b'Opposite page: Snakewood from Surinam. One of the hardest,A pile of European Spruce tops from about 1985.This is what stiffest and most beautiful timbers, but only available in smallis left over after selecting the best guitar tops from a large sizes. I can buy this in ready cut pieces for bindings and veneers,consignment. It is still excellent material, but Ill probably only but once again I prefer to buy the whole log and have it cut so Iuse it for mandolins after cutting away the wider grain. Its a can make my own choicesvery good way of getting the best material for both styles of This page clockwise from top left : I cant bear to have emptyinstrument. floor space when it could have stacks of wood on it. At the backMore Mahogany. I always look first for neck material which is Indian Rosewood, and Claro Walnut alleged to have beenneeds very particular qualities. If the wood doesnt suit that, then planted by Queen Victoria in Kew Gardens, it blew down thehopefully it will make backs and sides, and more and more, we storm of 1987, and I have contacts, maybe my MBE helped. are using the pieces that dont suit either specification to make A dismantled Snooker table, they are made from huge chunks ofinternal braces and blocks.mahogany, but unfortunately not always the best quality. Now its buried behind other wood and a bit difficult to get to.This is better stuff, Brazilian Mahogany in large planks. This isnt being imported much now, we rely upon discovering old stocks and we have to accept more and more waste as quality decreases. Wider planks give us a much better chance of finding the grain structure we need.147'