Spanish Cypress resin crystal appreciation

Costs are rising and times are tough.
Please consider a donation to keep this
place going.

Welcome to one of the most active flamenco sites on the Internet. Guests can read most posts but if you want to participate click here to register.

This site is dedicated to the memory of Paco de Lucía, Ron Mitchell, Guy Williams, Linda Elvira, Philip John Lee, Craig Eros, Ben Woods, David Serva and Tom Blackshear who went ahead of us.

We receive 12,200 visitors a month from 200 countries and 1.7 million page impressions a year. To advertise on this site please contact us.

You are logged in as Guest

Users viewing this topic: none

Printable Version

All Forums >>Discussions >>Lutherie >>

Page: [1]

Message

<< Newer Topic Older Topic >>

Andy Culpepper

Posts: 3023
Joined: Mar. 30 2009
From: NY, USA

Spanish Cypress resin crystal apprec...

I've always been enamored by these little crystals that appear on seasoned Spanish Cypress. As the wood ages and dries it exudes this stuff (oil? resin?) that crystallizes on the surface. You know it's ready to use when it's covered in these things. I almost want to scrape it and bottle it as some kind of perfume...lol.
They are usually either little rods or salt-like grains. It would be interesting to see them under a microscope.
I would be happy building with nothing but Cypress for the rest of my life. Such great wood and it smells so damn good.

Images are resized automatically to a maximum width of 800px

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Feb. 12 2020 0:40:00

mango

Posts: 158
Joined: Apr. 2 2019

RE: Spanish Cypress resin crystal ap... (in reply to Andy Culpepper)

I also love that smell. Always too bad to throw away these little curly shavings from the cypress... ;-)

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Feb. 22 2020 23:18:31

Tom Blackshear

Posts: 2304
Joined: Apr. 15 2008

RE: Spanish Cypress resin crystal ap... (in reply to mango)

Many years ago I contacted a perfume manufacturing store in my town to make some essence of Spanish cedar for me. It sure worked royally well but I lost interest some where along the line.

I think this is what some Spanish guitar makers used to do for extra aroma in their guitars; using heavy oil based perfume to enhance their appeal.

_____________________________

Tom Blackshear Guitar maker

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 4 2020 19:36:50

ernandez R

Posts: 737
Joined: Mar. 25 2019
From: Alaska USA

RE: Spanish Cypress resin crystal ap... (in reply to Tom Blackshear)

Tom,
I was recently gifted a well seasoned block of Camphor that had come from Hawaii some time ago.

The lady had bought it over thirty years ago. She asked if I could make a guitar for her out of it. I was just making up a batch of 1863 Torres inspired parlor sized so I stripped out the wood accordingly getting eight full sized back and side sets.

I did my homework before hand thinking there might be some allergy issues with working the wood. We did the rough sizing outside.

The smell is amazing. The wood cutting part of my shop, where I have the wood stacked, smells like some foreign mercantile of long ago. At first I was afraid the aroma would be too strong but working up the back and sides of the first one is just wonderful.

I'm imagining playing the guitar, you know how it is, as it warms up and about twenty minutes in the smell of shellac wafts out of the sound hole. I can't wait. Pity I have sold it already except for the seven other sets.

I am surprised dealers would perfume a guitar, but then again...

HR

_____________________________

I prefer my flamenco guitar spicy,
doesn't have to be fast,
should have some meat on the bones,
can be raw or well done,
as long as it doesn't sound like it's turning green on an elevator floor.

www.instagram.com/threeriversguitars

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 4 2020 20:54:08

RobJe

Posts: 731
Joined: Dec. 16 2006
From: UK

RE: Spanish Cypress resin crystal ap... (in reply to Andy Culpepper)

Here is an alternative solution to the perfume bottle.

A guitarist friend Vincent went as a young man to Spain many years ago to visit Manuel Reyes Sr on the recommendation of Pepe Martinez. He hung around doing odd jobs in the workshop for a few months. When he left Reyes gave him two nice sets of cypress to take home and something else to remind him of the cypress aroma in the workshop. It was a small wooden box with a sliding lid. Inside was a small block of cypress and a tiny rasp. Vincent always carried this in his pocket and often took it out to ‘scratch and sniff’. When he died during a heart operation we found that he had the box in hospital with him.

Rob

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 4 2020 23:44:10

RobF

Posts: 1611
Joined: Aug. 24 2017

RE: Spanish Cypress resin crystal ap... (in reply to RobJe)

quote:

Vincent always carried this in his pocket and often took it out to ‘scratch and sniff’. When he died during a heart operation we found that he had the box in hospital with him.

That’s really touching. It is said that smell is a very strong memory trigger.

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 4 2020 23:52:42