Do wooden arms warp

Redglove, It is I who must take exception to your ad hominem attack. I made no "nasty swipe" at anyone here, but you have made a nasty swipe at me. As to making rational fact-based arguments, no one here, least of all me, has denied that wood tonearms have the potential to warp, depending upon how they are made and upon the environment in which they are subsequently used. Beyond that, the issue is "how much" and does it affect alignment such that wood tonearms need to be frequently re-aligned. I think I addressed some of those issues, but my only data set is my personal experience. Since there is no "science" of wood tonearms per se, the rest of it is just my opinion vs the opinions of others. I actually enjoy trading pros and cons with those whose opinions differ from mine. And I cannot apologize to you for anything I've already written here or anywhere else on the Analog Forum. If the very word "shit" offends you per se, you're entitled to feel that way, I guess.

There are wood armwands and then there are wood armwands. As Rockitman stated, woods can be treated to such an extent that they are essentially impervious to warpage from aging, moisture and temperature changes. Warpage in wood is a function of the change in tension between the different grains. Each grain having a different density and moisture content, hence a different shrinkage (hate it when that happens)factor. By choosing the properly aged/dried wood with the desired grain pattern, wood is the optimal choice for an armwand. (All bets are off if the wood is green.) I know this statement will bring out all kinds of challenges. No matter what I say or write, I doubt I will change anyone's opinion on this topic. Nor do I care to try. I will say, IMHO, nothing in use today isolates the energy from the motor/plinth getting to the cartridge better than a proper wood armwand. No other arm material I have heard is as neutral. If there were better available, I would be using it. It certainly would cost less and save many hours to make a metal armwand than a properly prepared wood armwand.

One poster suggested wood expands so much that it will change their precise to the micron cartridge setup. Thanks for the laugh, and that is on so many different levels. First of all, cured/kiln dried wood in general has a lower expansion rate when compared to most metals. It is the moisture in the wood that expands, not so much the wood itself. Low moisture content hardwood has about a third of the expansion rate of aluminum and magnesium and half compared to titanium when the temperature range for testing is in the realm of our real world environments. Stabilized wood(where the moisture is vacuumed out and replaced with other materials) performs even better. Then lets talk about the thermal properties of vinyl. It expands and moves around at a rate about the same as aluminum. The problem is the heat generated by dragging the record grooves against the stylus generates huge temperature swings. How much heat is contested but 500 degrees F peaks might be conservative. There goes those micronic adjustments.

Disclaimer, I build the Schröder LT tonearms.

No matter which side you take, have a great Holiday!

Mr V. So you admit your tonearms are plastic with a wood look. Just as I surmised. How else to maintain dimensional stability? It was never about temperature, our turntables sit indoors. At least mine does. The challenge with wood is changes in humidity. The only solution is to infuse the wood with other materials. So at best it is a wood/polymer hybrid. And what does the localized heating between the stylus and vinyl have to do with tonearm dimensional stability? Try to organize your thoughts better.
Still the open question: How well do wooden tonearms hold their setup? Does anyone have some facts?

Where do you come up with that conclusion Mr t? No plastic here. Is English a second language for you or are you just trying to justify your misconceptions?

Hmm. Applying the Liberal strategy: When lacking facts and data deflect with personal attacks.
Let me ask another question then. If wood is neutral then why are musical instruments made of wood? Different woods give instruments their character, no?