What are the defination of the following t-bands as opposed to foam t-bands(which i understand to be ( l l ) where () is a rail, l is a stringer and everything else is foam) Correct?
Wood t-band?
Reverse Wood t-band?
Thanks again.
a t-band is just any two pieces of wood glued together. a standard wood t-band is one thicker stringer in the center glued between two thinner stringers. a reverse wood t-band is when the center stringer is thinner and is glued between two thicker stringers. i think their biggest draw is cosmetic…cuz let’s be honest…THEY LOOK GREAT! although, they can make the cost of a blank significantly more expensive for all that extra wood. personally…i always get some sort of custom stringer…worth every penny.
Trivia: From what I remember, the T-band got its’ name from the guy who ordered it all the time; thus, the Thomas band.
As Soulstice mentioned, the wood T-band designates two stringers encasing another middle wood stringner. Contrasting wood colors and colored glue are great ways to improve the aesthetics.
In the case of the “reverse” t-band, I may be wrong so my apologies if this is true, but I believe the name refers to the orientation of the stringers. Clark Foam has their own wood mill and when they machine a stringer, they can split it into two stringers, then swap ends nose-to-tail with one of the pieces and do the glue-up. Two stringers glued back-to-back in this fashion is a means of bridging any flaws in the original stringer wood. If a stringer has a hidden flaw, then the other stringer (reversed) will assume the load. This is in theory of course, as it could be possible to have a flaw right at the center point of the board; but the odds of this happening are only slight…
Search the archives. The entire history of the T-band is found within.
A t-band is .25" redwood, 1" balsa, .25" redwood. A reverse t-band is .5" balsa, .25" redwood, .5" balsa.
Thickness and materials may vary.
One more aspect of T-Bands is that they are much stronger than single stringers of the same thickness. Whenever you glue up wood laminates; the more laminations, the stronger the final product.
It’s a principle used in bent-wood laminations in the woodworking industry. I’ve done alot of it, and the benefits in increased strength are worth the effort, or expense. And T-Bands just look great. Doug
Clark does have their own mill, but they don’t take the wood cut it in two and reverse one so the nose of one piece is at the tail of the other. This is a myth. Odds are the two peices of wood are not even from the same piece of wood, certainly not next two each other. Their process ends up shuffling the wood like a deck of cards.
Dick Thomas, an employee at Walker Foam in the early 60’s, created the first sandwiched wood glue up. It had two redwoods with a balsa sandwiched between. The name was shortened to T-Band and it stuck – industry wide. Since then Clark Foam has set it so that any sandwich, be it foam, wood, or combinations that are inserted into the blank, are called T-Bands. For example, a T-Band could be two basswoods glued together, or three, or any number of laminations of wood or foam. A reverse T-Band is nothing more than the darker coloration (of any combination of material) in the center. A traditional reverse T-Band would be two balsas with a (we use) cedar in the center. Although they make an attempt to match the color of the outside pieces, there is no guarantee.
Interesting:
It costs more if you were to order: 1/8” basswood+1” foam+1/8” basswood T-Band.
In stead of: 2)1/8” basswood 1” apart.
The look is exactly the same, however Clark cuts the blank only once in the first example and they insert a 1” piece of foam between two basswoods to make the T-Band (the foam is the cost and the finished blank is 1” wider). In the second example the blank is cut twice and the two stringers are inserted.
Kinda like when you get tuna on a bagle it costs $5…but if you order a bagel with tuna on the side it only costs $3.
Drew