orange binding strip

[old_picker]

the kid is still talking to me and has resigned himself to pin striping. Now its time for him to get off the pottie or pee - if he drops his 1/3rd deposit i'll post back

 

 

[Prostheta]

Good to hear. If he doesn't put up the money, consider him fired. 

[T.Mc707]

Well guys I realize this is a very old Post. February 4, 2016 to February 18, 2016.

I've run into a scenario where I have been trying desperately to find Orange binding.

I found this.

Schecter Damien-4 Halloween.

https://www.schecterguitars.com/damien-4-halloween

I contacted Schechter about their orange binding and they told me that there was nothing they could do as the shop is in Indonesia and they neither sell it nor do they have access to it. Son of A!

So there is orange binding... somewhere in... Indonesia.

So I was curious if there is any updates from February 18, 2016?

Or is orange binding as elusive as an honest politician.

[Prostheta]

That colour isn't too far off a cream that I have seen from (I think) StewMac. I have some around somewhere (not enough for an instrument though) and it's more like a peachy-pink cream tone. Very weird. I've never seen orange, however being ABS it isn't unfeasible to buy and cut your own from a sheet.

[twnorman]

I too would like to find orange binding.  Wonder if there is a way to make my own or dye some white binding.  My vision is to build an ES-175 style in a not too dark navy blue with orange binding as a trim and perhaps pretty wide maybe a quarter inch. I think it would be awesome looking.  Orange and Navy blue were the school colors at a high school I went to back in the 70's and I have always loved the combination.

[twnorman]

I know someone somewhere is making guitar bindings, but who? Can a person make a custom order direct from a manufacturer? I can't find any information on how it's made or even who the companies are that make it. Can I make it myself? If so, how? Who figured out how to make it in the first place? I can find how to make your own wooden guitar bindings but plastic guitar binding manufacturing seems to be almost a secret. Since it is so common, why is it that I can't find any information about how it's made or even who makes it?  I can find places that sell guitar binding but I cant seem to find the actual manufacturers.

[Bizman62]

The actual binding material is most likely made by cutting strips out of either sheets or rolls. Something like this: https://us.tchweb.com/products/510-3500907

That popped up in Google by "ABS plastic sheet orange" and there was many others so you should find one that delivers to your whereabouts.

To answer your other questions:

• Who makes bindings? Very likely it's a special bulk order to make the plastic sheet manufacturer to cut ultra short lengths (1/8" - ½") as the width of the roll may be wide enough for surrounding the entire guitar body. The 47" width of the sheet in the link is about the same as the length of guitar binding.
• That said, from a 96" sheet you can get some 400 binding strips! Thus you'd only need a roll for a zillion strips. But the wear of the cutting tools is 400 fold compared to sheets and takes as much time so it's not economical. I'm tempted to suppose that the strips are made out of leftover stock right before cutting tool maintenance.
• That means that there are no actual manufacturers for binding material! It's just a biproduct of plastic sheet manufacturing.
• Can a person make a custom order? Possibly, but they sell by cubic acres. You may be able to get a sample from a stock colour but samples usually are palm size squares instead of strips.
• How is it made? Industrially they use a cutter, either a guillotin type or a roller cutter for accurate width.
• Can you make it? Yes, if you can get a sheet you can cut it with a saw. Files, planes and scrapers can be used for smoothening the edges.
• Who invented it? Some guitar builder saw the material somewhere and thought it might be easier to bend to shape than wood or abalone. Plastic strips are widely used in the edges of worktops so it may just have been a matter of cross-learning, adapting methods from other branches.

 

[Prostheta]

I'm unsure whether binding is cut or extruded. It could be a mixture of both dependent on manufacturer and material.

[twnorman]

Bizman62, Thank you so much! Very informative. Some of which I feel like I should have known.  But I think that it being more of a byproduct than a product explains a lot of the limitations.  I appreciate the trouble you went to answer this. Grace and Peace to you and yours!

[Bizman62]

1 hour ago, Prostheta said:

I'm unsure whether binding is cut or extruded.

The tortoise binding I have definitely looks cut, the edge looks so different from the flat surfaces. It's rough, looking like myriads of small diamonds. Further, there's a burr on the bottom side.

Supposedly all facets of an extruded binding should be uniformly shiny.

@twnorman one place you might be able to get strips cut of boards is a (neon) sign maker's shop.

[henrim]

3 hours ago, Prostheta said:

I'm unsure whether binding is cut or extruded. It could be a mixture of both dependent on manufacturer and material.

Out of three different ABS bindings I have here right now, two are definitely cut and one looks like it could have been  extruded.