Here's an inexpensive source for celluloid tortoise shell binding

[Brian Stewart]

I had to do a repair on some tortoise shell fingerboard binding the other day and went looking to my usual sources for some.  Stew Mac doesn't sell it at all, and LMI charges an arm and leg for shipping because celluloid is apparently hazardous.  I was bummed.

I turned to ebay to see what was available, maybe find a used piece from an old guitar or something.  Well I found a Chinese supplier that was selling 5ft of the stuff for less than 5 bucks...and that included shipping!  I took a chance and ordered some up.

The binding came in the mail today.  Took a little over a week to get here directly from China.  It looked good and closely matched the binding on the guitar.  Got the repair mostly done.

I don't usually go to ebay or amazon for supplies, but I'm starting to do it more.  The prices are hard to argue with, and so far I haven't been burned.  The last luthier tool I got was a safety planer copy off ebay.  I've used it a few times and it seems to work fine and be built well...although I never was able to get an original, so...

Anyway, I'd post a link to the supplier where I got the binding, but I'm not sure if that is against the rules or not.

[William F.Eden]

I don't know what gos on hear but there are a lot of things we can't seem to buy here but you can seem to get it on the internet. And shipped mostly by the same way????????????? Bill.......

[John McDonald]

Wow..Thanks for sharing! I've wanted to order some for quite a while but have been turned off by the crazy shipping that LMI is forced to charge. Has a really nice vintage look to it as well.

[Robert May]

I wouldn't feel bad about it "being hazardous to ship". Can't remember a disaster ever happening from a Luthier having supplies shipped, yet big $$ companies get away with guys wacked on speed, meth, coke, whatever driving tanker trucks or trains or ships putting a huge disaster wreck and HUGE toxic spills in the news and a few months later it's just freakin' A-OK.

[William F.Eden]

I don't know if you fellow Luthiers do this or not but when I am using this Tortoise binding I put a strip of thin white purflin behind it to bring out the lite markings of it makes it look real nice.Bill.............

[Carl Mesrobian]

Just got a early 70's Gibson that needs tortoise shell binding work - is it possible to reamalgamate the stuff with MEK or acetone, or encapsulate it with adhesives,  or is that out of the question?

[Andrew]

I would start a new thread for this question, Carl.

[Robbie Collins]

I paid Axiom an extra $27 hazardous material fee to ship cellulose binding.  Have you tested the tortoise binding to see if it's real cellulose?

[Ned Knepp]

For those of you who are knocking shipping for hazardous material; Have you ever see cellulose burn. It's definitely hazardous material. 

[Paul Verticchio]

I agree, Ned.

If you can find a Fender tortoiseshell pick form the 60's or early 70's, light it & it's gone in a flash with VERY LITTLE ash. The flash paper used by magicians & SFX artists has a very high content of that substance.

In the 20's through the 50's, celluloid film stock used by the motion picture industry was, by law, prohibited from being transported on public transportation.

The imported stuff is likely not celluloid. Regardless, celluloid too isn't real tortoiseshell. Thanks goodness.

If it looks like cellu'd, works like cellu'd and adheres like cellu'd, then it's a duck, right. Huh? ;)

Happy binding :)