Today I was given a good amount of mahogany decking leftovers from a friend. I should be able to get three necks blanks out of each piece. Stupid question. I know mahogany is used for back and sides but not sure if it makes a good neck? Any thoughts on this? Thanks so much for all the answers I know I will get.

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  • Thanks to all for the advice. I am going to try a few different things with the mahogany, including laminating it, possibly striped with hard maple for a striped look. I think it would look good against the darker wood. I have sevnen pieces of 5/4 x 6, each about 4 ft long. I have plenty to play with.

    Thanks again to all, Jeff

  • Mahogany is perfect for a neck. But even with only 3 or 4 strings, I would suggest adding a truss rod. Especially if you go with a full scale length neck (frets at 24.75" to 25.5" scale perhaps).

    Or, as Jim mentioned, a vertical lamination of a few strips of mahogany with maybe, a pair of off setting dark hardwoods like walnut or oak for strength and a nice appearance.

  • Several of my commercial gits have mahogany necks. It's a tough hardwood that resists bending if the grain is running parallel to the neck axis. You could also saw some down for 1/4" thick fingerboards.
  • I too was given some mahogany flooring by a friend left over from a job. It makes wonderful necks. I usually try to make sure the grain direction is vertical to avoid warping. To do this I usually make a 2 or 3 piece neck by cutting the flooring about 7/8" and gluing the pieces together. About 6 necks made from this material and still enough for several more.

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