Red Spruce Group Buy

Kim · Post by **Kim** » Tue Feb 05, 2008 11:02 pm

Just an update from Colonial.

Steve has sent me an email to confirm that all of the bracewood billets we have bought will be taken down a further $1 USD a piece to bring them into line with the six or more unit price of $6.00 each now being offered on his new site, rather than the older price of $7.00 each.

However the 20% discount currently offered to celebrate the launch of Colonials new site will not apply to our buy as Steve has already taken a beating on the price he gave us on the tops. (and besides, not that Steve mentioned this, but we did in fact place the order prior to the launch) I think that you will all agree that the per unit shipping price we gained by having this group buy will cover that 20% anyhow.

Anyhow, I would just like to say thanks to Steve for the kind gesture and for showing us what service is all about. He did not have to do this, he just did it and I for one really appreciate the integrity.

I will adjust your final payment to include this latest break so it will discount your local shipping cost.

Cheers all

Kim

Colonial Tonewoods · Post by **Colonial Tonewoods** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 7:25 am

DOH!!!
Sorry for the brain flatulence on the price of those bracewood billets. I've been extremely busy the past few days and don't know whether to wind my ass or scratch my watch.
I was going to contact Kim about it but he beat me to the punch.
So everything is in order and I do apologize for any confusion.

Stephen

Hesh1956 · Post by **Hesh1956** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 9:41 am

Guys I just finished two guitars with my Adi tops from Steve and they are superb tops. How are you doing on your builds??????

kiwigeo · Post by **kiwigeo** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 3:45 pm

Absolutely nothing!!!

Into my third week out on this oil rig. The only wood for 500km is in a couple of packing crates I walk past every time I go to the accomodation. I get a hard on every time I go near the crates and I reckon by next week I'll be down in the welders workshop busy thicknessing a packing crate top.

Allen · Post by **Allen** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 5:23 pm

kiwigeo wrote:Absolutely nothing!!!

Into my third week out on this oil rig. The only wood for 500km is in a couple of packing crates I walk past every time I go to the accomodation. I get a hard on every time I go near the crates and I reckon by next week I'll be down in the welders workshop busy thicknessing a packing crate top.

Thanks Martin, that was a fine end to my day.

Bloody hot and sticky here. I think it's blowing in from the gulf, so you must be copping it there.

joel · Post by **joel** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 5:48 pm

I wonder what sort of thickness you'd take a packing crate top to?

Bob Connor · Post by **Bob Connor** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 7:52 pm

Depends how stiff it is.

Hesh1956 · Post by **Hesh1956** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 4:36 am

A few of us here are calling this getting a zootie.......

Kim · Post by **Kim** » Mon Feb 11, 2008 4:43 pm

Well it looks like we have overcome my stuff up and I have now heard from everyone who has paid or who is about to. I will transfer all the funds including those I have agreed to cover to my credit account and will make payment to Steve probably tomorrow so he can finally get the wood on the plane.

Cheers all and thanks for your patience.

Kim

Kim · Post by **Kim** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 1:09 am

Folks.

Despite having diametrically opposed time zones, Steve and I finally made phone contact and I am happy to report that the order has now been placed.

Cheers

Kim

Kim · Post by **Kim** » Wed Feb 27, 2008 1:00 pm

As you can see, most of the tops are here, the bracewood has only just left the USA so I will start packing up when it gets here in a few days time. Graham's mando tops are right to go now and will be first cab off the rank before the weekend

Cheers all

Kim

joel · Post by **joel** » Wed Feb 27, 2008 9:09 pm

That's a lot of tops right there!

Bob Connor · Post by **Bob Connor** » Wed Feb 27, 2008 9:16 pm

Lets have a pic of you rolling in it.

Bob

kiwigeo · Post by **kiwigeo** » Wed Feb 27, 2008 10:02 pm

Im interested in the white folder in the lower right part of tthe pic...the one that reads "His 279 Convicts and...."

Are these university lecture notes???? Is Kim perhaps a University History Lecturer in his real life???

Bob Connor · Post by **Bob Connor** » Wed Feb 27, 2008 10:09 pm

No way.

That's his summons collection.

Kim · Post by **Kim** » Wed Feb 27, 2008 10:42 pm

kiwigeo wrote:Im interested in the white folder in the lower right part of tthe pic...the one that reads "His 279 Convicts and...."

Are these university lecture notes???? Is Kim perhaps a University History Lecturer in his real life???

I wish Martin, those notes belong to SWMBO. Lara's doing a couple of history units to go with the Dip Ed, that way she gets to communicate with civilised people for a change.

Me, I'm just the thug/ogre who brings home the bacon and keeps the kids scared enough to do as they are told for a short while... oh! me forgot, me also collect wood...me like wood...hmmmm wood is good

Me make funny no?

Cheers

Kim

Kim · Post by **Kim** » Wed Feb 27, 2008 10:43 pm

bob wrote:No way.

That's his summons collection.

Good one Bob...I'll remember that one Maaaaate!

Cheers

Kim

Kim · Post by **Kim** » Fri Mar 07, 2008 5:48 pm

I had expected the bracewood to arrive here by now so I could pack up orders over the weekend but they did not make it. I would say that they will be here early next week, say Tuesday, and then I will be able to start getting your stuff out to you all. Thanks for your patience.

Graham's Mando Tops went out last Saturday, hoping they would be there for you by now

Cheers

Kim

Allen · Post by **Allen** » Fri Mar 07, 2008 7:39 pm

Thanks for the update Kim. Just wondering if you've got some of those nice tone wood presses all lined up keeping our wood all safe and dry?

graham mcdonald · Post by **graham mcdonald** » Sun Mar 09, 2008 2:41 pm

They hadn't arrived by Friday, and tomorrow (Monday) is a holiday here. Parcels, even letters, can take a week or more across the Nullabor. You just can't those camels to go fast enough. I will report in as soon as they have arrived.

cheers

graham

Kim · Post by **Kim** » Mon Mar 10, 2008 7:45 am

Graham McDonald wrote:They hadn't arrived by Friday, and tomorrow (Monday) is a holiday here. Parcels, even letters, can take a week or more across the Nullabor. You just can't those camels to go fast enough. I will report in as soon as they have arrived.

cheers

graham

Thanks Graham,

Yes sometimes the mail can be slower than we expect, as mentioned above I was hoping everyones bracewood would get here by now, hopefully today or tommorow. I must say here though that Steve did split the bracewood out and sent it on after the tops for good reason, we both had agreed that this was the best thing to do, so I hope no one here thinks he has let us down in any way. It's just me biting at the bit and getting a bit narky because USPS have done away with surface mail and they now price the airfreight soo close between Express and Standard that everyone just pays the express rate and in return gets a standard delivery time frame

Cheers

Kim

graham mcdonald · Post by **graham mcdonald** » Tue Mar 11, 2008 8:28 pm

The mando tops arrived today. Not cosmetically the ultimate bits of wood, but I wasn't expecting that anyway. Nice scratch and bong to them, and of course it is what I do to them once they are glued up and cut out that is the important thing.

Thank you Kim (and Steve in the US) for all the work you have put into this to make it work for us out here. I would probably not have bothered to have ordered any by myself and I am looking forward to getting a gouge into one.

Any idea on how long they have been cut/sawn?

cheers

graham

Colonial Tonewoods · Post by **Colonial Tonewoods** » Wed Mar 12, 2008 12:11 am

Graham,
Glad the tops arrived and thank you for your patience. I like to call Red spruce the "red headed stepchild" because cosmetically it's not that same as Englemann, German or Sitka. If you can get beyond the visual characteristics of Red spruce you'll find the tone absolutely incredible.

Your mando tops were cut in 05' and 06' respectively and air dried. I'd let them acclimate to your shop for at least two weeks before you start working them.

Please contact me if I can answer any questions.

Thank you,
Stephen C. Roberson

graham mcdonald · Post by **graham mcdonald** » Wed Mar 12, 2008 8:54 am

Hello Steve,

Thanks for the info on when they were cut. Chances are they will sit in the shed for several months at least. Do you have any opinion on the current fad for baking in the oven at around 90C for a hour or two. Lots of folks are doing it to guitar tops, and I have tried with one thicker mandolin top with no obvious problems. I weighed the guitar tops before and after and there was (from memory) about a 3% drop in weight, with about a third of that coming back (through I suppose water absorbtion) over a couple of weeks.

It was interesting to note that the box with the wood took a couple of days longer to get across Australia than a small box did to get here from California with some tailpieces from Randy Allen!

cheers

graham

Kim · Post by **Kim** » Fri Mar 14, 2008 7:22 pm

Everything is now here and ready to go, the last of it arrived yesterday arvo,

Here's the bracewood billets.

I will be packing and wrapping this weekend and try to have everything posted during next week.

Cheers

Kim

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