A mind-boggling wood source, http://www.rarewoodsusa.com/

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MaineGeezer
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Joined: Wed Aug 13, 2014 12:14 pm

A mind-boggling wood source, http://www.rarewoodsusa.com/

Post by MaineGeezer »

Yesterday I visited http://www.rarewoodsusa.com/ in Mexico, Maine, population 2,597. Mexico, Maine, is not near anything. Yet, in a collection of old derelict steel industrial buildings in the middle of an overgrown gravel pit is a mind-boggling assortment of exotic hardwoods. Here are a few photos taken in the "guitar woods" room. The selection of tonewood species is limited, but there is a lot of it, as the photos show. It's very heavy on Indian rosewood, although I also saw satinwood backs and sides and a couple speices I didn't recognize. There are African blackwood fingerboard blanks.

Prices area low. Spruce tops are $25, and they look good. A nice rosewood back and sides set cost $88. I hadn't intended to buy anything, but when I could get a guitar top, back, sides, fimgerboard, and a few small offcuts for a total of $130 includiing sales tax, I couldn't resist.

Tonewoods are only a minor part of the operation. There are racks upon racks of exotic lumber for furniture and cabinetry.
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tippie53
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Re: A mind-boggling wood source, http://www.rarewoodsusa.com

Post by tippie53 »

sounds great
John Hall
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Diane Kauffmds
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Re: A mind-boggling wood source, http://www.rarewoodsusa.com

Post by Diane Kauffmds »

I'm going to check it out. Thanks for the info.
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Country Roads Guitars
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Danl8
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Location: Chadds Ford, PA

Re: A mind-boggling wood source, http://www.rarewoodsusa.com

Post by Danl8 »

I checked out the site. Although tonewoods are mentioned and even included in their emails, i didn't see any listing of luthier-ready woods. Do you have to go to their facility in Maine to buy? It appears there isn't any way to buy thru the webpage.
MaineGeezer
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Joined: Wed Aug 13, 2014 12:14 pm

Re: A mind-boggling wood source, http://www.rarewoodsusa.com

Post by MaineGeezer »

No, you can buy online. If they counted on customers coming to Mexico, Maine, they'd go broke in a week.

It's pretty much a one-man business, as best i can tell, so I think a lot of refinements like setting up an online store are lower priority than just running the basics of the business. In some ways it looks more like a wholesale business (which it probably is, actually) than a retail business. Whereas a place like this: http://www.hibdonhardwood.com/collectio ... -side-sets lists individual sets, with pictures, this place has several bins of rosewood back sets, maybe 500 sets per bin, a pallet of several hundred sitka spruce tops, and another pallet of several hundred engelmann spruce tops, etc. I'd send an e-mail, or call, and tell them what you want. I assume they will go pick out a back set or a side set or top or whatever it is you're looking for, and get back to you with the details.

While most of their business may be wholesale, I got the feeling that they definitely want to do individual sales.
Don't believe everything you know.
Anything is possible if you don't know what you are talking about.
When things are bad, try not to make them any worse, because it is quite likely they are bad enough already. - French Foreign Legion
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