# Green log to Electric Bass?



## wmslayton (Aug 29, 2012)

Any recommendations for slicing and drying a green log to be used for building an Electric Bass guitar?

Curious about drying and whether to remove pith like on wood turnings. My bandsaw only has a cutting-height of 7 inches so I'll probably use my Ryobi 18" chainsaw.


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## woodman73446 (Feb 25, 2012)

*Drying of green wood for electric bass.*

You did not specify which species of wood you are using for your project. The species is critical when choosing stock for building an electric bass. The stability of the species used is paramount in building a long lasting, and usable musical instrument. Some species are not suitable at all for this kind of project.
All wood used in building any type of guitar or bass should be air dried for at least one year. First cut over sized "blanks" to be the body, and if using the same wood for the neck, cut over sized blanks for that too. Store the blanks in a semi dry place to let the wood dry naturally. Storing them with uniform 1 inch spacers between them to facilitate good air circulation for each piece of stock. By making the blanks longer, thicker, and wider than needed you should be able to cut the body and neck from those blanks. Every guitar manufacturer's shop I have visited, Gibson, Fender, B C Rich, (Bernardo Rico) at least 50% of their facility was dedicated to wood aging and storage.


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## MartinTaylor (Sep 26, 2013)

+ 1 on the species info. Also, the general rule of thumb for air drying timber is 1 year per 1" of thickness. So, if you cut/split your billets into blocks that are 2" thick then you will need to let them dry, stickered as mentioned above, for at least 2 years. The alternative is to take your billets to a lumber/timber yard that does their own kiln drying and see if they will put yours through when they are doing their next batch.


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## wmslayton (Aug 29, 2012)

Species of wood is Magnolia. Just for the body. Do you know whether the Magnolia density would work well for the body in comparison to other commonly used woods?


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## MartinTaylor (Sep 26, 2013)

According to Bootle, Magnolia, when properly dried, is similar to Mahogany so should be fine.


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