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Tonewood for custom build musical instruments for that perfect tone.
Instruments below were built by customers using tonewoods supplied by tasmaniantonewoods.com. If you would like to see your work here please contact me.
After D’Angelico passed away his apprentice James D’Aquisto carried on, modernizing the design of the Archtop. He made a ‘Solo model’ Teardrop Archtop guitar in 1993.
Being influenced by these makers I developed a design for a Teardrop guitar, which has an original outline for not only the body, in that it is a smaller teardrop shape than the original.
This guitar has links to both my place of birth and my fathers.
My father was born in Veneto in the north of Italy, where some of the worlds best spruce is grown. ‘Ciresa’ is one company in Italy which sources spruce for instruments. During a visit there I selected the top wood for this guitar. The Winged Lion the symbol of Veneto is inlaid on the headstock of the guitar with the Venetian lion in Mother of Pearl and hand engraved details.
I was born in Tasmania and selected the unique endemic species Huon Pine for the back and sides and Tasmanian fiddleback blackwood on the neck of this guitar. The wood for this guitar was supplied by Bob MacMillan from “Tasmanian Tonewoods”
The back of the guitar is one piece with some beautiful birds-eye grain and a hand-carved arch. Huon Pine was treated with cynoacrylate which stiffened the back enough to achieve a strong tap-tone. The spruce top is hand carved and tuned with an ‘x’ brace pattern.
The fretboard, headstock, bridge and tailpiece are made from Ebony.
A unique guitar with hallmarks of New York Italian guitarmakers; the wood and symbol of my fathers Italy; plus the woods of my Tasmanian heritage.
Tasmanian fiddleback Mountain Ash weissenborn. Burgin guitars and Weissenborn.
Back and sides Tasmanian Blackhearted Sassafras, Soundboard Tasmanian old growth Blackwood. In the words of the customer: the best guitar he had ever played, the sound is absolutely amazing, it rings on for ages. I can't believe what an incredible instrument it is. Mark Bailey, the luthier in Scotland that does the luthier course, said that he had not heard a brand new guitar sound so good.
Custom build by Head luthier Andy Allen at Maton Guitars Box Hill Melbourne Australia. Back & sides supplied by Tasmanian Tonewoods
Raindrop Blackwood Ukulele built by David Aumann
Sassafras Baritone Ukulele built by David Aumann
Sassafras Tenor Ukulele #1 built by David Aumann
Sassafras Tenor Ukulele #2 built by David Aumann
Built by Bryan Rourke
Built by by Gary Rizzolo, Rizzolo Guitars
Being a Tasmanian, I definitely an affinity with the islands beautiful woods.
I have quite a few favourite Tasmanian timbers for guitar-making and one of the stand outs is Celery Top pine, Phyllocladus aspleniifolius. In the rain forest its leaves stand out as being similar to ‘celery’ from where it takes it common name. It is slow growing and the trees can be up to 800 years old.
Its usage has been mainly in boat building and furniture making, but I love it for guitar making. I use it on the tops of my guitars and ukuleles where its straw coloured fine grain looks very similar to spruce. It is a tad heavier and quite stiff along the grain and therefore can be worked a lot thinner. To gain a similar flex to spruce it can be reduced in thickness by up to 20% or so.
When perfectly quarter sawn the growth rings are very fine around 20 to 40 annual rings per inch on average. The very fine straight grained lighter weight pieces I use for bracing stock.
Gary Rizzolo
Built by Malcom Morgan. King Billy Top, Macrocarpra Back & Sides, Messmate Neck, Redgum Fretboard, Jarrah Bindings.
Built by Billy Tarrant/ Tarrant Guitars, Devonport Tasmania.
Front soundboard highly figured Tasmanian Blackwood, back and sides matching. My Mac Millan family motto included on the fretboard. Finger board inlay done by Stu Sonnyboy Forbes.
Tasmanian figured Myrtle.
The purple beast – Tasmanian Mountain Ash caps front top and back, Tasmanian Blackwood/Silver Ash neck, Silver Quandong core. In the words of Andrew Clarke Screaming Eagle guitars Without doubt, the most “crisp” sounding guitar he has made to date. In my mind that’s something, as everyone I have seen him build is pure craftsmanship Andrew is a great luthier.
Fiddleback Mountain Ash top and headplate. Spalted myrtle body plus blackwood – peppermint, Rose maghogany neck & Satin box accents.
Tasmanian Myrtle burl top
Top Tasmanian Macrocarpa – Monterey Cypress, with Ash Wedge body.
Tasmanian highly figured top and back – blackwood headplate – blackwood bound F.holes.
Mick Brierley Humbucker pickups.
Back & sides Tasmanian Fiddleback blackwood.
Back & Sides Tasmanian Figured Blackwood – Neck Tasmanian Fiddleback Blackwood.
Top Tasmanian Macrocarpa
Guitar No. 001. Figured Blackwood back amp; sides & blackwood neck.
King Billy Pine soundboard.
Guitar No. 002. figured Blackwood back & sides – blackwood neck.
Guitar No. 003. Figured Blackwood back & sides, blackwood neck, King Billy Pine soundboard
Guitar No. 004. Figured Blackwood back & sides & blackwood neck.
King Billy Pine soundboard.
Back & Sides plus Soundboard Tasmanian Fiddleback Blackwood – Blackwood Neck – Cheesewood Bindings.
Top Tasmanian Myrtle Burl
Highly figured fiddleback compression Tasmanian Blackwood Top & Back
Tasmanian blackwood Neck, Back & Sides Huon Pine Soundboard
Tasmanian blackhearted sasafrass -Tasmanian blackwood & Tasmanian myrtle.
Basses by Alan Cringean AC Basses & Guitars Tasmanian gum vein burl.
Tasmanian Fiddleback Myrtle back & sides – Tasmanian myrtle neck -myrtle burl rosette – Tasmanian Huon pine soundboard.
6 string bent sides Bass Tasmanian blackhearted Sasafrass top & back.
Single cutaway blackwood beauty chambered – Tasmanian blackwood top & backplate & laminated blackwood neck.
Tasmanian Mountain ash back & sides – Tasmanian Myrtle rosette.
Tasmanian fiddleback blackwood back & sides – king billy soundboard – Tasmanian blackwood neck.
Back & Sides Tasmanian Eucalyptus -Pickguard Tasmanian fiddleback blackwood – Bindings Tasmanian Myrtle
Tasmanian Fiddleback Mountain Ash top
Top & Headstock mottled Tasmanian blackwood and fiddleback mountain ash edging
Metal Series build. Highly figured old growth Tasmanian blackwood
Tasmanian Blackhearted Sasafrass Singlecut Semi -Hollow
Back & Sides and neck wood fiddleback Tasmanian blackwood – Soundboard Tasmanian celery top.
Headstock birdseye – Huonpine.
Tasmanian Tiger myrtle Carvetop blackwood and purpleheart Body
Tasmanian blackhearted Sasafrass back & sides – Alpine spruce soundboard
Tasmanian blackwood back & sides
