steadily darkening to it's normal dull chocolate brown that we all know walnut to be. When first cut, it's as beautiful as anything. Same with piss elm. It's a crimson red/orange that seems like it should burn if you touch it, but within days it turns to a pale grey/brown. I have cut oak that looked black & purple, but it doesn't last, soon turning to common oak brown. No wood gets better with age. They're all most beautiful immediately after the first cut. The only exception would be spalted stuff.
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You need to get some pictures of this on here, I'm sure we'd all love to see it.
 
RRfireblade said:
Mmm wood.....

Da_Boyz.jpg
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Nothing like a slab of mohagony for tone hehe.
 
Blue Hog ridr said:
I was lucky in that my Father was a fantastic carpenter. I was able to learn a little from him. When I was 8 yrs old or so, I would be in the garage ripping kite ribs on the table saw after school unsupervised.

My Father either trusted me or he didn't like me, one or the other.
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Ha, ha! I don't think my father liked me. He left me unsupervised with the liquor cabinet unlocked.

Blue Hog ridr said:
Doing hobby wood work requires very little space in the basement. You can get away with basic hand tools, a small band saw, drill press and scroll saw. and of course,
a small wood lathe.
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A very good start, but let's not forget the most important tools of all - dust management equipment. When I began woodworking almost 50 years ago nobody gave much thought to the dangers of wood dust inhalation. You just blew your nose and out came buggers in various shades and hues. My favorite was pernambuco, which is a rich orange to brown, but makes red snot in your sinuses once the water-soluble dye it contains hits that wet mucus.

Who knows just how much lasting damage we all caused ourselves back then. Kinda hard to tell if it was all the cigarette and pot smoke, the solvents, or the dust itself, but my lungs ain't in the best shape anymore.

Times have changed. When I worked for Woodcraft, our number one selling type of powered equipment was dust control machines. Dust collectors for chips and nuisance dust, but much more important, air filtration units for fine particulate matter.
 
hang-the-9 said:
When you're done building it, send it over for a test :thumbup:
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If you like guitars, here's a real nice piece of eye candy. Pre-embargo Brazilian rosewood, at least 60 years old. The slab is 4' long, 22" wide, and 1.4" thick. It used to be a Danish coffee table before I spotted it in an antique store in Hudson, NY. I bought it ($$$$), de-legged it on the spot, and stuck it in the back of my car.

Still deciding if I should cut this up for guitar wood or cues. Either way, it sure is some pretty special stuff.
 

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