Bloodwood guitar

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bonethug

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Hey guys I was wondering about making a guitar out of bloodwood. I hear that the tonal quality is great and balanced and that its tough ass wood that is also beautiful to look at. Every sight I've visited has had great things to say, with the exception of Ed Roman but he's a total douche bag tool that doesn't know shit. It's also pretty cheap! wich is a total plus for me:metal:

With that being said I'd like some information not only on the wood but how to make a compound radius fretboard. I plan on the entire guitar to be made out of blood wood with the exception of the fretboard being crafted out of gabon ebony and of course the hardware. Jackson slsmg style reversed headstock and shark tooth inlays (bloodwood). Super strat body neck through. If you guys know anyone who's made a guitar out of bloodwood already let me know! And thanks for dropping by:cool:
 

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Purelojik

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if i remember correctly , i hear it tears out quite frequently when using a router but that was just for fretbaords, thats why LMII doesnt radius bloodwood boards cause they use routers on them. otherwise it'd be a killer guitar dude.

good luck!
 

bonethug

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Do you suggest I do it by hand? Cause I'm totally down for not having to buy machinery.
 

T Nelson

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If you try to use radiused sanding blocks, be ready to have the most fun you have ever experienced! but seriously, radiusing by hand suuccckks, if you have access to a belt sander to rough it in and then complete the radius by hand, it will make your life 100000 times easier.
 

scherzo1928

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Nah, I don't think that machining blodwood is that bad. They said the same thing about birdseye maple, and I've had no problems routing it. It's just that routing the entire radius with a single bit on 1 or 2 passes is just asking to get some tear out.

As for the guitar itself, I'm pretty sure RestorationAD (posts around here, mostly in the dealers section) has made one out of bloodwood... or maybe it was padauk? I'd still message him if I were you, dude knows his stuff and is very helpful.

edit: Yes he has!
Front_B.jpg
 

bonethug

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Nah, I don't think that machining blodwood is that bad. They said the same thing about birdseye maple, and I've had no problems routing it. It's just that routing the entire radius with a single bit on 1 or 2 passes is just asking to get some tear out.

As for the guitar itself, I'm pretty sure RestorationAD (posts around here, mostly in the dealers section) has made one out of bloodwood... or maybe it was padauk? I'd still message him if I were you, dude knows his stuff and is very helpful.

edit: Yes he has!
Front_B.jpg

It's just to damn gorgeous for words. I've heard what your saying, bloodwood is rough as hell on bits and tools. It's def something to consider when doing my build.

Ya I'll message him, thanks for the help!
 

Purelojik

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Nah, I don't think that machining blodwood is that bad. They said the same thing about birdseye maple, and I've had no problems routing it. It's just that routing the entire radius with a single bit on 1 or 2 passes is just asking to get some tear out.

As for the guitar itself, I'm pretty sure RestorationAD (posts around here, mostly in the dealers section) has made one out of bloodwood... or maybe it was padauk? I'd still message him if I were you, dude knows his stuff and is very helpful.

edit: Yes he has!
Front_B.jpg

thats padauk. i made a guitar body with that wood. seriously its such a gorgeous red and when it oxidizes to brown it still looks amazing.
 

Purelojik

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damn ok i stand corrected.

heres the build i did in india where paduk was abundant and cheap.

capture18_8_25.jpg


capture18_8_19.jpg


it looked so similar to it that i went with paduk. Thanks for the correction!
 

troyguitar

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I used it for a couple of my fretboards and it worked great but I don't have any experience with it beyond that. It is a really nice looking wood though. I bet it would feel fantastic with no finish on the back of the neck.
 

Hollowway

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Keep in mind that uv light turns blood wood brown, so you'll want to use a uv blocker to slow down the process. Bloodwood is beautiful, but you want to me sure you don't just have a brown guitar in 5-10 years.
 

Purelojik

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Keep in mind that uv light turns blood wood brown, so you'll want to use a uv blocker to slow down the process. Bloodwood is beautiful, but you want to me sure you don't just have a brown guitar in 5-10 years.

i thought that bloodwood was the one that didnt turn brown? i know paduk does cause my guitars neck is half brown already . its kinda cool
 

HighPotency

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Keep in mind that uv light turns blood wood brown, so you'll want to use a uv blocker to slow down the process. Bloodwood is beautiful, but you want to me sure you don't just have a brown guitar in 5-10 years.
Bloodwood doesn't oxidize to brown like most other red woods.
 

Hollowway

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Bloodwood doesn't oxidize to brown like most other red woods.

Where are you getting that info? Every resource I've used says it does darken, and should be kept out of direct sunlight. It doesn't discolor as fast as some others, but the wood sources I've talked with said it definitely does darken to a brownish red, and should be protected with a coating and kept out of sunlight. It's the most stable of the deep red woods, but it's far from impervious to color change. I've got a couple of guitars with bloodwood, and would love for them to not discolor over time, but I'm not taking any chances, personally.

Edit: If you do know this for sure, definitely let me know. I absolutely love red woods, but I loathe brown ones, and I'd love to use a bunch in a future build if it's color stable.
 

bonethug

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They change but for the better. They dont turn brown with age but into a deep red from what I'm hearing.
 
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