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What I'm visualizing here is three pieces of end-block-shaped, but only 1/4" thick spruce....2 orienting the grain parallel and one with grain perpendicular and making a sandwich out of the three. Is that correct, Mario?

Two cross grain and the middle vertical grain. That's what I'm reading - I may have to bid my Baltic-ply blocks adieu as I have found I like light guitars; I think they sound better.

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Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

Thanks so much for the info. It does indeed seem like a good idea but my experience is very limited and will defer to yours and will implement the new LarryH laminated tail block program ASAP - with a twist because I have a hard time doing anything exactly like someone else. Thanks again.

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Thank You and Best To All

I like the way Grumpy thinks.

Here's a visual aid...

Yup, that's how I'm going to do it. Thanks, Grumpy!

A bit of weight in the end block can be a good thing, as most guitars
are (often grossly) neck-heavy anyway.

...butt wedges, cracking, deep grooves....ow! it all sounds so painful. so glad i am into bolt ons

I used to make laminated end blocks much like the ones Mario shows, only I used mahogany (from scraps). For the past several years, I've used 12 mm Baltic birch plywood, and I haven't weighed them, but the difference can't be much. I've had zero problems with either, but the birch ply ones are one less step, so...

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Rian Gitar og Mandolin

3/4" solid spruce versus 12mm ply is same weight for a 3" wide block..

You're comparing a 7/16" thick block to a 3/4" thick block? Yeah, that's one way to keep the weight down.... Does the thinner block present a problem with pickup jacks?
I taper the sides and top's surface to the width of the linings, but go for full contact with the back; methinks it helps preserve the forced radius we put into the back.

Yes, buying birch-ply takes away one more step, but some of us strive to do everything in-house instead of outsourcing. Our clients often appreciate it, too. It's called attention to detail. And for me, the end blocks(and neck blocks which are often similar) is a way for me to use-up the smaller pieces of spruce left-over from the sawing-up of logs and/or from scraps of lumber. Wood that would have ended up in the firewood pile now gets to be a part of an instrument that will hopefully live for centuries... When making these blocks, I'll cut up a bunch of pieces and lay them out as sets, then glue them up one at a time and clamp them in a hydraulic press I have here where they remain clamped for about an hour or two. Takes a minute each hour to spread the glue and clamp up a new one, and in two days of this, I have a couple years' worth of end blocks. "Mass-producing" parts like this is fun and relaxing, for me, as it's something that is rather simple and doesn't require a lot of thinking. And in the end, it's rather satisfying. Buying a sheet of birch-ply from Home Depot and slicing it up into little rectangles just doesn't do much for my soul, ya know?

Lots of ways to do things, and that's what makes all our instruments unique!

Those DO sound painful, but we're at the other end of the guitar from the bolt-ons

+1 on the 1/2 in. birch ply.

yeah, plywood doesn't ring well with me. i can see it from an economic/effort standpoint on entry level instruments where it can make some sense but not on any instrument north of 1K (imo) the "IMO" is important to remember because lotsa fine builders are making lotsa fine guitars with plywood blocks and that is fine and good. the words "plywood" and "laminate" really seem to freak some buyers out as they feel they are being riped-off somehow even though the "plywood" is strategically placed and high quality, and the "laminate" could be a double sided instrument (technically a lamination).

So, it's ok to create a "laminate", but not use a ready made piece. Interesting.

So, it's ok to create a "laminate", but not use a ready made piece.

In my opinion, yes. When I create my own, I'm doing so using 2 pieces, each one prepped with a fresh gluing surface and glued with fresh, high quality glue, and even the center piece of wood, which will never be seen, is of the same quality as the two outer pieces. In a commercial plywood, unless you are using genuine and expensive(and stamped with its own serial number) aircraft plywood, you don't know if there may be a void inside, what the glue was, etc... The veneers are peeled from the logs, glue sprayed on them, then pressed together. Is the glue rated for outdoor use? If not, it may just be a flour and water glue, which is what they used at the veneer hardwood plywood plant 35 miles north of here. It's pretty sturdy and reliable stuff, but.... And to some eyes, yes, it will appear a little cheesy in a high end, hand made instrument.

And once more, any issues with output jacks? I ask because I can barely get the jacks that come with the K&K systems to tighten all the way on my end blocks(which are under 3/4" by the time they're dressed and cleaned up) and often have to add a washer to shim them up, so how does that work on a 7/16" thick block? They have a "timble" of sorts to protect the wiring, and it can only go up so far, and on mine, it's often not far enough. What are y'all doing? Just leaving the "timble" part snugged-up, but not locked against the nut? I'm asking because hey, if I can get away with thinner end blocks, I may just go ahead and shave 'em down and save more weight...

And in the end, as long as you're not using a simple solid piece of wood, and making efforts to prevent or contain a split, it's all good.

I do the three plies like you describe even when using mahogany for the tail block. I have seen way to many old Gibsons with the crack at the end pin.

James