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The thread on Lacey act imports to USA has made me wonder what is available for fretboard inlay that is not based on banned products. What are you using and what is it like to work with?

Fred

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There are all sorts of woods, metals, and plastics...

I am sure there are other shell materials that could be used too... although they don't have quite the glimmer of Abalone... What about using cultured pearl or similar materials?

I use aluminum for my fretboard side marker dots... No CITES/Lacey problems with that.... It's easy to work with and looks beautiful under finish...

Thanks

I am looking at using recon stone. There are a lot of varieties and colors. I've seen turquoise dots being offered and I would like to see other shapes and rosette strips as well. I am also looking to get my name/logo cut for my headstock inlay.
I've used some metals such as silver celtic knots and they look terrific. I've also used brass wire for side dots.
Not to forget woods for inlay as well.
I am looking forward to this thread as I am sure some great ideas will come forth.

Corian is very easy to work, though it looks bland.
The first time I met Harvey Leach, he showed me some of his scrimshaw work on Corian. Considering his mastery of inlay work, I would consider that a recommendation.
Not only that, but the price is right. I sourced mine from the scrap barrel at a cabinet shop.

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John

Gemstones can be used with a hardness of less than 5 on moe scale. Any lapidary supply can supply you with some. Turquoise is one that comes to mind and it can range from dark blue to light green. Some even has silver specks and black spiderwebbing in it. You can use harder stones, but it's a little harder to level in thw wood. The president of Grizzly has inlayed diamonds in some of his guitars, so the sky is the limit Fred.

Fred,

These guys have a vast range of recon stone http://www.masecraftsupply.com/html/recon_stone.html. Grit Laskin recommended these guys to me as a great source.

Rick

I'm looking at recon stone as well. I contacted Rescue Pearl http://www.rescuepearl.com
They told me their stone is made in Arizona and cut in their shop.

I've been thinking the same thing Fred. I've been looking at getting a bunch of pen blanks from this place http://www.penblanks.ca/home.php?cat=2 The blanks will be colored all the way through and you can go with wood or acrylic and mix match for lots of different shades and tones. Pretty inexpensive too when you think about cutting the blanks down to 0.1" strips.

Check out the stabilized burl pen blanks http://www.penblanks.ca/home.php?cat=58 outstanding stuff with lots of different colors to choose from

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Lots of good ideas. Keep 'em coming! These might be worth a look.
http://www.leevalley.com/en/wood/page.a ... 3243,53784
http://www.leevalley.com/en/wood/page.a ... 3243,53784

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Dave
Milton, ON

Yes, but guess where they get them from....

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"There's really no wrong way, as long as the results are what's desired." Charles Fox

"We have to constantly remind ourselves what we're doing....No Luthier is putting a man on the moon!" Harry Fleishman

"Generosity is always different in the eye of the person who didn't receive anything, but who wanted some." Waddy Thomson

Hi Rod,
I've dealt with the folks at William Wood Write several times ... really nice people.

Dave, they are just down the road from you in Cambridge. While the business is internet based they operate out of their home and usually they are open to a visit if you call in advance.

Rick

I just used some red, green, & yellow dyed bone for a reggae style inlay..looks good, but it is prone to cracking if you don't prep appropriately when fretting. (found out the hard way, of course!)

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Has anyone a method for cutting dots from any of these materials.

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Fred Tellier
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Cut them to squares, close in size to your diameter, CA to the flat tip of the size drill bit you want your dot to be, chuck in drill, turn on and file or sand to the diameter of the drill bit, dip in acetone to remove from the drill bit, repeat 8 times...

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"There's really no wrong way, as long as the results are what's desired." Charles Fox

"We have to constantly remind ourselves what we're doing....No Luthier is putting a man on the moon!" Harry Fleishman

"Generosity is always different in the eye of the person who didn't receive anything, but who wanted some." Waddy Thomson

I used some malachite for fretmarkers once.
Bought some cabs from a jewelry supply place.
Chris P has a vid about Rod True's method.
Then again,
there's always crazy figured wood for inlay.

I've made fretboard maker dots from various materials before with a plug cutter. Just made a row of the circles, cut deeper than what I needed, and then sliced then all at once with a a bandsaw, to depth.

I haven't tried the acrylic pen blanks, but have been planning to. I'll pick some up and give it a shot and report back.

Fred, I did a tutorial way back doing it as Rod describes, if that helps.
viewtopic.php?f=10117&t=22351
Rod & Rick, thanks for the tip....... I missed the fact that they were so close. (As with most such tips, just assumed it was US supplier...hence the LV alternative.)

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Dave
Milton, ON

Diamond Core Bits. Cheap ones can be had on ebay. You can get a set of different sizes for about $10. Put your shell or other material in a tray of water and cut the dots under water. Often I glue the material to a piece of wood with LMI white glue before drilling. I think I'm using the 9mm core bit to cut a 5.5mm dot for my ukuleles which I consider the perfect size dot for that purpose.

Also Ivory makes a nice inlay. In most areas you can get old upright pianos for the hauling on craigslist. Take the keys and saw off ivory with a little wood on it to thickness. If you recycle the brass in the pedals you could pay for your gas. It is possible you could get some decent mahogany from the legs depending on the design. With a 10lb sledge you can also explore your feelings of anger.

PS. I'm only talking about destroying/repurposing ones that are never coming back lest you think me sacrilegious.

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A local store, Black Forest Woods, is selling recycled ivory from an old piano. Using recycled products helps make sure the animals didn't die in vain. Its better than seeing it go in the trash.

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Music. And Stuff.

Tagua Nut is a big pod that is used as an ivory substitute. Verawood is very hard and polishes well. Corian countertop material machines nice.

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StuMusic

I agree, but according to CITES, reworked materials are not exempt. I have used recycled piano keys for over 20 years, but I would not risk exporting a guitar with it.

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John

Correct; piano-key ivory is excellent for inlays, and is a great use of an item that would otherwise go straight to landfill(most old upright piano's get tossed out as they're not worth repairing), but ivory is ivory, and once you cut the antique ivory key veneer, it's now a new product, and cannot be legally imported or exported. Perhaps not even sent across state lines(legally).

I've tried cutting my logo from Tagua nut, but it's too weak and crumbly once you take it down to 1/16" thick slices, unfortunately..

For other ideas on alternatives, just look everywhere. Plastics are all around us. Flatpicks come in all sorts of cool colors, and all those pickguard sheet offcuts you've been hoarding can also make some interesting inlays. If they're transparent/translucent and going to be inlaid into dark wood, dab a little silver or gold or white paint on the back of the inlay right before gluing it in. Look everywhere; I was in the laundry room this week when I noticed that the Purex detergent bottle is a pearlescent silver color, and actually has some reflective qualities to it! Much potential right there, at zero cost.

For export into or out of the US, though, I'd avoid any plastic that even hints of looking like pearl; that alone could trigger a USFWS inspection and fees...

And of course, there's a whole plethora of woods that can be used in inlays, and if we think outside the box, and start looking at our favorite woods' endgrain, a whole new "look" suddenly makes itself apparent.

There will be life after shell......

Many years ago pearl buttons where made in Iowa from mussels that where from the Mississippi river. Is it legal to use this matterial for inlays in guitars? As far as I know they still harvest these for export to seed cultured pearls.

Has anybody ever messed with Scottish Heather (dyed stems epoxied together).

http://www.google.com/imgres?q=heather+ ... nAg&zoom=1

Nathan, one of the members here looked into heather even going so far as to contact a manufacturer of heather gem jewelry. The manufacturer said they only make enough for their own use as heather gems in jewelry and had no raw pieces for sale if I recall.
Tony

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