Janka wood hardness scale & guitar necks...

[Jbird]

Would it be safe to assume (yeah, I know… ) that in general, the harder the wood on the Janka scale, the more stable the neck is likely to be? Or are there many more factors?

I see that mahogany is only at 800 (not really that high) on the Janka scale, but aren't many Les Pauls and other guitar made out of mahogany necks/bodies?

http://www.bellforestproducts.com/info/janka-hardness/

 

[dougk]

Pretty sure the Janka scale really is more about dent and impact resistance than linear or tensile strength. Spanish Cedar would rank very low on the Janka scale but is an incredibly stable neck wood when approached correctly.

Personally, I'm a firm believer in the stiffer and harder the neck, the worse it sounds sonically. The neck are the biggest contributors to tone IMO.

 

[Prages]

The most unstable neck I've ever owned is the maple neck on my 92 PRS CE 24. For the first 5 years or so, I had to tweak the truss rod about once a month.

It eventually did settle down and no longer needs constant adjustment.

 

[baimun]

The higher ones make great fingerboards.... but you need a little flex or resonation in the neck. Body, I'm more about light weight and resonance than hardness.

 

[baimun]

And this chart has some different numbers. It puts Indian rosewood up higher than Pau Ferro... I would have thought those reversed. I destroyed some router bits working with Pau Ferro.

http://ejmas.com/tin/2009tin/tinart_goldstein_0904.html

 

[Jbird]

Pretty sure the Janka scale really is more about dent and impact resistance than linear or tensile strength. Spanish Cedar would rank very low on the Janka scale but is an incredibly stable neck wood when approached correctly.

Personally, I'm a firm believer in the stiffer and harder the neck, the worse it sounds sonically. The neck are the biggest contributors to tone IMO.

What do you feel about 3 and 5-piece necks? Do you think they kill the sound?

 

[Elias Graves]

Janka measures how much force is required to push a 1/4" round steel ball halfway into the wood. Tis but one measure.
As Doug said, other factors are arguably more important.
Mahogany and Spanish cedar, while soft, are rigid whereas maple is very hard, it's also flexible.
My thoughts...Many combinations work and the ones that work well become standardized. Mahogany+rosewood, all maple, etc. Find the setup you like and go.