I chose Basswood as my next wood selection, as I thought it better to study some of the fringe woods ahead of the more commonly known/used Ash. Tilia americana is native to the northeastern US/Canada, yet I don't recall seeing it during the years I lived in the Boston area.
Here's some of the more interesting and useful references I came across:
http://www.exotichardwoods-northamer...m/basswood.htm http://www.windsorplywood.com/nam_ha..._basswood.html http://www.thewoodbox.com/data/wood/basswoodinfo.htm http://www.hardwoodinfo.com/species_...ecies=basswood http://www.nysite.com/nature/flora/basswd.htm http://www.woodweb.com/knowledge_bas..._Basswood.html
As a small builder, I find Basswood appealing for both its weight and cost. While I have not used it to date, I do plan to do so for a couple of upcoming P-bass styled projects where the body will be painted with a solid color. A search for musical instruments utilizing Basswood is quite revealing - many of the big name instrument makers utilize Basswood as the body core and mate it with a bookmatched top of any number of figured woods
Basswood is a noted favorite among woodcarvers, and rates right in there with Butternut as two of the all-time favorites. It's recommended that an oil based primer be used instead of water based, as this will prevent warpage due to Basswood's high moisture absorbtion.
Basswood has a high shrinkage rate when initially dried in the kiln, but becomes stable once the process is complete.
as I have noted in my other wood species specific posts, please feel welcome to share your actual experiences with Basswood as well as any additional links you have discovered to be useful. I would hope that this thread would live on to become a significant resource for other luthiers searching the forum for information on this wood.
all the best,
R
