Figured Guitar Wood Guide

Joel Bennett

7 years ago

Which woods produce the best figuring patterns? That’s a little difficult to say since the wood type alone is going to dictate what kind of figuring comes out after it’s cut. If you’ve read the previous article on different wood cutting techniques, then you’ve probably got a head start when it comes to understanding how wide the field of wood figuring patterns is.

The final aesthetic qualities of your wood are the result of a few factors: species & subspecies, climate, region, susceptibility to diseases, fungal & beetle attacks, and whether the piece is plain-sawn or quarter-sawn. We don’t really have to consider all this though, just your preferences, the species of wood, and the type of cut will be enough to determine whether or not a piece is suitable for use in building an electric guitar – but it’s an interesting topic and if you’re anything like me, you’ll want to know how such an intricate and inimitable appearance occurs naturally, so I’ll try to include as much while we’re learning about the applications in lutherie.

Fungi

In most cases, if a tree has a fungal infection then it’s likely on its way to a literally rotten end. Both the tree bark and the wood within serve as excellent substrate for fungi to grow on, and some species are particularly susceptible (particularly good hosts). There are four main categories for tree-loving fungi: 1. root / butt rot, 2. canker diseases, 3. foliar / shoot diseases, and 4. vascular wilts.

bad-fungus

As most of you are aware, fungi are not plants because they do not photosynthesize, which gives them a unique ability to grow from the inside by creating a massive mycelial network (think of it as plumbing for a city) in and around the tree, spreading happily whilst freeloading off the tree’s water and nutrients. The microscopic spores are often brought by birds, bees, beetles and other insects, but it could be that the tree has had the unfortunate luck of sprouting up in soil that already serves as a mycelial bed.

Anyway, the trees often suffer and rot until dead, depending on the type of fungus, but there’s a few strains that leave desirable traits within the wood of particular species of trees.

Ambrosia (ex. Maple)
Names & Variants	Ghost
Cuts	Depends
Common Species	Maple (Eastern Red & Silver)
Cause	Beetle infestation causing fungal growth

Spalted (ex. Maple)
Names & Variants	–
Cuts	Depends
Common Species	Maple, Birch, Beech, Aspen, Walnut
Cause	Fungus

There’s a lot of wood suppliers, carpenters, and luthiers out there who’re purposely infecting their wood stores with fungal strains to get these patterns. The success rate is not 100% though…about half the wood that’s been fungalized* gets completely ruined by overgrowth.

^{*Fungalized is not a real word.}

You shouldn’t use the failed experiments as firewood either because if the spores are inhaled, they can cause some nasty infections in humans too (a lung is a nice gooey, wet environment) – always wear gloves and respirators when handling ambrosia or spalted wood.

The Sway of the Grain

The first type of figuring I’ve listed in this section happens to have the sexiest name of them all; Crotch. And, like Quilting patterns, it’s something that just happens to occur incidentally with the growth of the wood and cannot objectively be called a defect of any sort (though everything here is quite the opposite of a defect in terms of aesthetics). The crotching figure is simply the result of two branches merging into each other, or more accurately, diverging from each other.

The grain’s distortion will be seen in some form or another no matter what type of cut the wood is, but obviously a true quarter-sawn piece that spans both trees is going to give you the ever desirable crotch effect we’re looking for. Clearly, this one is more suitable for bodies than necks.

While the name doesn’t drop any hints at its desirability, Quilting is every bit as attractive as Crotch wood. Many wood agree even more so. The name is given due to the figures resembling the patchwork of a quilt and having a wavy effect, not unlike fabric.

The appearance of Quilting is a result of light refraction on wood fibers that have grown with a little wiggle rather than being entirely uniform with the rest, and can have an electric or moving effect when you change the angle at which you’re viewing it. Flat-sawn cuts are the only way to bring out the intensity of this figure since it’s dependent on the grain’s pattern.

Crotch (ex. Cherry)
Names & Variants	Plume, Feather
Cuts	Depends
Common Species	Cherry, Oak, Hickory, Walnut, Mahogany
Cause	Tree trunk / branch merges

Quilted (ex. Maple)
Names & Variants	–
Cuts	Flat
Common Species	Maple
Cause	Distortion of grain pattern (visibility dependent on cut)

Disease

It’s important not to lump fungal infections together with bulbous tumors…which is essentially what burl wood is. Some people have likened the growth to cancer, but it doesn’t actually kill the tree.

It does, however, result in some of the most beautifully complex swirling grain patterns one can ever find, which makes it highly sought after. A burl can form on either the trunk or the branches in varying sizes. It’s comprised of knots and dormant buds which continue to grow outward within the main structure of the burl, so that’s why there’s grain patterns swirling inside without any particular direction.

They’re pretty easy to spot, as you can see from the image, and they’re desirable enough to attract pesky woodworkers to your doorstep with humble chainsaws in hand asking for permission to lop off the tumor on the tree in your front yard. The wood inside is very hard, difficult to cut at times, and typically much darker than the rest of the tree’s fiber.

The growths are benign and not limited to any particular species, as you can see by the list below. Burl wood may be a little difficult to work with due to its hardness, but they it makes an excellent guitar body.

Burl (ex. Walnut)
Names & Variants	–
Cuts	Flat
Common Species	Maple, Cherry, Ash, Walnut, Mulberry, Gum, Birch, Redwood, Oak, Madrone, Elm
Cause	Injury / disease (similar to a tumor)

Genetic & Climatic Causes

I’ve lumped these two together because it seems that the figuring that occurs as a result is often theoretical. Curly figures in wood are a little more understood than some of the other varieties listed in this category, and it can be likened to Quilted wood in the sense that the appearance is due to light refraction on the wood fibers, having a three-dimensional effect. Unlike quilting, however, the figuring is best seen when quarter-sawn (plain-sawn and rift-sawn pieces will have the figuring too, just not as pronounced) and runs perpendicular to the grain.

The reason I’ve listed it under a category that likens it to a technical defect is because its depth is given by the wood’s growth alternating between soft and hard sections and is considered a mutation. Perfectly quarter-sawn curly pieces are referred to by luthiers as “fiddleback wood”, and is sought after by violin makers. When pieces of wood with this mutation are flat-sawn, they can result in a sort of subtype of figuring called Angel Step, or Angel Stairs. Aptly named, there’s little more to be said for it.

Bird’s Eye wood is one of my favorites, and also the most mysterious of the bunch. No one has posited a theory that can accurately describe what causes this pattern, but it consists of darkened eye-like flecks that disrupt the grain and have a sort of depth surrounding them that catches the light similar to Quilted or Curly figures.

Scientists and tree nerds have previously suggested the patterns could be caused by pecking birds, but other scientists came along and said that was stupid, effectively discounting those theories. The origin is still unknown though – currently, genetic mutation and climate conditions are the best suggestions.

Speaking of genetic mutations and climatic conditions, we come to the final figure: Bear Claw. Also called Bear Scratch, there’s an idea floating around that, similar to the bird pecks of Bird’s Eye wood, attributes the pattern to bears actually scratching the trees. Scientists haven’t found the time to dignify that one yet, but it’s likely not true.

They’re most likely caused by a genetic mutation and/or climatic stress. They make for a very unique piece of top-wood on acoustic guitars, which is mostly where you’ll see it being used since it’s a defect limited to spruce – a standard wood for acoustic guitars.

You’d have a hard time finding an electric guitar made from spruce wood – but that’s a subject for another article.

Angel Step (ex. Maple)
Names & Variants	Angel Stairs
Cuts	Flat
Common Species	Maple, Walnut
Cause	Twisted trunk (variation of Curly figuring)

Bear Claw (ex. Spruce)
Names & Variants	Bear Scratch
Cuts	(The jury’s still out)
Common Species	Spruce
Cause	Genetic mutation or climatic stress

Bird’s Eye (ex. Maple)
Names & Variants	–
Cuts	Flat
Common Species	Maple, Koa, Black Walnut, Cherry, Tasmanian Blackwood, Rosewood
Cause	Region / climate (short growing seasons)

Curly (ex. Koa)
Names & Variants	Tiger Stripe, Ripple, Fiddleback (Quarter-Sawn Only), Flamed (Maple)
Cuts	Flat / Rift / Quarter
Common Species	Koa, Maple, Walnut, Ash, Oak, Ebony, Swiss Pear, Tasmanian Blackwood
Cause	Growth mutation

That’s all for now! Be sure to check out the rest of the Wood Selection articles if you’d like to learn more about what goes into making a guitar.