Official Luthiers Forum!

Thanks for all of your replies to my abalone sources post. I ended up going with Andy DePaule. What a great guy. Very honest and helpful.
I got a bunch of stuff today via USPS, Fed-Ex, and In-law courier.
This photo is of my smallest package of the day, but wow does it pack a punch.
1/8" Curved Paua Abalone rosette material. I'm blown away by it and thought I would share it with you who helped me source it.
Thanks.

-j.

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

Looks Great J. Andy is a great guy and has wonderful product.

that's astoundingly beautiful!

looks great, when I was at the ASIA Symposium I purchased very little as I am not a builder. I did hang out with Andy quite a bit and his pearl was so nice I bought some just to have. He rules.
Evan

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http://www.NewYorkGuitarRepair.com

Andy rocks! Good stuff, good prices, great guy!

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Dave Rector
Rector Guitars

I told you that Andy is the Man

...Wow, that is a lot better than what I just recieved from Thailand... Gorgeous!

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I'd like to be able to prove, just for once, that money wouldn't make me happy...

Alain, remember that's wetted (water on it). Wet the stuff you've got, and witness the difference it makes.

All that said, Andy DePaule's a great guy to deal with, good prices, and top quality product.

That's very nice looking material. Beautiful.

I can imagine Andy DePaule is a great guy. I was troubled, though, at some things on his website. He says he is working with one man and his family in VietNam for his inlay material. He has even gone so far as to supply them with machines they couldn't previously afford. What troubles me are the pictures on his site of people cutting and working w/ this inlay material with no respirators or filtering apparatus. Nothing. If they are not using filtering, they are all guaranteed a bad visit from Mr Silicosis. Along with the machines, he should ensure they have appropriate breathing filters?

[quote]Along with the machines, he should ensure they have appropriate breathing filters?[/quote]

He may have provided them, but he can't make them wear them.

When I owned a buisness in Hayward, Calif.,next door to my shop was a Yugoslavian stone cutter. He made custom bathrooms,and kitchens for very expensive homes. He provided high quality respirators for his workers, and required that they wear them. They wore them around their necks. People sometimes are their own worst enemies.

Al Peebels

[QUOTE=Graham Steward] [quote]Along with the machines, he should ensure they have appropriate breathing filters?[/quote]

He may have provided them, but he can't make them wear them.
[/QUOTE]
True. But I wouldn't offer pictures on my website of people not taking the regular precautions.

Andy provides all needed PPE (personal protection equipment) but in Veitnam I doubt he can make them wear them. I know for a fact that Andy would provide the world to them. I don't know if the labor is related to his wife or not but I believe they are from her home region. So I can assure you that he is not taking advatage.

From what I understood, they're a pretty stubborn bunch there! He offered ready made sawblades for cutting the pearl, but they preferred their own home-cut stuff.

I'm putting the final touches on my logo design, and I'll be placing a 'please cut this for me' order with Andy soon; I like inlaying, but I'd rather not spend ages cutting the same 'ol stylized 'V' or 'Valente' for my headstocks..

Yes, it seems like, from all of your posts, that Andy is definitely an upstanding guy and probably has made all efforts to get that family to protect themselves. Shame - silicosis must hurt. And they look like such nice people!

Actually, I don't believe there have been any publications in medical journals mentioning increased incidence of silicosis among pearl workers (so revealed the last pubmed search I did). Given other documented isntances of silicates, etc. causing problems, this doesn't necessarily mean anything.