-
What do you make of the finish on this 18" Trenier acoustic ?
This is an archtop that's been advertised on line for some time, and I've requested to receive more descriptive close up photos. This is one the seller sent, but this seller combines 10 shots of an archtop into 1 longgggg verticle jpeg. I cropped the areas in question, and did my best to blow up the 2 photos to gain a closer look. What you see is not a result of my having blown the photo up.
Could this be some sort of special effect finishing that I've not seen before?
-
03-10-2014 07:24 PM
-
I see some probable bearclaw in the spruce.... other than that I just see reflections ...
Good price, reasonably trusted seller, but you know how photos and the Internet work.
Bryant himself might give you a straight answer, he should know the instrument.
-
Are you referring to the 'silking' pattern in the spruce grain? Silking is the observable medullary rays in the wood. Medullary rays are about 1 cell in width and 8 to 12 cells high and they extend radially from the center of a tree out to the bark at right angles to the grain of the wood. They serve two functions when the tree is growing - they bind the longitudinal fibers together and they carry nutrients. It shows up in spruce that is perfectly quartersawn. It's found in the best spruce tops from what a local Luthier we both know told me earlier today when showing me a pre-war Epiphone he's working on.
Last edited by skykomishone; 03-10-2014 at 08:02 PM.
-
if you're trying to view the photo on anything other than a full sized desktop you're likely not able to see it. It's not silking...that's a natural part of the wood. It's in the finish....it runs vertical, not horzontal, beginning just to the right of the bass side f-hole, in the burst area, and runs from the end of the fretboard all the way down to the tailpiece.
-
see it now?
-
Greg...write Bryant and ask
-
i dont see anything. what am i looking for?
-
yes, I know it's possible to contact the builder...I'm just reluctant to take of his time since the guitar is being sold used by a dealer.
this guitar hasn't been properly displayed on its ad...which I believe is why it has been available for so long. I don't get some of these sellers.
On my 27" iMac desktop the shading over the longitudinal vertical runs of the top grain appeared very uneven...as if this finish was done for a purposeful effect. Sorry, if I shot the guitar you'd easily see what the heck it is I'm referring to...there's nothing I can do with another's photo, except blow it up, as I did.
-
There is only one person who knows the instrument and his name is Bryant. I am sure he would be happy to answer your question. Suit yourself...
-
No . . . skykomishone is correct. That is definitely cross medular rays . . or silking . . and it's beautiful!!! I see absolutley no hazelficht in that spruce. The color and the shading of that guitar is off the charts beautiful.
-
Call and ask Buzzy Levine at Lark Street the dealer where it' s for sale. They'll be straight w/ you!
-
you mean the line that in the left hand shot that begins under the bass side post of the bridge down to the t.p.?
-
I don't see anything unusual except a really fine piece of soundboard material. Excellent silk like that is usually only seen in high quality perfectly quartered wood with minimal runout. I suspect the maker used a sharp fine scraper to prep the top before applying finish. To get silk to stand up like that one almost has to burnish the wood. I often see similar in a load of very high quality Englemann Spruce tops I picked up a few years back.
Last edited by Scot Tremblay; 03-10-2014 at 11:33 PM.
-
I see it now, plain as day. I'll defer to the wood experts but it looks ok to me.
i've never heard the term silking when talking about spruce grain, but it makes sense. I have observed a few spruce tops that looked like cashmere to me.
-
Greg: The acoustic SE that I passed on a few months back had similar silking. On the lower bout it was absolutely unreal. I believe I sent you photos of that.
I very impressed with Bryant's work. I tols you about another 18" Trenier at John Reynolds shop that I played when I last visited with him. Couldn't find a single thing about that guitar that I didn't like. It was an absolute winner. I'm going to stop in and visit with Buzzy later this week to check this one out too. (Don't worry . . I'm not going to steal it out from under you. lolol)
-
Originally Posted by fumblefingers
Yes. Silking is the name given to the medullary rays/sheets/ribbons, which are important to the tree for binding the fibers together and carrying the nutrients throughout the tree. The pattern can be different looking depending on the species (spruce, cedar, maple...) and where the sample is from within the tree.
Wood workers use different names to identify the feature depending on what the pattern looks like. The one above is probably what I would call "Lace", there's "bees wings" which kind of looks like the wings of a bee, "bee stings", are usually paisley shaped....you get the picture.
Seeing a good bit of silk in a piece of wood is a good thing if you are a luthier or guitar player. It usually means that the wood is top notch.
That top in the Gibson is amazing...a lot of builders would give their....well, never mind...they'd die for that top.
If you look here, there are a bunch of photos showing many variations.
-
top looks fine wood but is there a crack in the wood behind the bass side bridge post ? Or just reflection of some sort
superb guitars - play some of our boardmember Kamplapati on youtube . On his acoustic clips you can hear the particular sound of the Treniers well
-
If you're talking about the alternating dark/light vertical lines, it looks as though the spruce grain (rings) just absorbed the stain that way. As if each ring took the stain individually. I think it looks cool.
-
Wow a ton of posts about wood figuring and not one about how it sounds? I'm into guitars and girls that have great figures as well, but I'd be more concerned about the sound and playability if I was planning on marrying that guitar,lol!
-
Well, at this point no one has yet played the guitar . . so how could anyone accurately comment on how it sounds or plays? Originally Posted by jads57
However, in this particular case . . spruce showing extreme cross medullary rays, or silking is said to produce a more rapid and brighter tonal response due to an increase in its stiffness. I'm really not sure if that's correct or not. But, stiffer is always better.
-
I see an E string reflection, and 2 more prominent lines of grain, one running from the top lobe of the f-hole and one running from the cleft of the f-hole.
Last edited by Jabberwocky; 03-11-2014 at 11:49 AM.
-
Being on the left coast, 2b's always late to the party. Okay, sounds like it's silking after all...Steve had the right call after all... I've simply never seen it so prominently displayed in that manner....'bees wings', stingers...that archtop obviously has it all.
Funny thing, before I asked for more prominent pics, the seller only had 2 very distant pics of the entire archtop on his ad for months...one from the front and back. Here it is...
The pick guard has to go....if you must P, and it speaks to you, go 4 it....Report back with your impressions. I finally had to pass on the one at JR's...I couldn't bond with the aesthetics. I'm just not a fan of natural wood binding that blends with the shade of the rest of the guitar.Last edited by 2bornot2bop; 03-11-2014 at 04:38 PM.
-
Greg> the pick guard in the photos you posted is not the same as the photos from Buzzy's web site. Looks like someone already changed out the PG? Originally Posted by 2bornot2bop
-
That's why that PG looks so horrid!!!
Got a link?
-
guess you did skip over my post as I did comment on sound - they sound great and there are several youtube clips to demonstrate .... Originally Posted by jads57
ah well my wife also doesnt listen to me so why complain here
Reply With Quote
“Shearing style”
Today, 05:26 PM in Comping, Chords & Chord Progressions