[Elijah]

Does it matter what kind of wood you use to fill it up? Do you have to match woods? The body is basswood... do i NEED to use basswood, or can i use something else and be ok and woul dthere be any benefits of using a different wood like mahogony or something??

[Neal]

I don't think it makes much of a difference. I know a guy who filled a couple single coil cavities with some putty or Bondo type stuff and that seemed to work fine.

[ibznorange]

you can use other wood, but its definately recommendable to use the same wood, if possible with about the same moisture content. Wood changes size with time do to humdity causing moisture gain/loss. different woods gain and lose moisture at different rates, so if you fill something that changes fast with somethign that changes slow, when the body shrinks, the cavity wont as much, and you can actually see the finish bulge in that spot. i know it sounds exaggerated, but its noticable. some luthiers (like sherman for example, since hes so very popular around here) wont even build guitars with certain wood combinations, since the shrink rates vary too much between them, and it can cause problems with the guitar down the road

[Elijah]

thanks a lot man. that's pretty much exactly what i was looking for

[Rick]

My friend just used wood filler. It came out looking great.

[TheMissing]

Originally Posted by ibznorange

you can use other wood, but its definately recommendable to use the same wood, if possible with about the same moisture content. Wood changes size with time do to humdity causing moisture gain/loss. different woods gain and lose moisture at different rates, so if you fill something that changes fast with somethign that changes slow, when the body shrinks, the cavity wont as much, and you can actually see the finish bulge in that spot. i know it sounds exaggerated, but its noticable. some luthiers (like sherman for example, since hes so very popular around here) wont even build guitars with certain wood combinations, since the shrink rates vary too much between them, and it can cause problems with the guitar down the road

You have to be really precise with these things. Mainly because you'll get buldges as ibz said, and with wood filler/epoxy it's possible that as the wood breaths you could crack the paint or get relief lines.

I've had to plug up holes in wood before, in my many woodworking projects. Just have patience and don't cut any corners and you should be fine.

[ibznorange]

Originally Posted by Rick

My friend just used wood filler. It came out looking great.

oh dont get me wrong, it will look just fine for a potentially long while, but eventually, as was said, you can get bulges or relief lines. thats not an immediate thing, it will look good for a while, maybe a long long while, but its a long term thing where it becomes a problem

[BigM555]

Just adding my
ibznorange is dead on. I agree with everything he's said. You could fill it with filler but it will be a much higher quality repair, less messy, and more durable if you use a similar wood.

BigM555

Edit: If possible you should orient the grain in the same direction as the original body wood as well. As wood picks up moisture it changes at different rates across the grain than it does with the grain.

[Rick]

Originally Posted by ibznorange

oh dont get me wrong, it will look just fine for a potentially long while, but eventually, as was said, you can get bulges or relief lines. thats not an immediate thing, it will look good for a while, maybe a long long while, but its a long term thing where it becomes a problem

Probably true. My 7420 is gonna be replaced as my main guitar soon anyway.

[ibznorange]

Originally Posted by Rick

Probably true. My 7420 is gonna be replaced as my main guitar soon anyway.

oh? that agile coming through?