Solid body Walnut Guitars?

[69strat]

Anyone here ever try one out? Wondering how it would sound. Tonality ect. considering building one.Any help would be greatly appreciated..

 

[drive-south]

Aren't Telecaster Thinlines walnut?

 

[Flogger59]

I owned a 1978 The Paul, it was a nice enough guitar, sounded kinda like an SG with a slightly different midrange. Walnut worked well on that guitar.

 

[Staticbuster]

Aren't Telecaster Thinlines walnut?

My Thinline RIs are mohogany, never heard the originals were walnut. I have seen sone that were, but I don't think they all were?

 

[VaughnC]

I've read that a solid walnut body guitar is quite bright like maple, and that walnut is also about as heavy as maple. So, I'd probably opt for a walnut top with an alder, pine, or mahogany back.

 

[EADGBE]

I'm guessing it's on the bright side but not as bright as hard rock maple.

 

[Ron Kirn]

Done quite a few . . . all sounded great.. I would have no problem recommending any of 'em

here's a few... can't really complain...


Ron Kirn









So. . . yep... no problems...

 

[superrock]

I would say mine has quick attack and piano/bell like tone. This would be a walnut hardtail Schecter strat... I have other setups with same pickups and different woods that sound warmer, but the walnut really rips through a Marshall... Ymmv...

 

[Dave Weir]

I've made several. Highly recommended. I would say more rich than bright. They are on the heavy side of the spectrum, 8.5 to 9 pounds, and I think the mass helps hold the string energy in the strings. Excellent sustain. Here is a sound check:
If you click on the Cliff Slip link above,here are also clips of other wood combinations. Since there are no tone controls and a really simple recording set up, you can get a good comparison.
This one has a Goncalo Alves one Piece neck/fretboard.

 

[bullfrogblues]

I made this solid walnut strat a number of years ago, sounds great and not really too heavy. 57/62 pups

 

[Guitarworks]

I made an old-growth solid Black Walnut Telecaster body a few years ago for a client. The whole guitar weighed in at 10 pounds, much of that being the body. I can't recall what the exact weight of the body was, but it was noticeably weighty. When compared to an Alder Telecaster and an Ash Telecaster, that particular guitar happened to sound very deep, rich and boomy with lots of low frequency response, even in the bridge pickup position. The treble was also clear and defined. I liked it. I will not speculate that my one example speaks for all Walnut. You may not find any of my results to be the case if you build a walnut solidbody. I don't subscribe to the idea that every single piece of a certain species of wood, without fail, conforms to the supposed sound characteristics that the industry has assigned to it.

 

[vibrasonic]

Fender made a walnut strat in the early 80's

 

[swiveltung]

The 80's (?) LP and SG walnuts have never caught on well and sell cheap. They are too bright and dead sounding, but look good.

 

[SPROING!]

I've read that a solid walnut body guitar is quite bright like maple, and that walnut is also about as heavy as maple. So, I'd probably opt for a walnut top with an alder, pine, or mahogany back.

Common myth. I've made a bunch and I find walnut to be among the most neutral of all tone woods.
It's punchy, has incredible sustain and is quite stiff but is not particularly bright sounding.
It can be heavy, though. Not as heavy as maple but close.

 

[SPROING!]

 

[Rezin]

Have any of you builders done weight relief on your walnut bodies?

 

[SPROING!]

Have any of you builders done weight relief on your walnut bodies?

All of them. The Swiss cheese weight relief sounds just like a solid body.

Some more than others. The full hollow job sounds about like a 335.

 

[superrock]

 

[Quarter]

I've built a few steels with walnut and like it a lot. I would not describe it as a bright wood, though certainly not dark. Some words that pop into my head are defined, clear, rich, and big. Hard to pick a favorite, but this Teardrop with an A4 mag BG Bucker was a ton of fun.

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