Any opinions on this Oak and Yew guitar ?

NumbSkull

NumbSkull

Member
I got this a couple of weeks ago as it looked well made and I was curious about the woods,
Can you really use Oak in an acoustic guitar ? And I love Yew trees, but as tonewood ?

Any opinions or info on the maker ?

John Catherwood CG03 acoustic guitar, made in Ireland; Back and sides: natural Irish oak; Top: natural AAA Italian spruce; Neck: natural five piece ash and thorn; Fretboard: Bryansford yew; Frets: light tarnishing; Hardware: good; Case: SKB hard case; Overall condition: good

John Catherwood CG03 acoustic guitar, made in Ireland; Back and sides: natural Irish oak; Top: natur

John Catherwood CG03 acoustic guitar, made in Ireland; Back and sides: natural Irish oak; Top... in The Guitar Auction - Four Day Sale (9 Jun 2026)
auctions.gardinerhoulgate.co.uk auctions.gardinerhoulgate.co.uk

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I'm not an expert but most of the custom guitars use spruce for the top and any number of other species for the sides and back. This leads me to believe that the spruce is the tone wood and the other bits aren't as important and are just along for the ride. My buddy was in an acoustic builders guild and he mentioned the attention paid to the top to the point that members in the guild swore the top needed to be in the 9 oz range. Didn't hear much about side and back weight just tuning them by shaving the bracing.

The real question is does it sound good and have you compared it to similar sized - looks to be in the parlor size range - guitars?

Russ
 
Oak is related to Ash, and Ash is frequently used for electrics. I personally would have thought both ash and oak to be somewhat unsuitable for an acoustic. They have a coarse and rough structure, and Veneer can be brittle. Are the Oak parts laminated (=multi-layered)?
On the other Hand, Yew is traditionally used for Tools, Handles, and even Weapons, such as Bows.

I think both of these woods are perfectly suitable for an instrument. They are maybe a bit rare, because they are not as easy to work with. But that is still a very cool and unique Instrument!
 
Geeze said:
This leads me to believe that the spruce is the tone wood and the other bits aren't as important and are just along for the ride.
Click to expand...
Not so. A maple back and sides, like some Guild jumbos have, will sound way different than rosewood or mahogany. Think of the body of the guitar as the amp, and the spruce top as the speaker.
 
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