Birch as a tonewood

[whistler]

A friend of mine has just been clearing a fallen silver birch from his land. It is about 2" (600mm) in diameter near the base, so could yield pieces big enough for backs. He would much rather it became instruments than firewood, and I am keen to take any opportunity to use local wood.

I know that birch has been widely used for lower-end mas-produced mandolins and guitars. As I understand it, it's rather dull in appearance, compared to maple (I haven't actually seen this particular lot of birch yet, so I can't comment on figure etc.). But does anyone have experience of building with it? Can it make nice sounding instruments? Does it finish well? Is it worth bothering with? If it were ready to use now, I would certainly give it a try. But, since I have a few years to wait for it to season, I thought I might as well see what people think.

[whistler]

"It is about 2" ... in diameter"

That should, of course, have read 2'

[sprucetop1]

I've just started a scratchbuild A model using nice birch back and sides from Bruce Harvie. Can't comment on tonal qualities (yet ! ), but you need a very sharp plane to thin the sides and avoid tearout. The birch bends a lot more readily than curly maple though. Initial carving of the birch back indicates that it will carve a little easier than maple too...these are first impressions....I've never worked birch before.....John

[MikeEdgerton]

Gibson used Birch on a large percentage of their early mandolins.

[Glassweb]

They used birch for the sides and backs of snakehead mandolins... 'nuff said!

[MikeEdgerton]

Yes, but they called it Maple

[sunburst]

I don't like birch. It's difficult to work (tends to tear out, as sprucetop mentioned), and it's plain in appearance, though it sometimes has a wavy figure that makes the tear-out problem even worse.

[Sleepy Moon Music]

I've used it on guitars with success .But did not like it on mando's Because of the tear out problem .if it is a real nice figure you can use it for the back and match real close with Maple sides ,i did that once sort of cheating but it looked good and you can't hardly tell the differance .

[Spruce]

"I know that birch has been widely used for lower-end mas-produced mandolins and guitars."

Well, F2s aren't exactly "lower end"...

"As I understand it, it's rather dull in appearance..."

Well, birch can have fiddleback figure in it that rivals the most figured maple....

"Is it worth bothering with?"

It's a very special feeling one gets when building with wood that one harvests themselves...

[catmandu2]

I just acquired this Brent Denney custom OM (birch b/s/neck):

http://www.elderly.com/vintage/items/80U-2149.htm

My luthier said it's very nicely done. The photos don't show the grain; overall, the birch looks much nicer and warmer in the raw. I haven't gotten it back from him yet--it's being converted to a double-course OM--so I'm unable to comment on its tonal character.

[Gail Hester]

I love Birch and don’t think of it as a cheap alternative at all. I think Birch sounds fantastic; it’s really hard but easy to carve easy to work with in general. It is underestimated as a tone wood, under appreciated and under used in my opinion. It doesn’t have the spectacular figure of some Maple but I like using it when it suits a customer. I've heard some great sounding mandolins that were made with Birch.

These two pieces are on the back of a snakehead tribute in my current batch. Did I mention I love Birch?

[Spruce]

I do too....

Think of this.
Birch is basically unused these days, and yet it arguably appears in more successful mandolins than any other hardwood....
100,000's of them.....

If I was building A's, I'd use birch simply as a tribute to all those wonderful A's and F's....

And you can find figured stuff like Gail's in run-of-the-mill hardwood stores for not a lot of money.....

[Dave Hanson]

My 1917 Gibson ' A ' has birch back and sides, it sounds superb.

Dave H

[BradKlein]

...and I believe that most (all?) the Loar signed L-5 guitars were carved birch backs. #I think the same is true for my '20s L-10, but it's harder to see under that black finish. #

Gruhn has written that the L-5 switched to a maple back in 1925.

[Spruce]

Ya know, we've seen everything copied....

A's.....

Obviously the Loars.....

Hans' and Gilchrist's F4s that-when you open the case--you're transported back to 1924...

How about an anatomically correct cordova-red F2 in unfigured birch, with a nice wide-grained top?

That unbound back has always had a really cool look to it, and in modern work would be a real eye-catcher....

I'll get right on that... #

[Jake Wildwood]

I've repaired quite a few birch-built mandolins and guitars from the 20s and 30s, an I can tell you that once they're back up to spec they really sound tops! Count me in on the birch parade.

[whistler]

Thanks for all the replies. It sounds like I should save this log from the chopper, then. You might be hearing from me in a few years.

[Arnt]

I'm making an A style mandolin out of local birch now. Birch is by far the most common hardwood up here, but I have a feeling it is a bit different than the variety you have over on your side. It is quite a bit softer and lighter than maple, carves easily, and it does not tear out much at all. The figure looks similar though; usually sort of a large curl, sometimes a bit tighter but still a bit different from maple.

At any rate, it has been used in many of our traditional instruments (Hardanger fiddle, langeleik etc.) over the years, so I see no reason why it should not work well in a mandolin.

[Paul Hostetter]

Arnt - go for it!

[Mario Proulx]

Yup, birch can be quite nice, and a touch different, in a good way. I pulled this piece from my brother's firewood pile one day... Birch bends almost like plastic, by the way! My favorite for solid linings.

I am cutting down 5 white birch this spring(still winter here) in my backyard, and will be milling them into flooring if the wood's decent(not quite large enough for tonewood). They have to come down, as their roots are now into my septic system(arghh!), so may as well get some use from them.

[Mario Proulx]

Oops; forgot the pic....

[whistler]

I have a feeling it is a bit different than the variety you have over on your side.

Arnt - That's lovely looking wood you've got there. I'm in Wales, UK, so I think the birch we have here would be the same species as in Norway - although the wood might differ in colour, grain density etc., due to the different growing conditions (it's very wet here).

[Dennis Russell]

I used to have a nice violin, that was given to me from a lady friend, it was made from Birch. He father was a builder and had made several violins, cellos and several Bass's from Birch. I never seen the Bass's or Cello's just a picture or two and her father. He was born in the Ukraine and was taught how to build violins in a conservatory as a youngster, moved to Manitoba, in Canada in his early twenties, worked as a miner but made these instruments from Birch, on the side for extra money. anyways this nice lady played a wonderful fiddle and accordion and gave me the fiddle one out of several she had in her home back east, Said her father was a wonderful builder, used Birch wood from Forrest in Manitoba woods close to where they lived.
anyways this was eight years ago, I asked her if she would marry me, said she would consider it, went back to Florida and I never heard from her again,,, "Shucks"
Dennis in Az

[Arnt]

I'm in Wales, UK, so I think the birch we have here would be the same species as in Norway

Something like 95% of the birch over here is either Betula pubescens or Betula tortuosa; the latter grows at high elevations and never gets big enough for instrument wood. #I'm pretty this is the former.

BTW, I found the board that I cut this mandolin wood from at the lumber yard. #It was 3"x10", about 12' long and had this figure along most of one edge, fading towards the middle of the board. #Cost next to nothing.

<edit> I googled Silver Birch, and it appears to be Betula pendula. I don't know how it compares to Betula pebescens...

[whistler]

Something like 95% of the birch over here is either Betula pubescens or Betula tortuosa

It seems that B. pendula and B. pubescens are both native to the British Isles. From photos I have found on Google, they are very hard to tell apart - both seem quite variable in outward appearance, depending on conditions and age. I am willing to risk the assumption that, since they look so similar, their wood will not differ greatly - this might well also be dependent as much on growing conditions as on species.