Official Luthiers Forum!

I have a whole bunch of Ivory and was wondering what you all think of it for building? My grandparents are clearing out their house as they are getting ready to downsize into a smaller place. They found a solid Ivory Mah Jong set from when my gramp was a kid, so it's close to 100 years old. It is solid ivory in outstanding condition. I'm thinking it might be useful for nuts but it will not be large enough for a saddle. It would be large enough to make tuning buttons, but I have no idea how I would do this. Is it any good for inlay work? It is a complete Mah Jong set and they are domino size, so there should be something I can use these for. Any suggestions?

Cheers!

John

P.S. The set has no sentimental value as I already have other things that do (like a 150 yr. old violin that needs restored).

I STRONGLY suggest you not harm those Mah Jong pieces by using them for guitar stuff. Their value as a 100 year old set far outweighs the paltry use as inlay and nuts. Besides, bone is pretty much as good as ivory for nuts, and if you want ivory, there's stuff out there that has far less value than antique MahJong pieces. If you want to get rid of the set because you don't value it...then send me a PM with an asking price!

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

Ditto what Don said.

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Dave Bland

remember...

"If it doesn't play in tune...it's just pretty wood"

My wife just sold her mothers antique Mahjong set at an estate sale. You would not beleive how much it went for!
I don't think I'd carve it up if I were you...

I'm all ears...what did your mom get for the Mah Jong set? Maybe I should leave it whole. I guess it's time to do a little more research.

John

Antiques Roadshow!   Probably worth a fortune.
Bob would probably swap a truckload of zoot for that.

Ron

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OLD MAN formerly (and formally) known as:

Ron Wisdom

Somewhere in the middle of Arkansas......

Okay, some will think that I'm being overly picky again, but I have to say it: Don't add ivory to a new build--ever! You'll be creating a demand for more ivory when it comes time to replace the nut or saddle or inlay you put in there. Leave existing stock for vintage repair or restoration, and keep your Mah Jong set as it is.