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I think some pics need to be resized!!

No need to sell a Kidney. You just need some Cherry, Shellac and a few brazilwood shavings. Poor mans Pernambuco. Apologies for the flash glare in the lower bout:

Cherry, shellac, and a few P shavings may get you in the ballpark as far as looks go, but tonally you wouldn't even be in the parking lot of the ballpark. There is no other wood that comes close to the unique working and tonal properties that Pernambuco/Brazilwood possesses.

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Brad

Maybe, although I think the vast majority of people tend to really overestimate how much of a difference they can discern between woods. I've been involved in some blind listening tests and believe me, it's MUCH harder than most people care to admit.

Michael, I agree with you that most people have a tendency to over exaggerate tonal differences between different wood species used in building acoustic guitars. With that said, I do believe I can hear the difference between my two Pernambuco guitars and my other acoustics. Below are a few comments that Bruce Sexauer wrote on another forum recently regarding Pernambuco's unique tonal and working properties. Bruce built one of my P guitars, and probably has more experience working with Pernambuco on acoustic guitars than anyone else in the game.

"The reason Pernambuco is rare, is that most of it was harvested in the 1700's because it has spectacular qualities as a dye wood. When I'm sanding it, any standing water in the shop (cat bowl) turns a beautiful rose color, a blush red that impossibly seems to have blue in it without being purple. Washing my hands in the bathroom sink means an extensive clean up as the powerful dye colors everything I touch.

It's value in the musical instrument world has to do with a combination of qualities. It is one of the liveliest woods on the planet, and responds to tapping and the like so well that it can be identified in the forest by whacking on the passing trees with a cudgel till one sings back at you, that's likely the Pernambuco, and that's why it is called the "music tree" in Brazil. So they say. Another reason is that it has an excellent memory for its form, and can be bent for long periods of time and still return to the shape it had been. And it is quite stiff therefore requiring relatively little to create a lot of deflection force. And even further, it can be heated, bent to a new shape, and then remember that shape as though it were born that way. These qualities combine to make it an ideal material for violin family bows, and coincidentally a great choice for the back and sides of a guitar."

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Brad

Do the test. Get a bunch of Guitars of varying Back/Sides and see if you can pick out the . . . (insert tonewood). I don't care what it is. Pernambuco has it's 'fans' just like any other wood. People tend to defend their favourite wood with a passion. Romanillos considered Cypress to be the finest wood (or his favourite) for Classical Guitars, yet it's qualities are the polar opposite of the usual Brazilian Rosewood.
I've done the test on numerous occasions. With my guitars, with other people's Guitars, with friends, with visiting musicians. It might not be double blind but it has some value to it. Trying to pick Spruce from WR Cedar is hard, yet everyone seems to think that they can do it with their eyes shut. . .
Do the test.

I've done the test several times with my own guitars, but that wasn't my point. Again, my point was that Pernambuco has both working and tonal properties unique to itself.

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Brad

Uhm... will wait until I can do this one justice pic does not do it justice....

This thread is killing me. I want more wood now.

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http://www.CostaGuitars.com
PMoMC

So go chintzy on the reno and buy some wood. Where's the problem?

Alex

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"Indecision is the key to flexibility" .... Bumper sticker

nice!... i guess osage orange could also be pimped in the same way.

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member of the guild of professional dilettantes

i´m not certainly disputing that, as i´ve never tapped or even standed close to a set. i´d want to have a set ´cause it would make me look cool and unique amongst fellow builders ... seriously, i find it beautiful in its own and have drooled on pics of it several times. i wonder what a guitar B&S set would cost, or even if it has a market price...

some history, if you feel so inclined, to add to what has already been said... brazilwood (pau brazil in portuguese) was until the discovery of gold in Brazil the most valuable commodity to be sourced there by the portuguese. the name of the country comes from the wood and not the other way around (brazil refers to the bright orangy-red one sees in embers), as it was one of the most abundant trees of the atalantic forest. Pernambuco is the brazilian port that shipped most of it abroad. it´s tupi (native brazilian) name is ibirapitanga, which roughly means "red wood". dyes have traditionally been important trading goods (they accounted for about 30% of the world´s trade in the 1600, IIRC), and pernambuco brought a lot of wealth to the portuguese crown. the discovery of the mexican "pernambuco" was a severe setback on the portuguese monopoly of dyes, as was the amount of piracy that the trade of pernambuco brought into the southern Atlantic. pernambuco was also important on the (unsuccessful) french and (Successful) dutch attempts to conquer strategic positions in the brazilain coast.

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member of the guild of professional dilettantes

I'm a pretty boring guy when it comes to wood. My favorite is Mahogany. I prefer the sound of mahogany over other woods. I do look for nice figured pieces though. Not the plain Jane type....Mike

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Guitars, guitars and more guitars.

Pernambuco back & side sets don't really have any market to speak of because of the wood's overall scarcity, especially in sizes big enough for guitar sets. The sets I've seen for sale over the last 5-6 years were anywhere from $350-$1500+ depending on the quality, cut of the wood, and the seller. Prices have gone up dramatically in the last 2 1/2 years on the sets I've seen offered for sale though. It's safe to say prices aren't likely to go down anytime soon.

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Brad

that´s what i thought. thanks.

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member of the guild of professional dilettantes

Hehe