Side warping question

[Danny Seamon]

The best wenge board I could find had a couple of inches of the edge that was not as vertical grained as it should have been but I decided to try it. After thicknessing the sides to .08, it warped in this section. I have pretty much decided not to use it because of this but was interested if you guys have had this experience and what the considerations are. I did bend this section basically to shape (dreadnaught) and it seemed to straighten a lot of the warped section but I am still concerned. There is too much work in a guitar to take a chance with this if my suspicions are correct that I may regret using it down the road. Anyway, I'm just interested in any comments you would have. [I tried to get a picture but the slight warp wouldn't show up in a picture. By the way, the back also has the same kind of grain section turned toward the inside and glued that way. I haven't thicknessed it yet so I don't know what it will do either. As always, thanks for your help. Danny

[Chuck Tweedy]

Just because the grain went slightly off quarter, should not send it into a stability-tailspin.
Is this wood dry?

[Michael Lewis]

I get rid of ripples and other irregularities in sides by clamping the part between sheets of .012" metal against the inside surface of my body form along with a heating blanket. By bringing the wood to the temperature where it yields to light force, and clamping it firmly against the form then letting it cool, you will have very little unevenness in the surfaces of the sides, which leaves much less to sand out. This method is great for touching up a bend in a short section, or however long you need.

[Danny Seamon]

Chuck, I don't have a moisture meter so I'm not sure whether the wood was dry. It was bought as a 4/4 board that I assumed was kiln dried. I'm not sure that one can tell but it didn't "seem" wet from how it felt or worked. My shop isn't conditioned but is insulated and stays between 40 and 60% humidity.

[Steve Senseney]

I made one guitar out of Wenge.

The side did not warp much.

I did cut a small strip of the side to use as binding. These small pieces twisted so badly, that I did not use them for the binding strips.

I only have the one experiece with Wenge.

[Michael Lewis]

Moisture in sides gets cooked out in the process, so I wouldn't blame excess moisture for the cupping. It is important to control the wood when it achieves bending temperature, make it go where you want it and hold it there while it cools. The previous sentence is worth repeating several times until it becomes imbedded in your mind.

[Danny Seamon]

Michael,

The cupping was in the side before bending. After bending it is mostly gone.

Danny

[Barry Daniels]

The lack of humidity control will cause movement of wood, sometimes in unexpected ways.

[Michael Lewis]

Sounds like the wood was not quite dry when you got it, but all is well as long as you worked the cupping out.

[Danny Seamon]

Thanks to all for your help. Forgive me for a couple more questions. After resawing, how do you handle? Do you sticker? Do you put a board on top with weight to prevent any movement while it's drying? I've heard two theories. One theory is to let the wood dry with no weight on top so it conforms to the shape it wants to end up in....then use the good wood and throw out the bad? The other theory I've heard is to add weight on top to prevent movement while drying so it remains flat.

[Michael Lewis]

Typically tone wood is stacked and stickered for final drying immediately after resawing. This usually requires a weight on the top of the stack to help keep things flat. The idea is to keep the wood in the form or shape as it dries so it stays that way. If you let it dry without any "help" it may become unusable.

[Chuck Tweedy]

Just to add:
I put 1/4" non-staining (I think mine are poplar) stickers every 8" all in the same place in the stack.
Really I use 4 for backs and 5 for sides so it is likely less than 8".
Build that stack on a flat surface, and sticker a piece of 1/2" to 3/4" ply (same shape as wood) on top and then weight over that. Instead of ply, you can use a stack of already dry sides/backs.
If the wood is nearly dry, then it should be stabilized in a couple months or so, maybe quite a bit less.

[Danny Seamon]

Thank you guys for such clear instructions. You've been a great help.