Haze Guitars - Custom Guitars & Basses - Instrument Repair


	Design Considerations

Construction materials
The information below is related to construction materials. Again, these questions can be answered definitively during the planning stages. This information however, will give you some ideas and a little thought now will speed the design discussions later.
It is worth noting that the information on the tonal qualities related to wood choice is slightly subjective. What follows is accepted wisdom and should be taken in an 'all things being equal' sort of way. Remember though, there are many things that influence the final sound of a guitar

Wood choice (body)
Depends completely on the look and sound that you want. Gibson were very fond of mahogany and used it in most of their classic models (SG and EBO, Explorer, Flying-V, Firebird and Thunderbird). Gibson also used mahogany for the bulk of the Les Paul (although they did slap a carved maple top on it). Fender most often used ash and sometimes alder for their bodies.
This is probably a good starting point for choice. If you want a Gibson style sound, you would be well advised to include a good chunk of mahogany in your instrument. If you want a Fender twang, something like ash might be a better bet. Some of the more common body woods are listed below with some notes.

Alder
Often used in Fender style guitars. More lightweight than ash. Little grain patterning. A bit boring for transparent finishes

Ash
Often used in Fender style guitars. Solid, hard wood. Light in colour with a good grain pattern for transparent or stained finishes. Good Fender sound. Good sustain.

Mahogany
Strong, heavy wood. Grain pattern differs depending on individual cuts. Looks great with stained or transparent finishes but can be used with coloured finishes too. Gives great, warm, Gibson-like tone. Good sustain.

Maple
Hard, strong and quite heavy wood. Straight grained maple can be used for bodies, necks, or facings. Figured maple (quilted, flamed, birds-eye) can be used for tops but is not recommended for necks as it can be unstable. Very bright tone, with bags of sustain.

Basswood
Softer and lighter than ash with a fairly non-distinct grain pattern. Generally provides a warm tone. Creamy colour - better for coloured finishes.

Poplar
Lightweight and often has a greenish tint. More suitable for coloured finishes. Tone somewhere between ash and basswood.

Wood choice (neck and fingerboard)
Not as much of a factor in how an instrument sounds but it does contribute. Most Fender guitar and bass necks are maple (sometimes with a rosewood fingerboard). Most Gibson necks are mahogany although they have been known to stick other materials on as necks.
It is relatively wise to stick to these materials. Not every wood is strong or stable enough to make a neck with.

The more common fingerboard materials are maple, rosewood and ebony. Maple generally gives a slightly brighter tone than the others when used as a fingerboard. Figured maple can be used for fingerboards and can look quite striking.
Rosewood is a dark brown wood that is often streaked with purple and greenish colours. Ebony is the 'none more black' wood. It can look great as a fingerboard. All of these woods are hard wearing with a tight grain structure.
Other woods such as cocobolo make excellent fingerboards but can be expensive and hard to come by.

Advice
Often the best advice is to keep it simple. The classic designs that are on the market have tones that you will be familiar with. Decide the sort of tone that you are after and we can work from there. If you are looking for a sharp, Fender twang, then an ash bodied guitar may well be the way to go. If you want something a bit warmer and middy, look at a mahogany bodied guitar.

One of the good things about having a custom guitar however, is that (within reason) you can get the look of one guitar with the sound of another. Like the feel and look of a Strat but want a warmer tone? No problem - we can look at making a mahogany bodied and necked guitar that will look similar to a Strat. That's why we keep telling you to 'have it your way'.