[pianotech] reNew Ivory

[Mike Morvan]

List,
    Bone is bone, ivory is ivory, they will never be the same. Bone in the past has been cruelly called "poor man's ivory" but it's not ivory and is a great substitute. Bone is more porous than ivory because bone is living tissue with arteries and veins going through it everywhere (that's what the pores are), ivory is a deposited material with blood flow only in the nerve, similar to our teeth. Cow bone is much more porous than camel bone and camel bones are big enough to yield a 1 piece top. I agree with Joe in that the bulk of the cost is in the labor to apply the material, I'll further add that it not only takes some skill and equipment to apply ivory and bone, but the material must be bought from a supplier that knows how to cut and prepare the material properly.   Mike

Blackstone Valley Piano
76 Sutton Street
Uxbridge, MA 01569
www.pianoandorgankeys.com
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Joseph Garrett 
  To: pianotech 
  Sent: Wednesday, January 12, 2011 9:32 PM
  Subject: [pianotech] reNew Ivory



  Ed asked: 
  "Greetings,
  A customer is considering having her keyboard restored, which in 
  this case, means a new set of ivory or something other than plastic. I 
  heard, several years ago, of alternatives such as walrus tusk, certain 
  cow-bone, etc. being introduced to the piano market. What, if anybody 
  cares and knows to tell, is the performance of these alternatives? 
  This is for a piano teacher, the keys will be used a lot.
  thanks,"

  Ed,
  There are several options: 1. Two piece Ivory, which is the traditional "look". 2. One piece Ivory, which was seen on upscale pianos, (usually European, but also 7' & 9' Yamahas). Both are available. I do the two piece type. Rick Wheeler does the One Piece Ivory. 3. Beef bone, which is very porous and is a bear to keep clean, because of the porosity. 4. Imitation Ivory, which to my eye is hideous, but there are those who like that look. Vagias makes that stuff and I suspect there may be other makers. There is one "imitation ivory" that is favored by the scrimshaw group. That stuff looks pretty good, but does not come in sheets like we need them. (as far as I know<G>)
  If Ivory Tusks have a serial number on them, they can be bought and sold, under strict conditions. I don't know what those conditions are. The prepared Ivory is pretty expensive, but the real cost is in the labor to install the stuff on keys.
  I hope that helps. 


  Joe Garrett, R.P.T.
  Captain of the Tool Police
  Squares R I

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://ptg.org/pipermail/pianotech.php/attachments/20110113/436e1026/attachment.htm>