Sometimes. I often find myself in a situation with an amazing piece of ancient old air dried wood from an estate that has been cherished and passed down for generations, with only one chance to get it perfect. In those situations I may very specifically build a complex jig just to eliminate any margin of error.
I have had a Stradivarius in my hands. You are correct, especially with the "player grade" ones that have been in the trenches. There is something almost magic about the patina from 300 years of use. I often wonder if he and my ancestors ran into each other at the farmer's market or the hardware store. The population of northern Italy was much smaller than it is today and Cremona is only 75 miles from Condino. I've been known to ride my bicycle that far in a day...
Plate thicknesses and deflection are always a colorful topic. I've handled hundreds of redwood sets from the "Lucky Strike" tree; that was incredible- like rust colored red spruce. I've also handled hundreds of redwood sets that were close to wet mushy cardboard and smelled like a litter box.
8mm- that makes me smile; 9mm is about what I strive for on a top center thickness for a double bass with stiff spruce!
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