Majestic KINGWOOD from BRAZIL - Tommy's Tonewood 

Amazing looking wood. Unbelievable what a run through the planer reveals.

I think thay if I could choose a profession that I didn't every have to think about money in, I would absolutely LOVE to source, cut, dry, stabilize and provide an inventory of beautiful wood for such endeavors. My grandfather was a cabinet maker and partially raised me, so I develop a deep love for beautiful woods.

A bit off topic, but I’d like to see a shop tour. Tools etc. I enjoy the tonewood tutorials and a chance to hear your instruments. Top notch! Jeff

Can you hear the envy all the way from Ontario Canada? I have a 2 book matched fingerboards and 2 bridges of king wood (Brazilian or Mexican?) waiting for a special guitar. The colour of the king wood when sanded to 2000 and buffed is STUNNING!!!

I have a classical guitar made by a Mexican luthier which I thought was Palo Escrito. After watching this I am certain I have Mexican kingwood. Pretty stuff. Thanks for the video.

Great to see this wood in such good hands. It occurs naturally in my region. We call it Jacarandá-Violeta (Jacarandá is a indigenous word that we use for Rosewood and Violeta is Violet) and we also have two others beautiful woods: Machaerium acutifolium, called Jacarandá-Caviúna and Brosimum guianense, called Snakewood. Hope to see some video of they someday. Allow me to point the pronunciation of scientific names: Nearly always we take the Latin pronunciation. So Machaerium is Makerium. But in case of names that came from people, such as Dalbergia (from sweden Dalberg brothers) is appreciable to pronunciate the name on the original language. So Dalbergia is Dohlbergia (L sound is like in 'Lever' and G like in 'Giga'). Also cearensis is pronunced with the alveolar R, like a russian saying 'Russia'.

Fantastic!!

I recently purchased one of 4 Brazilian Kingwood custom shop martin guitars. It is visually stunning but the volume and tone is extraordinary! I hope you build this into a fantastic guitar soon.

I’ve been so looking forward to this TT video! I hope my name is still on the back of the boards (please confirm!). The Kingwood will look amazing with the top you’ve selected and I can imagine how incredible the blue/gold patinated copper you showed me will be. The TW-TS guitar is going to be an absolute stunner!

I'm getting Kingwood on a warmoth Stratocaster neck fretboard. I've had it once before and thought it was really great. It's sort of an Undiscovered Gem of sorts in the guitar world.

I'm also North Yorkshire based and make electric guitars as a side project/hobby. think i need to explore the acoustic side more as that's what I play anyway. great videos.

สวัสดีครับ ฉันอยู่ประเทศไทย ฉันกำลังจะปลูกต้นไม้ในพื้นที่ของฉันจำนวนมาก ฉันต้องการสอบถามคุณว่าฉันควรจะปลูกต้นไม้อะไรดีที่มีราคาแพงในตลาดโลกและเป็นที่ตองการมาก

Meu país tem madeiras lindas 🇧🇷

Tom, would you expect significant tonal differences between the Brazilian and Mexican Kingwood? Thanks, John Gig Harbor, WA

Can your Alpine spruce + Kingwood set work for a Spanish classical guitar?

Hi Tom, I have a question regarding fretboards. Have you ever joined 2 pieces of wood length wise to create a fretboard? I am thinking about doing this to get a symmetrical book-match fretboard wood pattern, and wondering if that can cause any problems? Cheers

I’m surprised you find Brazilian and Mexican Kingwood so alike visually. In my experience, they tend to be noticeably different. Mexican tends to be a lot more purple with tighter an wilder grain. Check out tropical exotic hardwoods. The usually carry Mexican kingwood.

What about dalbergia cultrata, Burmese blackwood.

Have you worked with Jatoba or Brazilian Cherry? That stuff is brittle and splits easily.

I wonder whether it's possible to use 300-year-old antique furniture wood to build a guitar or would it be too dried-up, fragile and dead?

All the discussion about expensive & elite timbers makes me wonder if luthiers are returning to a traditional system of patronage where we only make guitars for wealthy clients. Most of the best guitars I've recorded are boring Maple / Mahogany / Sitka models. Not particularly elite timbers but an elite sound. Epiphone frontier or Martin D18 anyone. Enjoyed the video though. Rock on Tommy...

Dare I say pith off? No of corse not. When I first started building we wouldn't look at a piece like that, but, these days we can't be picky so yes a beautiful rosewood. You have to be careful bracing the back. I've seen quite a few guitars with the flat sawn middle that warped.

Looks like a not so over the top brother of Cocobolo

Dalbergia ... the middle syllable is surely pronounced berg, not berge.

This is Dalbergia Cearensis?I know it is very toxic for lungs, what do you know about dust, I read somewhere is worse than cocobolo!

Looks like a reddish pao ferro to me...