Malaysian blackwood ??

[viento]

I stumbled across photos of Malaysian blackwood and find this wood very attractive.
Has anyone had experience with it?
How can this be bent (tube bending) or does it cause any problems?
How is it sonically for an acoustic guitar (jumbo?)

Thanks for sharing your experiences!

[Fathand]

It's an ebony family, expensive and hard. It will be a heavy guitar, 50% heavier than rosewood.

This may be helpful. https://www.wood-database.com/malaysian-blackwood/
A commenter there mentioned tough to bend.

[viento]

Thanks for your friendly information!
I guess I better take an other wood ...

Wood-database says:
"Workability: Tends to be rather difficult to work,
due to its high density, blunting effect on cutters.
The wood is also prone to checking and splitting during drying,
and drying defects are not uncommon.
Tends to be difficult to steam bend".

The last information means my "tube bending iron".

[Fathand]

If you're looking for dark/black heavy woods, look into Katalox or Ziricote. They at least cost less, Katalox being $25 a board foot near me. Ziricote is a bit lighter and softer.

[viento]

Ziricote seems to be more friendly when working with it, Katalox is somewhat more difficult - as far as I got answers from google.

[Bruce Sexauer]

I believe that at least 2 species ( I think 3) are marketed as Malaysian Blackwood. One is greenish, one reddish, and one shows no color tendency. I have built several guitars with the reddish, and one with the neutral. Both bent well, and the Reddish sounds better to me than any of the other ebonies. I did not find it unusually heavy. The big problem I encountered was that there was internal checking in the material that did not show up until it was surfaced. This probably came from the drying process. I acquired my material 20 or so years ago from Allied Lutherie, and understood it came through the Jeffery Yong supply chain. This is ancient history and you probably won't be subject to this issue. I consider Ziricote a risky material to build with comparatively, but it does look spectacular.

[steveh]

Originally Posted by viento

How is it sonically for an acoustic guitar

When absolutely not in the market for another steel-string I played a Tirga Mhor from Rory Dowling - spruce over Malaysian Blackwood: I commissioned one immediately. When it arrived it was one of the best guitars I've ever laid my hands on, and I've played plenty. Killed my GAS stone dead.

One caveat: These days, I believe 90% is the luthier, especially when we're talking about the contribution of backs/sides, which they keep telling me is minimal when compared to the top.

Cheers,
Steve