Ancient vs. Modern Kaurie

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Robert Gleason
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Ancient vs. Modern Kaurie

Post by Robert Gleason » Thu Oct 21, 2021 1:39 pm

Awhile back I got some Ancient Kauri/Swamp Kauri for back and sides of a uke. I paired it with a NZ modern Kaurie top that was gifted to me by a NZ friend. Actually turns out Kaurie grows quite well in Hawaii, and there are ornamental plantings with trees easily large enough to get quartered guitar tops. The wood looks identical to the modern Kaurie I got from NZ. After I learned this, I chased down some Hawaii Kaurie and i'll be using it for some tops in the future. We don't have much in the way of good alternative top wood here.

Anyway, I have a question about Kaurie. The wood that I got that is called Swamp Kaurie looks totally different from the modern Kaurie. The old stuff is a creamy tan color with not very distinct grain and the modern stuff looks very much like spruce. So, my question is are there different species of Kaurie or does just being old and buried in muck for a long time totally change the nature of the wood?

The Ancient Kaurie, while being a bit brittle, was very easy to bend and work with. I have a second set, which I'll use at some point, but this was mostly an adventure into novelty for me.

Here is a link to the uke. Just a plain Joe uke. Nothing fancy as i thought a subtle treatment suited this wood.
http://www.pegasusguitars.com/kauri-tenor-101121.html

Enjoy your building. Bob

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kiwigeo
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Re: Ancient vs. Modern Kaurie

Post by kiwigeo » Thu Oct 21, 2021 2:46 pm

Swamp kauri is the same species as the modern Kauri that grows in NZ...Agathis australis. Its just been buried in a swamp for up to 60,000 years.

Nice work on that uke Bob.
Martin

Andos
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Re: Ancient vs. Modern Kaurie

Post by Andos » Sat Oct 23, 2021 9:16 am

This is what 20,000 years in a swamp does to rimu.
A b&s set of rimu milled 40 years ago and sitting on top, a piece of 20k year old swamp rimu.

Andos
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Location: Taranaki

Re: Ancient vs. Modern Kaurie

Post by Andos » Sat Oct 23, 2021 9:22 am

This is what 20,000 years in a swamp does to rimu.
A b&s set of rimu milled 40 years ago and sitting on top, a piece of 20k year old swamp rimu.
20211023_110742~2.jpg

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