Mahogany Strats?

[jmh151]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

I've played these as well- It's African Mahogany (Sapele or whatever they call it) but the couple I've played both had a nice warm throaty tone compared to Alder or Ash.

I'd be really interested to try some genuine Honduras Mahogany in a strat- but good luck finding anyone save maybe Hamer or some other high end custom builder to do that. Nearly everyone uses African Mahogany for high end MIA/MIJ production guitars these days.

hhhhhmmmm.... Carvin uses Honduras Mahogany

 

[ganzosrevenge]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

Dirtbagg has one of these:

And it ROCKS. It's stratty but with a punchy, smooth, full, rich, and growly flavor. Awesome guitar... hopefully he can come in here and tell you more about it.

dat's what i have!

 

[Kosh Naranek]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

I've got something like a mahogany Strat.

Behind that quilted top on the PC-2 is a mahogany body.
Both guitars sound wonderful, with a little more lower mid chunk. The Washburn is the only guitar I have from which I won't remove the bridge JB. It sounds chunky as it is.

The mahogany Fender Strats have caught my eye too. Really nice guitars.

 

[jerryjg]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

I've played these as well- It's African Mahogany (Sapele or whatever they call it) but the couple I've played both had a nice warm throaty tone compared to Alder or Ash.

I'd be really interested to try some genuine Honduras Mahogany in a strat- but good luck finding anyone save maybe Hamer or some other high end custom builder to do that. Nearly everyone uses African Mahogany for high end MIA/MIJ production guitars these days.

Man, Theodie knows that Honduras Mahogany OR Koa is not hard nor expensive to get if you know where to look, DESPITE the exwhorebitant prices we see some suppliers asking ( and getting, which is Scarey!) . We had our chance to get him to build bodies of great tonewood but now hes not doing it any longer.

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

I used to have a mahogany strat body with a 2 piece maple neck, 3 single coils and an original Floyd Rose...sounded pretty much like a Strat, a little warmer but not night and day...

 

[Mr 9finger]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

I used to have a mahogany strat body with a 2 piece maple neck, 3 single coils and an original Floyd Rose...sounded pretty much like a Strat, a little warmer but not night and day...

I've been kicking around some idea's here and there about an all mahogany strat w/ a traditional layout. Won't be doing it until after I get my beater strat built. I'll probably send you some PM's bouncing some ideas back and forth since you have some experience and I trust your ears.

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

I've been kicking around some idea's here and there about an all mahogany strat w/ a traditional layout. Won't be doing it until after I get my beater strat built. I'll probably send you some PM's bouncing some ideas back and forth since you have some experience and I trust your ears.

Thats all good...drop me a line anytime.

 

[Mustang Martigan]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

Cool thread. Ive been debating whether to grab a LP or custom made Strat, probably from Warmoth (unless there's a better place for custom made stuff). I've always prefered to feel of Strats/Teles to LPs, so I want to build a Strat/Tele with LP specs, Mahogany body w/ Maple cap, Mahogany neck, Ebony fretboard and PAF clones.
Alot of the posts menrion a lack of treble with thw Mahogany Strats. You think the Ebony fretboard would give thw guitar some of the high end it's missing?

I'd love to get one with a glued on neck, but Warmoth doesn't offer it. I belive the glue plays a big part in the LP tone.
As far as weight, I was going to get one of the thin line bodies, to cut down on the weight.

Has anyone built something like this? I'm curious if it would come anywhere close to the LP sound.

Thanks.

 

[St_Genesius]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

I have a Strat with a chambered mahogany body and maple cap. Neck is mahogany with rosewood fingerboard.

The shape is a little rounder than a traditional Strat, with only a single cutaway and a carved top. P-90 pickups.

Sounds a lot like a P-90 loaded Les Paul to my ears. It even says "Les Paul" right there on the headstock, actually. Right under the Gibson logo. Weird.

 

[Mustang Martigan]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

I have a Strat with a chambered mahogany body and maple cap. Neck is mahogany with rosewood fingerboard.

The shape is a little rounder than a traditional Strat, with only a single cutaway and a carved top. P-90 pickups.

Sounds a lot like a P-90 loaded Les Paul to my ears. It even says "Les Paul" right there on the headstock, actually. Right under the Gibson logo. Weird.

Pssh.. I get your point, but this is a matter of cash. Making the guitar I mentioned would coat around a grand less than a LP..

 

[Mincer]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

Building it yourself isn't a good way to save money, I think. A lot of companies have played with the double-cutaway mahogany formula, so there might be something ready-built out there by Carvin/Kiesel, PRS, etc.

 

[ibanezrocks]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

Pssh.. I get your point, but this is a matter of cash. Making the guitar I mentioned would coat around a grand less than a LP..

Why not get an Epiphone then? I can see building a mahogany Strat because you think you'd like that better, but it makes no sense if your goal is a cheaper Les Paul. There's also PRS SE models, Ibanez Artist and ARX, Schecter, Reverend, etc. really tons of choices for cheap dual-humbucker set-neck mahogany guitars.

Sent from my BlackBerry using Tapatalk

 

[Mustang Martigan]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

Why not get an Epiphone then? I can see building a mahogany Strat because you think you'd like that better, but it makes no sense if your goal is a cheaper Les Paul. There's also PRS SE models, Ibanez Artist and ARX, Schecter, Reverend, etc. really tons of choices for cheap dual-humbucker set-neck mahogany guitars.

Sent from my BlackBerry using Tapatalk

I wouldn't be building it myself.. I don't have that skill set. I'd be getting it thru Warmoth. Altho I'm trying to find similar companies so I can see what they have to offer. Plus, Warmoth only does bolt on necks and I'd prefer a set neck.
Do you guys know of any other places?

As far as Epi LPs, how do they differ from a Gibson? Besides the lower quality pups n electronics. Is the wood different, or the quality of the build?

 

[GuitarStv]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

I wouldn't be building it myself.. I don't have that skill set. I'd be getting it thru Warmoth. Altho I'm trying to find similar companies so I can see what they have to offer. Plus, Warmoth only does bolt on necks and I'd prefer a set neck.
Do you guys know of any other places?

As far as Epi LPs, how do they differ from a Gibson? Besides the lower quality pups n electronics. Is the wood different, or the quality of the build?

Ugly headstock.

 

[Archer250]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

I wouldn't be building it myself.. I don't have that skill set. I'd be getting it thru Warmoth. Altho I'm trying to find similar companies so I can see what they have to offer. Plus, Warmoth only does bolt on necks and I'd prefer a set neck.
Do you guys know of any other places?

As far as Epi LPs, how do they differ from a Gibson? Besides the lower quality pups n electronics. Is the wood different, or the quality of the build?

Wood quality is lower, and you get poly finish instead of nitro.

But if your goal is a cheaper les paul, go for that OR check the used market for Gibson Classics

Sent from my ONEPLUS A6003 using Tapatalk

 

[GreatOz]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

I have a Mahogany Body strat that I got through Warmoth, but it has singles in it.

Going through Warmoth to save money is pretty pointless except in the high degree of customization compared to Fender Custom Shop for the price. In fact, it's only really cheaper if you can set it up yourself, wire it, and etc or have someone do it cheaply and you don't want to spend the money for a Fender logo on the headstock.

If you like the feel of Strats, then get a Strat with some mods that you can do yourself like an HH configuration with a PAF (IE Gibson, yes Fender and Gibson use different sized holes) sized hole so you can put some PAF-style pups in it.

For me personally, comfort and usability far outweigh the (stock) sound. The sound can be changed far more easily than feel with different pickups, amps, picking techniques, and etc.

Good luck with your search.

 

[St_Genesius]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

I'm honestly not sure I HAD a point. Just making jokes.

BUT! Two points now: 1) My LP was only $850 brand new, so you may have difficulty undercutting that by $1k, build or buy. They've gone up a bit since then, but still, you'd have to find something in the Squier Affinity range, at most. 2) I get that you want something that is shaped like a Strat, so how about something like this: https://www.sweetwater.com/store/de...MIucmg0La45AIVB77ACh0oqQUbEAQYAiABEgL49PD_BwE

Pssh.. I get your point, but this is a matter of cash. Making the guitar I mentioned would coat around a grand less than a LP..

 

[Zombiwoof]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

Well I don't know, but I may have got too much finish on it. I first tryed to do a trans red, but it came out root beer. That was cool up close, but from a distance it just looked #$% brown. I sanded off as much as I could before going to a nitro solid color, that I kept thin, but maybe it had already absorbed too much.

The tele has a hard tail (a strat type) of course, but it also has the maple cap. A maple cap seems to work well with mahogony in most cases. On the other hand, the superstrat with the Wilk works fine without a maple cap.

You might consider tyring Korina (aka Limba) as it stands a greater chance of being a bit livelier than regular mahogony, if you do a hard tail.

The pros like Suhr and Anderson usually reccomend mahogony necks with mahogony bodies, but maple has worked OK for me with both ebony and rosewood boards. Maybe it could have worked even better with mahogony necks, but I don't know for sure.

Funny you said that about a Korina Strat, I was just thinking this morning about a Strat made of Korina. I wonder if Fender has ever made a Korina Strat model?. I know they have put out a few Strats with different woods at times, but I don't remember any Korina ones. Now I want one, and seeing your post has made up my mind.
Al

 

[Mincer]

Re: Mahogany Strats?

Funny you said that about a Korina Strat, I was just thinking this morning about a Strat made of Korina. I wonder if Fender has ever made a Korina Strat model?. I know they have put out a few Strats with different woods at times, but I don't remember any Korina ones. Now I want one, and seeing your post has made up my mind.
Al

I've never seen one, but I've seen Warmoth bodies out of korina used a bit.