neck wood on a f512nt

[lavern23]

I am new to this forum and have been reading the threads quite a while and felt unworthly to comment since I didn't own a Guild. well now i do.
I purchased 1978 f512nt and it got damaged in shipping and went to a "luthier" that botched it up worse and is at another luthier and things are moving along quite nicely. Because of the botched up job done by the previous luthier the neck binding had to be removed and the neck needed to be stripped to do a quality repair job. My New Luthier says he thinks the neck is made of teak wood and not mahogany. Does anyone have any information to confirm this. It sure is pretty!!

Thanks in advance.

 

[hansmoust]

I purchased 1978 f512nt and it got damaged in shipping and went to a "luthier" that botched it up worse and is at another luthier and things are moving along quite nicely. Because of the botched up job done by the previous luthier the neck binding had to be removed and the neck needed to be stripped to do a quality repair job. My New Luthier says he thinks the neck is made of teak wood and not mahogany.

Hello lavern,

Welcome! What your luthier says is partly correct; it is not mahogany. During that particular period Guild used 'padouk' for the necks of some of the high-end guitars like the F-50R, the F-512 and the D-55.

Sincerely,

Hans Moust
http://www.guitarsgalore.nl

 

[cuthbert]

I purchased 1978 f512nt and it got damaged in shipping and went to a "luthier" that botched it up worse and is at another luthier and things are moving along quite nicely. Because of the botched up job done by the previous luthier the neck binding had to be removed and the neck needed to be stripped to do a quality repair job. My New Luthier says he thinks the neck is made of teak wood and not mahogany.

Hello lavern,

Welcome! What your luthier says is partly correct; it is not mahogany. During that particular period Guild used 'padouk' for the necks of some of the high-end guitars like the F-50R, the F-512 and the D-55.

Sincerely,

Hans Moust
http://www.guitarsgalore.nl

Interesting choice, BTW. I've some experience with Padouk, it's a beautiful wood, blood red, similar to mahogany but much denser...I never understood why it's not more popular among guitarmakers.

 

[chazmo]

I purchased 1978 f512nt and it got damaged in shipping and went to a "luthier" that botched it up worse and is at another luthier and things are moving along quite nicely. Because of the botched up job done by the previous luthier the neck binding had to be removed and the neck needed to be stripped to do a quality repair job. My New Luthier says he thinks the neck is made of teak wood and not mahogany.

Hello lavern,

Welcome! What your luthier says is partly correct; it is not mahogany. During that particular period Guild used 'padouk' for the necks of some of the high-end guitars like the F-50R, the F-512 and the D-55.

Sincerely,

Hans Moust
http://www.guitarsgalore.nl

Welcome to LTG, Lavern. I hope your F-512 gets returned to you in great condition this time. Quality repair work on those old Guilds can sometimes be expensive, but will be well worth it to get back a great guitar. I have my fingers crossed for you. Again, welcome to the board. Be sure to post up some before and after pictures if you can. We're always interested in stuff like that.

 

[Cashdog]

Sorry to hear about the damage. Sounds like the new luthier will get things sorted out for you. (Course this would be a good time to pick up the second Guild. That way you'd have one to play while the other is down.)

How long did the padouk period last? I'm specifically wondering about the neck on my '84 F512.

Mark

 

[GardMan]

...I've some experience with Padouk, it's a beautiful wood, blood red, similar to mahogany but much denser...I never understood why it's not more popular among guitarmakers.

From what I have read, the downsides to padauk are that (1) it's heavy and (2) it's oily, and hard to get the finish to adhere well...

 

[cuthbert]

...I've some experience with Padouk, it's a beautiful wood, blood red, similar to mahogany but much denser...I never understood why it's not more popular among guitarmakers.

From what I have read, the downsides to padauk are that (1) it's heavy and (2) it's oily, and hard to get the finish to adhere well...

1)Yes, very! I don't know if it's heavier than flamed maple, tough.

2) A luthier friend o'mine used it extensively, and I recall that the grain is much more compact than mahogany, therefore it was easier to seal, but you may be right as well, anyway, he preferred to work with padouk than with mahogany, that makes that thin red dust that goes everywhere when you sand it.

Out of curiosity, did Guild use it only on 12 strings or even in other guitars? The neck of my D-25 is very heavy, and I thought it was a very dense slab of mahogany, but now that you make me made the connection, it might be padouk as well...

 

[lavern23]

Thanks for the warm welcome. The color of the padouk wood as you all call it looks muck like the hull of the old chris craft boats. It is much prettier once stripped. Guild really hid the natural beauty of this wood with the original finish. I have chosen to have it redone as a satin finish so that it is easier to play and hope it will have the feel of a Taylor with that finish. I will try to come up with a few pics of before. It was a total hack job. The frets were too long and stuck out past the board and the neck was reset crooked. There was glue all over it where he used it in excess. I thought it was a total loss and thought about burning it. When I found the luthier that has it now he agreed to do it for free if it didn't suite me. I can't wait til it's done!

 

[hansmoust]

How long did the padouk period last? I'm specifically wondering about the neck on my '84 F512. Mark

Hello Mark,

Knowing how instruments were produced at Guild there's probably no straight cut-off line for the use of padouk but I would think that by 1984 padouk necks were history.

Out of curiosity, did Guild use it only on 12 strings or even in other guitars? The neck of my D-25 is very heavy, and I thought it was a very dense slab of mahogany, but now that you make me made the connection, it might be padouk as well...

I've only seen padouk necks in combination with rosewood back & sides. Padouk has a very distinct grain, so if you can show us a close up photo of the back of the headstock, we should be able to see if it is really padouk or something else on your D-25 or Mark's 1984 F-512, for that matter!

Sincerely,

Hans Moust
http://www.guitarsgalore.nl

 

[Cashdog]

Thanks Hans. I assume mine would be mahogany then. I do have a friend who owns a late 70's F50R. I'll have to compare them one of these days.

Mark

 

[hansmoust]

I do have a friend who owns a late 70's F50R. I'll have to compare them one of these days.

Mark

When you do, try to make some photos. It might give me some valuable info for my database.

Sincerely,

Hans Moust
http://www.guitarsgalore.nl

 

[Cashdog]

Will do Hans. May take me a week or two, but I can definetly get you some photos.

Mark