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Old World Tonewood Company specializes in European Spruce and Maple ( aka “Sycamore Maple”) tonewood from the Carpathian Mountains of Romania. Since 2006, Old World Tonewood Company has been supplying violinmakers with quality wood. To see individually listed pieces, please be sure and visit under each instrument category the YouSelect! categories in the Catalog. We have many more pieces than listed; however, we try to keep a good representation on this site. I always welcome questions about the wood and welcome the opportunity to work directly with you in selection of your tonewood. We are often asked if a back includes sides. Yes, all backs come with sides. Violin/viola ribs are cut about 1.8-2.0mm thick, and cello ribs are 3mm. Four pieces, approximately then length of the back, are normally supplied with the back. For pieces listed individually (YouSelect! categories), the last two digits of the item number indicate the when the wood was cut (e.g. Piece “V1P00313” was cut Winter 2012-2013); for pieces not individually listed please inquire as to age.
European Spruce – Our spruce from Europe is from the Carpathian Mountain region in Romania. This native spruce of Europe is known in various languages as Sapin blanc du Nord, Epicea de Suede or Epicea de commun, épinette de Norvège, Abete rosso, Abeto rojo, gemeinefichte, jel europeiskaya, and in the USA as Norway spruce. The botanical name is Picea abies (formerly classified as Picea excelsa). Even though Picea abies is widely distributed throughout Europe, many luthiers observe subtle differences in its characteristics from region to region – possibly because spruces readily hybridize. This spruce generally has a low specific gravity (I’ve measured it from 0.32 to 0.46 g/cc, but most fall about 0.41 g/cc +-0.01), a very desirable strength to weight ratio, and is creamy white in color. It is a joy to carve and has a beautiful ring-tone. Carpathian spruce has a unique character, and one I think you will find very desirable. Grain can be extremely tight to medium (acceptable grain spacing differs of course depending on size of instrument). Color is usually quite even. “Bearclaw” (haselfichte) is not uncommon in this species and a few “swipes” of it may occur on a piece, but is somewhat uncommon to find a tree with bearclaw feature completely covering a piece. All spruce tops are first cut wedge shaped (cut on the radius of the log) and are re-sawed after seasoning into book-matched halves. Spruce Tonewood Grading… Unlike the lumber industry, there is no standard for grading of tonewood. Because there is no standard, you must understand how each individual supplier grades. Otherwise, grading is of little objective use to you in selecting wood sight unseen. Factors affecting grading are evenness of grain – or very nice progression of grain width, straightness of grain, color, absence of visible defects, etc. Regardless of the size of our inventory, I attempt to keep the grading consistent. Therefore, once you understand my grading criteria you will know what to expect upon any subsequent order. Maple… The maple we offer from Europe is Acer pseudoplatanus, which translated from the Latin means “false-sycamore” maple. And as such, it is sometimes referred to as “sycamore” maple or simply “sycamore” (the sycamore of North America is an entirely different species.) Acer pseudoplatanus is a relatively low density maple, light in color, carves very well, and is the maple of the violinmaking tradition. The maple is graded primarily on the quality of the flame and overall beauty of the wood, but also with respect to grain quality and density. Although it is usually impossible to detect minor imperfections beneath the surface of the wood, visible imperfections (i.e. color, knots, staining, etc) result in a lower the grade. One-piece maple backs are may be tangentially cut ( aka “slab” or “plain” sawn) or radially cut (commonly referred to as “quartersawn”). All 2-pieces backs are radially cut. All backs include ribs unless otherwise specified. Poplar… Occasionally we find poplar (Populus spp.) suitable as tonewood. Species we have cut are Black poplar (Populus nigra) and P. tremula. When available these pieces will be listed individually under the appropriate YouSelect! category. Please do not hesitate to let me know if you have any questions. Thank you! |
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Please do not hesitate to let me know if you have any questions. Thank you!
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Frequently Asked Quedtions
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Yes, all backs come with sides. Violin/viola ribs are cut about 1.8-2.0mm thick, and cello ribs are about 3mm. Four pieces, approximately the length of the back, are normally supplied with the back. |
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For pieces listed individually (YouSelect! categories), the last two digits of the item number indicate when the wood was cut (e.g. Piece “V1P00313” was cut Winter 2012-2013). Normally I season wood at least 2 years before including for sale on the website. However, for pieces not individually listed please inquire as to age. |
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All the wood is stored in outdoor, covered sheds with excellent air-flow. I find this method of seasoning wood most effective. In this manner the wood is subjected to cycles of humidity fluctuation and temperature which greatly accelerates seasoning as compared to wood stored indoors and especially to wood stored in climate controlled settings. |
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Yes the wood is “Dry”. The wood is at equilibrium with its environment when shipped. In our locale (eastern USA, Allegheny Mountains), the moisture content in the wood can vary from 8 to 15 percent due to changes in atmospheric humidity. And, likely the wood you receive will have been at both ends of that spectrum (which is good for seasoning – see above FAQ. So, I suggest you allow time in your shop to acclimate for the wood to adjust to the shop’s environment. I suggest weighing the piece when it arrives and if the weight stabilizes, more or less, it is at equilibrium. Also watch the humidistat, because this markedly can effect weight! |
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As with all species, wood density varies. I have measured the spruce (Picea abies) as low as 0.32 g/cc and as much as 0.46 g/cc. These are anomalies, and I know others have recorded outside those figures! Most of this spruce will measure 0.38-0.44, and I will guess the median to be about 0.41. For the maple (Acer pseudoplatuanus) I have measure density in the 0.52-0.67 g/cc range, with most within 0.58-0.62 range. Please read on, however, because more understanding of how to measure wood is necessary to make sense of the density numbers…. In wood science wood density is measure 2 ways. Firstly, “basic density” is the ratio between the dry weight (0 percent moisture content) of wood divided by the green volume of the same wood; and, secondly wood density is calculated at 12 percent Moisture Content (MC). But, as a luthier you will calculate density (aka specific gravity) at the current weight/volume, right? When I measure a well-seasoned piece of wood for a maker I do not, for practical reason, calculate Moisture Content (MC). The MC of wood, however can make a substantial difference in specific gravity calculation – so be aware that once the wood is at Equilibrium MC in your shop the MC you measure could differ from my shop and therefore you may get a different result than I reported to you. The only way to know the true MC of a piece of wood is to oven-dry it, taking into account the initial weight when put in the oven and the final weight when it stops losing weight. This is of course destructive to the wood, so of course I do not do that for individual pieces. The density calculations we make as violinmakers are therefore are just data, but not absolutely spot on. And a moisture meter is not reliable nor a reasonable alternative to the aforementioned oven process, for determining correct MC, because an oven-dry density must be known and plugged into the meter, if so equipped (and then still questionable to me). So, please just use density as a guideline – especially when referencing an entire species. |
Products can be returned for full refund of item purchase price if unaltered. I cannot take responsibility for hidden defects in wood, such as pitch pockets. Because wood is a natural material, there is no guarantee what is below the surface. I re-saw all billets to give me a better look at the piece for defects. For spruce, I examine the surfaces of each piece for indicators of pitch pockets, where a widened along grain, for even a small length (cm) in an arc can indicate a pitch pocket beneath the surface. Please examine the wood upon receipt, as I can miss something, and let me know if you have concerns. Thank you.
Frequently Asked Quedtions
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Yes, all backs come with sides. Violin/viola ribs are cut about 1.8-2.0mm thick, and cello ribs are about 3mm. Four pieces, approximately the length of the back, are normally supplied with the back. |
|
For pieces listed individually (YouSelect! categories), the last two digits of the item number indicate when the wood was cut (e.g. Piece “V1P00313” was cut Winter 2012-2013). Normally I season wood at least 2 years before including for sale on the website. However, for pieces not individually listed please inquire as to age. |
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All the wood is stored in outdoor, covered sheds with excellent air-flow. I find this method of seasoning wood most effective. In this manner the wood is subjected to cycles of humidity fluctuation and temperature which greatly accelerates seasoning as compared to wood stored indoors and especially to wood stored in climate controlled settings. |
|
Yes the wood is “Dry”. The wood is at equilibrium with its environment when shipped. In our locale (eastern USA, Allegheny Mountains), the moisture content in the wood can vary from 8 to 15 percent due to changes in atmospheric humidity. And, likely the wood you receive will have been at both ends of that spectrum (which is good for seasoning – see above FAQ. So, I suggest you allow time in your shop to acclimate for the wood to adjust to the shop’s environment. I suggest weighing the piece when it arrives and if the weight stabilizes, more or less, it is at equilibrium. Also watch the humidistat, because this markedly can effect weight! |
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As with all species, wood density varies. I have measured the spruce (Picea abies) as low as 0.32 g/cc and as much as 0.46 g/cc. These are anomalies, and I know others have recorded outside those figures! Most of this spruce will measure 0.38-0.44, and I will guess the median to be about 0.41. For the maple (Acer pseudoplatuanus) I have measure density in the 0.52-0.67 g/cc range, with most within 0.58-0.62 range. Please read on, however, because more understanding of how to measure wood is necessary to make sense of the density numbers…. In wood science wood density is measure 2 ways. Firstly, “basic density” is the ratio between the dry weight (0 percent moisture content) of wood divided by the green volume of the same wood; and, secondly wood density is calculated at 12 percent Moisture Content (MC). But, as a luthier you will calculate density (aka specific gravity) at the current weight/volume, right? When I measure a well-seasoned piece of wood for a maker I do not, for practical reason, calculate Moisture Content (MC). The MC of wood, however can make a substantial difference in specific gravity calculation – so be aware that once the wood is at Equilibrium MC in your shop the MC you measure could differ from my shop and therefore you may get a different result than I reported to you. The only way to know the true MC of a piece of wood is to oven-dry it, taking into account the initial weight when put in the oven and the final weight when it stops losing weight. This is of course destructive to the wood, so of course I do not do that for individual pieces. The density calculations we make as violinmakers are therefore are just data, but not absolutely spot on. And a moisture meter is not reliable nor a reasonable alternative to the aforementioned oven process, for determining correct MC, because an oven-dry density must be known and plugged into the meter, if so equipped (and then still questionable to me). So, please just use density as a guideline – especially when referencing an entire species. |