To the list, I have used shin bone on a Mason & Hamlin grand as replacement for ivory. It looks great, it feels natural, It is easy to work with ( compared to ivory). It has a little more color variation than ivory, but that creates the desired 'original' looks for a restoration job. If we keep on using ivory, pre- ban elephant, prehistoric mammoth or walrus, we could create a new demand for ivory in the world. Although illegal, poachers and other money driven individuals will market their illegal ivory as pre- ban etc. I would like my grand children to see real elephants and not some Steven Spielberg version of it. To make a long story short, shin bone is a bone of a cow. As long as it is socially acceptable to eat meat, it only makes sense to utilize the by products as well. The cow bone is used for centuries to make glue and was used as key covering in the organ manufacturing. Hermann Kluge in Germany makes and repairs keyboards and offers shin bone coverings to the rebuilder. Cyrillus Aerts UNT/ IPT/ EPT(elephant protecting tech)
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