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First time with this wood. How thin is recommended on the back and sides and any change to bending temps. Anything I should know about this wood would be appreciated.

I bent a number of these sets
.085 bends like you would expect rosewood to bend.

I do it like I bend any rosewood
start bending lower bout 225F
Upper 240 F
then waist
Thermometer between the blanket and top slat with damp paper.
Once on the pattern I take to 300 F hold for a min then set to 225 to 240 for the remainder of the 15 min cycle
let cool and place in mold
add frosting and enjoy

Thanks John, my plan was between 80-85 for the sides but I wanted to be sure.

you are on the money

Tim: Basicly concur with John. HRW is a nice wood to bend in my experence but it is heavy so I would be tending to go on the low side to shed as much weight as possible.
Tom

Well, this will be interesting, the new owner wants the sides at .070 and the back at .085. Guessing from the research I've been doing I can go that low.

Curious, why would the "owner" be specing how you build the guitar?

He's a pro player and fairly knowledgeable. Has a sound he is trying to achieve and wants to try it this way. We've discussed it at length. In the end I try to give the customer what they want.

Interesting. Not sure I could do that. (meaning no problem having them tell me what kind of sound they want......but since I'm the builder, I would want to decide how best to get that sound). Of course, a lot of my enjoyment in building is making wood selections, and making design tweaks to see how it affects tone. Also, if it's a friend and you're working together that's different as well. So, never mind <smile>

John, will be putting any of those sets of HR you got from that big billet you resawed for sale here on the forum?

Kevin