# Bloodwood guitar



## bonethug (Mar 25, 2012)

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

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


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## Purelojik (Mar 25, 2012)

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!


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## bonethug (Mar 25, 2012)

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


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## BlackMastodon (Mar 25, 2012)

bonethug said:


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


Until you start working on it .


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## T Nelson (Mar 25, 2012)

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.


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## scherzo1928 (Mar 25, 2012)

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!


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## bonethug (Mar 25, 2012)

scherzo1928 said:


> 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!



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!


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## Purelojik (Mar 25, 2012)

scherzo1928 said:


> 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!



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.


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## scherzo1928 (Mar 25, 2012)

Purelojik said:


> 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.


 
see fot yourself.
Guitar Logistics: Carnage S907_3


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## UnderTheSign (Mar 25, 2012)

Doesn't look like padauk to me, more like bloodwood.

Why not bloodwood? - TalkBass Forums here's some talk on using bloodwood for tops, so it's doable.


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## Purelojik (Mar 25, 2012)

damn ok i stand corrected. 

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











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


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## troyguitar (Mar 25, 2012)

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.


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## scherzo1928 (Mar 25, 2012)

Purelojik said:


> damn ok i stand corrected.
> 
> heres the build i did in india where paduk was abundant and cheap.


 
Whoa, does look very similar. He's also got a padauk flying v or something...


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## Hollowway (Mar 25, 2012)

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.


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## Purelojik (Mar 25, 2012)

Hollowway said:


> 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


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## Lorcan Ward (Mar 25, 2012)

scherzo1928 said:


>



WOW!!! That is nice!!


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## HighPotency (Mar 25, 2012)

Hollowway said:


> 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.


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## bonethug (Mar 25, 2012)

HighPotency said:


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



Thats true if anything it turns into a deeper darker sexier red with age.


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## Hollowway (Mar 25, 2012)

HighPotency said:


> 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.


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## bonethug (Mar 25, 2012)

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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## HighPotency (Mar 25, 2012)

Everywhere I've read about it has said that. Even LMII, which is where I first head this:



LMII said:


> Bloodwood is a bolder red color then either Paduak or Bois d&#8217; Rose, but has the advantage of not oxidizing to a warmer color over time. For this reason it is often used as decorative binding and inlay by luthiers and furniture makers alike.


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## AwakenNoMore (Mar 26, 2012)

Used some bloodwood on my custom build, it does indeed like to chip out and the sanding dust can be irritating.


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## Hollowway (Mar 26, 2012)

HighPotency said:


> Everywhere I've read about it has said that. Even LMII, which is where I first head this:



Huh. Well that's cool, then. I saw this, and similar:
"A bright, vivid red. Color can darken to a darker brownish red over time with exposure to light and air. Applying a thick protective finish, and keeping the wood out of direct sunlight can help minimize this color shift."

I've been avoiding doing another build with it because I'm so paranoid about the browning, but now I'm going to fire up something with it! Thanks for pointing that out.


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## IkarusOnFire (Mar 26, 2012)

I have a chess-piece set with bloodwood and boxwood. The bloodwood looks very nice - straight, tight grain. However - they're not a lustrous red color. They've gone darker/browner. It's a set from House of Staunton, so I am sure it is bloodwood


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## Danukenator (Mar 26, 2012)

Bloodwood is very very hard. It does seem prone to chatter when planing.

I also had a piece that was two separate pieces glued together and planed down to a quarter inch, warped like a fucking banana.


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## bonethug (Mar 26, 2012)

Danukenator said:


> Bloodwood is very very hard. It does seem prone to chatter when planing.
> 
> I also had a piece that was two separate pieces glued together and planed down to a quarter inch, warped like a fucking banana.



Really? i heard it was stable as a rock. With the issue of chipping could i just oil the wood before cutting?


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