Spalted Maple

[FernandoDuarte]

Hello guys!

I'm building (absolutely slowly) a guitar to a friend... It will have a Spalted/Burl Maple top and I'm trying to figure out how hard will be binding the guitar... The top is really soft, not much harder than "foam" :?

I bought a special router bit from StewMac, with a pilot, to make the binding in the right depth, but I'm afraid of the wood cracking and other kind of things alike...

Anybody could give me hints?
I'm not sure if Spalted Maple had been used in Brazil before, so I think I won't have any guy to ask advices here :?

Cheers! :drink:

[WezV]

that spalt will need hardening off before doing any work.

i did this one with west systems epoxy
 
http://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=9107.90

i have done others with thin superglue

[FernandoDuarte]

Yeah, that's what I thought... Although I can have super glue here, that kind of epoxy I would have to buy from UK or USA...

The superglue is fine or shall I buy the epoxy?

[the guitar repair workshop]

i like to make a thin scalpel line along the edge i'm routing out to help reduce tear out etc,

have a few passes over some scr@p if possible to give you a feel for it,

and wear a good mask so you arent breathing in the CA dust - it contains cyanide!

cheers,
steve

[WezV]

not to mention the spalt potentially finding a nice home in your lungs!!

[FernandoDuarte]

Thanks for the tips! :D

Wez, that epoxy that you've used does need a finish?
As the neck will be left raw, I'm thinking how I'll have to finish it, as people say P.U. is not good for finishing only a part of the guitar, like the edges start cracking...
That way I'm thinking in just oil finish it, but not sure about the top... if the epoxy will be ok as finish by itself, them will only finish with oil the back...

[WezV]

i have never left a spalted top with just an oil finish so i cannot really say how durable it would be... but i think organic guitars have done a few that way with good results.

I quite often have oiled necks on lacquered bodies and it works fine... easy to do on a bolt-on neck guitar obviously, but it works fine on set-necks and through necks too as long as you mask off the neck well

I have never been happy enough with the finish of the epoxy  by itself

[FernandoDuarte]

Thanks! :D