Official Luthiers Forum!

OK, I went to the fabric store and my wife went to other one (We have two, we are nearly a metropolis!!). The Bias Tape they have is 65% polyester 35% cotton. Is this the stuff? They come in a rainbow of colours.

Thanks
ShaneShane Neifer38691.0067013889

_________________
Canada

Shane, I think what you're asking about is what we call ('round these parts) twill tape. The type used to tie up the guitar during the binding process, right? If not, then pay no attention to what I am saying. If so, then I hope what you have looks like this:

Zoomed in:

They do come in many colors. I would think that a wide variety of materials would work provided that A)It is soft enough not to damage the wood when you exert force on it, B)That it does NOT stretch a great deal as to provide enough pressure on your bindings in order to keep them in place, and C)That it is available in bulk (100') so that you don't have to tie together a ton of smaller lengths with hard knots that may dent areas in the unfinished wood.
If the bias tape you're asking about is something completely different, then this whole post is moronic and pay no attention to me at all.

-j.

_________________
“If God dwells inside us like some people say, I sure hope He likes enchiladas, because that's what He's getting”
-jack handy

Hi Shane,

Yes that's the stuff I've used - it works great. After reading posts at MIMF about this by Mario (or poss. Alan Carruthers) I tried it & it's very simple.

Just choose a color that's about twice as light as you need since it darkens with glue applied. Also, it comes in various widths so try to get the thinnest width. Inside the package the stuff is folded over itself twice so go get the clothes iron, wet the cloth, spread it open & iron it flat for your final width.

Cut the stuff into strips approx. 5" long & wet it with hide glue & apply to the guitar's ribs (inside is better ). Wet again in place with glue using a brush & position appropriately. Cover the rib top-to-bottom as this material is so thin the linings glue in right over it. After it dries, trim flush with the rib edges. Dab some shellac on the strips a few hours later to prevent the glue from releasing over time and "Bob's your uncle"! The only thing you lose by going this route is the option to inlay the strips as a decorative touch like some folks do with their wood strips.

The twill tape that j.brown recommends is not the same exact stuff but will probably work as well (so would any cloth that is strong & thin). It may be somewhat thicker & make the lining fitting over it kinda funky, however. Also it might be monster overkill - but that's not a bad thing.

Good Luck,
SkipSkip Beach38691.3865740741

Ah-ha. Using the tape for vertical bracing with Hide glue as a resin type reinforcement. I get it. Sorry, I couldn't find the original post, so I was goin' out on a limb. It broke. The tape I posted will work if need be, but the 100' length may be a bit much for a 5" guitar side
-j

_________________
“If God dwells inside us like some people say, I sure hope He likes enchiladas, because that's what He's getting”
-jack handy

Martin used linen twill tape originally, and that would be good if you could get it. Twill tape has a selvedged edge: it's woven in such a way that it won't unravel along the sides, so it looks neat.

I started using the cotton-poly bias tape because I had it. It's cut along the diagonal from pieces of cloth, so the edges will fuzz up. They fold it over to keep the edges from showing: the bias cut allows it to run around curves without wrinkling (sort of like a shark's skin).

'Tan' works well on mahogany, and 'Seal Brown' or 'Mocha' on rosewood. Black goes with everything, of course. I iron mine out before use.

The cotton content really seems to help the glue stick; when I compared the strength of the cotton-poly tape with pure nylon twill tape the bias stuff worked better. The nylon tended to come unglued before it broke.

My procedure is to paint a line of hide glue across the side, stick on a strip of tape, and then follow up with some more glue to make sure it's wet all over and the edges are down tight. Remove excess glue with a paper towel.

I put the tapes on, then put the liners over them, and _then_ shellac the part of the tape that shows. The shellac is just there to keep air away from the glue, as the liners do that where they cover the tape. If you shellaced over the tape where the liner is top go you'd reduce the strength of the glue bond there.

Mario is a partisan of wood side braces, and thinks tapes are wimpy. ;)

Alan,
Sorry to goof up & refer to you as "Alan Carruthers" in the above post. Of course I REALLY DO know your name & I certainly know more about luthiere as a result of reading your informative posts.

Skip

Thanks ya'll

The bias tape I have is two inches wide, unfolded. Would you cut it into narrower strips or do you iron it flat as a four ply before you put it on, or as a 2 inch single ply, or......? I will "get it" soon...I hope!

Shane

_________________
Canada

Cut it narrower. I use strips about 1/2" wide.

I get called a lot of things; some of them are even repeatable! At this point, I don't care what you call me, just so you call me for dinner.

I've used cotton twill tape as well as bias tape. Both work great so pick by colour. I've also used different widths of Bias tape. The real wide stuff is probably the stuff that is folded over a bunch of times. I've ironed it flat and also used it still folded over, both worked well. I would try to get narrower stuff instead of cutting it as I would have a hard time getting a nice straight edge while cutting

[QUOTE=Alan Carruth] I get called a lot of things; some of them are even repeatable! At this point, I don't care what you call me, just so you call me for dinner. [/QUOTE]

I've done that! I guarantee you that you'll learn a lot. (1) So much so that taking Al to dinner might even be tax deductable.

(1) You might learn a lot about steam catapults or some other escoterica but usually it's about lutherie.

Grrrrreat! I will cut it into 1/2 inch strips then. Not a prblen with a straight edge and a sharp knife.

Thanks again

Shane

_________________
Canada

Man, you should try one of those 'pizza cutter' things they sell at sewing stores. Be careful; when they're new they are as sharp as anything you've used. It rolls along a straightedge as smooth as budduh.