Rock Maple

brianc · Post by **brianc** » Fri Feb 04, 2005 1:03 pm

For you pipe makers and also for those in the know about such things, would rock maple be a good material for making pipes?

Also, I have heard that rock maple is fairly rare, is that true?

The reason I ask is that I have a resource for some, and am curious about letting the owners know that they might want to offer it for sale (assuming it's rarity) rather than using it for the woodstove.

Tony · Post by **Tony** » Fri Feb 04, 2005 2:20 pm

Rock Maple... used on guitar necks, whistles, baseball bats, furniture and chopping blocks. O'Grady makes chanters from Maple.

Image from this website:
http://www.bainbridgefurniture.com.au/t ... _guide.htm

marcpipes · Post by **marcpipes** » Fri Feb 04, 2005 2:57 pm

I've used it for rolling pins and kitchen stuff I've made. It's great for that and unaffected by moisture. I don't know what kind of chanter it would make, but I think it would be great for stocks.
Marc

brianc · Post by **brianc** » Fri Feb 04, 2005 7:51 pm

Great stuff, thanks for the replies and the link, Tony!

No E · Post by **No E** » Fri Feb 04, 2005 7:56 pm

I think that they use some variety of maple for making bassoons (a blackwood bassoon would weigh a ton), but I believe that it has to be pressure-treated to make it air tight.

Parading my ignorance,

No E

Tony · Post by **Tony** » Fri Feb 04, 2005 8:03 pm

Correct. Bassoons are usually made from maple. When they aren't cared for properly they often suffer from rot in the bottom boot area and have to be rebuilt.

Paul Reid · Post by **Paul Reid** » Sat Feb 05, 2005 9:54 am

Hard rock maple is also used for pin blocks (where the tuning pegs reside) in high-quality pianos. These pin blocks are strong enough to resist several tonnes of stress from the tightened stings.

djm · Post by **djm** » Sat Feb 05, 2005 11:16 am

I know maple is used in developing various iterations during chanter experiment and development as it is much less expensive than the exotics. However, for sound quality it is considered inferior to blackwood or ebony.

djm

Patrick D'Arcy · Post by **Patrick D'Arcy** » Sat Feb 05, 2005 12:35 pm

Cillian O'Briain uses maple as far as I know for some of his pipes. Koehler & Quinn have used maple for sets they have made also. Not sure if it's rock maple though? David... you out there?

Patrick.

brianc · Post by **brianc** » Sat Feb 05, 2005 12:39 pm

Patrick D'Arcy wrote:Cillian O'Briain uses maple as far as I know for some of his pipes. Koehler & Quinn have used maple for sets they have made also. Not sure if it's rock maple though? David... you out there?

Patrick.

If you are out there, David, and you need a source (Maine) for rock maple, please IM me.

Unseen122 · Post by **Unseen122** » Sat Feb 05, 2005 2:56 pm

Tony wrote:Correct. Bassoons are usually made from maple. When they aren't cared for properly they often suffer from rot in the bottom boot area and have to be rebuilt.

Bassoons are always made of Maple or Yew other woods would be too heavy and only two joints get moisture the boot joint and the Tenor joint the other the moisture gets stuck in the bottom of the Boot. A lot of Bassoons have Brass lining in part of the boot to help with the rot problem.