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Humidifying will do no good if the shrinkage is caused by curing.

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ORIGINAL: Ricardo

I assumed curing and drying are the same thing. or rather, ONLY cured woods are used to build a guitar.

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ORIGINAL: keith

what is the difference between curing and drying with respect to wood? drying (moisture content) can be measured but how does know when wood is cured?

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ORIGINAL: Ricardo

I think the idea is that "cured wood" is already been dried out "properly" such that later on taking water in or expelling it (drying) is not going to cause the wood to change too much. So the point here is that if wood used to make a guitar is STILL curing then you either have to maintain it's current humidity level FOREVER (never letting it "cure"), or let it finish "curing" then sand the frets so that normal in and out humidity won't change the wood much. AT least that's how I am interpreting it.

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Curing has nothing to do with moisture content. It's pretty common practice to slow cure wood by submerging it in water.

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ORIGINAL: Ruphus

It is true, Ricardo.
This is done when wood comes in very green or wet ( like with sinker). Depending on air conditions, it may be submerged or sprayed in order to enable only gradual drying / preventing sudden change and cracking.

Ruphus

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ORIGINAL: Rmn

Ok, so I made an interesting and contra-dictional discovery.
Casus today:
Humidity at 48%. Guitar sounded dead. Had to force the ligaos so much and there was no punch coming out of the rageao. I couldn't put any feeling in playing.
Then I filled the sponge of the sound-hole humidifier with water and put the guitar back into the case with the humidifier for about 40 mins.
After that I pulled the guitar out and I could hear a significant change. More sustain, more harmonics, strings feeling thicker and I could play super super softly and do quick ligados and the sound would come out (before even when digged into the guitar, the sound had trouble coming out).
The guitar seems more vibrate and even more bright.

Now what they usually say is: the higher the humidity the more dull the guitar will sound.
I encounter the opposite...
They also say that with higher humidity the top will be higher and by that raise the tension of the strings.

Couldn't it be that maybe I have to raise the bridge a little to make the top vibrate more?

I don't have the proper measuring tools to measure the action of the strings. The difference must be very tiny I think

It's funny because I started this thread with wining about the strings being too tense. Now I realize that maybe I was completely wrong, maybe the strings felt tense because there isn't sound coming out of the guitar and maybe I need MORE tension to play more relaxed because there will be more volume, harmonics and sustain and by that I dont have to force so much...... (It has high tension strings put on always)

Any thoughts?

Thanks!

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I always understood dry times the strings come UP higher, and wet times they come down and buzz. IN other words you can have a lower bone in the winter, and a higher bone in summer to keep the guitar from buzzing. I think it has to do with neck angle, but don't know for sure. The lower action makes a guitar easier to play and the strings snap against the frets too. It's my experience anyway. But for sure if the guitar is fine as it is and it gets too much water it dulls the sound. So I am guessing you have a neck issue, (perhaps when it drys the sound board sinks and the neck comes forward making the guitar stiff?)

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I´ve never really understood what was going on with Ramon´s guitar. But I can see one thing:
His relationship with his guitar is worse than if you live with a viscious dog that bites you. The dog can be rehabilitated. The guitar might be fine, but maybe in the hands of someone else.

As a musician and not as builder, I would say, get rid of that guitar and find another one. The reason is that most people in these situations start using way to much of their practice time on testing their instrument instead of playing it and worry about things that block you from being creative. This way you waste a lot of time and energy....
remember, an instrument (never mind the builder or the Price) is just a tool in the musicians hands just like a hammer is a tool in the hands of a carpenter. If the carpenter doesnt like his expensive japaneese hammer, he´ll stop using it and use something that works for him/her. And he wont care if thats a 10$/€ hammer from Walmart or Carrefour.