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Oak bass neck.

Ronbeast

Ronbeast

Sep 20, 2008
847
551
33
Placentia,Newfoundland,Canada
#1
Can I build the neck for a bass out of Oak?I plan on starting a build in a few weeks and I have woods like oak,cherry and maple.I don't really want another maple neck because all of my basses and guitars are maple necked.Is oak able to be used as a neck wood?I heard somewhere that is splits very easily,so I'm hoping someone here will prove me wrong:p,thanks for any input and suggestions and if it comes down to it I may go with a maple neck anyways...:rolleyes:.

-Ron
 
#3
Go for it, oak is a good, strong, stable, solid wood. It's a bit heavy but no more than say bubinga or wenge. It's been done before with success, there's really no good reason why it's not used more often.
 
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#7
Woodpecker said:
Keep in mind when using oak that it contains resins that MAY cause the glueseam to turn green. Do a test on some scrap just to be shure. And some people are known to get allergic reactions to oak sawdust...
Oh yeah, good luck btw :)
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Also, Ive read that all oaks react with iron and steel, so you may need to be careful what you screw into it:

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Mechanical properties: Oak has a very good steam bending classification, but is liable to blue stain if in contact with iron compounds.
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EDIt: bear in mind that the info on the JBT site sometimes doesnt tally with other peoples experience, but on thw whole it tends to be accurate especially for British species.
 
#14
Hey, I'm not trying to start anything, just asking... maybe it's just because that it's heavy, maybe it's nothing to do with the sound, again, I'm just asking because of stuff I've heard elsewhere... if it's not the case, please, feel free to fill me in. I'm by no means an expert here. :)
 
#17
pin_head_47 said:
Is oak not used very often for a reason? I've heard from a few people on here that it doesn't resonate very well, or is kind of 'dead' sounding, but I could be wrong.
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That's a great question and I for one wish I had a solid answer. I can tell you my opinion though. Honestly I don't think it's been used enough to give the best answer on how it sounds. I think the biggest reason it’s not used is because years ago acoustic instrument builders tried it and it did not work well in their application. You see that’s where this whole "tone wood" thing originates, and it's amplified by marketing nonsense. A solid body instruments sound comes mostly from the electronic system. This is what it relies on to make useful noise. Electric guitars simply don’t require the same wood properties as acoustic ones, so why should the same rules apply? Again this is just my opinion, many will disagree but I firmly believe It boils down to three things tradition, marketability and looks.

Not one to stick with tradition, marketability and looks, when I do use oak in a neck I’ll use this,

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It’s quarter sawn white oak, the large fleck in the grain is pretty common in white oak when Q.S I think this looks nice. On the Janka scale, white oak has a hardness rating of 1360 this is harder than white ash, Honduran mahogany and black walnut it’s almost there with hard maple which scores a 1450. This tells me that it is structurally sound for neck use and as with most Q.S. woods it should be very stable. :D
 
#18
That sounds like some good info, and that's some really good looking grain there too. I think the "sound" of a wood has more to do with not just the species of wood, but the quality of that particular slab or piece of wood. If it's not seasoned, dried and well prepared, then it don't matter how good of a "tonewood" it's supposed to be.
 
#19
scottyd said:
That's a great question and I for one wish I had a solid answer. I can tell you my opinion though. Honestly I don't think it's been used enough to give the best answer on how it sounds. I think the biggest reason it’s not used is because years ago acoustic instrument builders tried it and it did not work well in their application. You see that’s where this whole "tone wood" thing originates, and it's amplified by marketing nonsense. A solid body instruments sound comes mostly from the electronic system. This is what it relies on to make useful noise. Electric guitars simply don’t require the same wood properties as acoustic ones, so why should the same rules apply? Again this is just my opinion, many will disagree but I firmly believe It boils down to three things tradition, marketability and looks.

Not one to stick with tradition, marketability and looks, when I do use oak in a neck I’ll use this,


It’s quarter sawn white oak, the large fleck in the grain is pretty common in white oak when Q.S I think this looks nice. On the Janka scale, white oak has a hardness rating of 1360 this is harder than white ash, Honduran mahogany and black walnut it’s almost there with hard maple which scores a 1450. This tells me that it is structurally sound for neck use and as with most Q.S. woods it should be very stable. :D
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I agree totally, the only useful info on woods used in solidbody electrics to me would be how hard the wood is, how the grain looks and feels, and what kind of finish it would take to make it look good. Tonewood specs should be reserved for tops of acoustic instruments, where the vibrating wood is making the most of the sound
 

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