It would be interesting to hear peoples views on their preference for neck profile - do you like it thick and round or thin and flat?

Here is an example of shapes from a web blog - what do you think?

We did some analysis on this and actually found that Pine (i.e. soft white-wood) had quite a decent ring to it. However, as you'd probably expect, it dents quite easily.

Have a look at: http://rufusguitars.co.uk/info_woodtypes.php

Almost everyone we are making guitars for at the moment (worldwide) has chosen Cherry for their guitar. Our tests show cherry, like pearwood,  to be very sonorous and resonant; I often wonder if this is because it comes from a small tree with plenty of grain variation. Also cherry and pear, being top-fruit, are closely related (i.e. Amygdaloideae, in the Rose family)

I really can't comment on plywood except to say that this website says that all the major brands make their semi's from it: http://www.edroman.com/guitars/rvc/bluesdeluxe.htm However, in the major brands defence, I would expect that these companies would prefer to use the word "laminate"!

Most hifi speaker cabinets are constructed from chipboard and I was always told that this was to absorb the sound - if that's true then it wouldn't be a great material for a guitar.

hth

This is just a quick message to say hello from Rufus Guitars. Hello!

We are an independent British guitar maker based on the Wirral. Our guitars are hand-made in our studio-workshop in Oxton and we try to use as many British parts and materials as possible This includes Tangent Pickups and selected wood grown and seasoned in the UK. Every guitar we make is named and numbered and comes with a certificate of authenticity. - See more at: http://rufusguitars.co.uk