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Does bone melt?


DarkHorseJ27

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I'm talking about actually melting, not turning to ash like it does during cremation. To my knowledge, only certain bands of radiation can make bone melt.

 

The reason I ask is I got around to putting in the bridge pins I ordered from the eBay seller mentioned in this thread:

 

http://acapella.harmony-central.com/showthread.php?t=2394818

 

The pins seemed an awful lot like plastic. When I dropped them and a plastic pin on a wood surface they made the same sound. Finally, I turned on a burner on the electric oven and held a pin on the burner with a pair of metal tongs. It melted fairly quickly. The pins are supposed to be made of water buffalo bone. I thought I would just ask and confirmed just to be sure before I leave bad feedback.

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I'm pretty sure bones don't melt. Like you said, they'll burn, but not melt.

 

Here's a link I found...not the best way to get accurate answers, but the dude makes sense:

 

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070326115913AAH8GtG

 

I suppose if you really wanted to do a test, get some chicken bones, or beef bones, or whatever and try to get them to melt. There's not going to be a big difference between chicken bones and water buffalo bones. A bone is a bone, for the most part.

 

EDIT: The other way of checking would be actually putting the bridge pins in your guitar, because everyone knows that bone bridge pins will sound better than plastic ones. And anyone who says otherwise is wrong and a liar :cop:.

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I also ordered some nuts from the guy. I did the same thing with a nut as I did with the pin. It got black on the part that was touching the burner, but that was it, and that was after a much longer time at a significantly higher temperature. And they are both supposedly made out of water buffalo bone.

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I looked at his items. He has some pins that are pretty clearly made of buffalo horn or some other organic material. But those uniform white or black pins are probably plastic.

 

I bought some too. They were cheap, but I'm asking for an exchange based on your science experiment.

 

These look like the real thing:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=360166772293#ht_4097wt_939

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The pins I bought were black, which made me wonder if they just looked plastic because they were painted. They could be buffalo horn, because they are brown on the inside, and I have not idea whether horn would melt/burn up that quickly. But the auction said bone, bone is what I wanted, and I didn't get what I paid for. $40 total down the tubes (two set of pins and a set of nuts that were too small).

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I have no idea whether Water Buffalo horn pins would melt that way.

 

I will say that I have never heard of Water Buffalo bone pins, but I have heard of Water Buffalo horn pins.

 

It quite possible that you got horn instead of bone. In that case the seller should make it right. If not, make a case and leave bad feedback.

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Let us know what he says, Horse. I emailed him, and he insists he's sold 10,000 of them, and they were all bone.

 

I responded by gently asking if he could have accidentally sent out a batch of plastic pins.

 

In any case, he seems to be willing to refund if you're not happy.

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Horns are made of the same kidna thing as teeth. Teeth don't melt. Now, fingernails and hair, will.

 

 

Horn will tend to melt or singe when heated using a naked flame. Bone tends not to, but will scorch/burn if the heat is sufficiently intense. This is because horn is something that's primarily derived from a form of keratin, whereas antler is a form of bony growth.

 

You'll be on the right track if you think of tusks as teeth (Enamel), horn as hair (Keratin) and antler as bone (Often a seasonal form of bone derived growth).

 

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Buffalo/bovine derived pins will typically be made using horn and not bone when opting for a coloured alternative and bone in cases involving white or cream colouration. It's not unusual to find horn pins/saddles buffed to a sheen using a wax derived compound, but it's horn if it smells like singed hair when you apply a naked flame.

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Horn will tend to melt or singe when heated using a naked flame. Bone tends not to, but will scorch/burn if the heat is sufficiently intense. This is because horn is something that's primarily derived from a form of keratin, whereas antler is a form of bony growth.


You'll be on the right track if you think of tusks as teeth (Enamel), horn as hair (Keratin) and antler as bone (Often a seasonal form of bone derived growth).


--------


Buffalo/bovine derived pins will typically be made using horn and not bone when opting for a coloured alternative and bone in cases involving white or cream colouration. It's not unusual to find horn pins/saddles buffed to a sheen using a wax derived compound, but it's horn if it smells like singed hair when you apply a naked flame.

 

 

Great to see you back, Gary!

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Horn will tend to melt or singe when heated using a naked flame. Bone tends not to, but will scorch/burn if the heat is sufficiently intense. This is because horn is something that's primarily derived from a form of keratin, whereas antler is a form of bony growth.


You'll be on the right track if you think of tusks as teeth (Enamel), horn as hair (Keratin) and antler as bone (Often a seasonal form of bone derived growth).


--------


Buffalo/bovine derived pins will typically be made using horn and not bone when opting for a coloured alternative and bone in cases involving white or cream colouration. It's not unusual to find horn pins/saddles buffed to a sheen using a wax derived compound,
but it's horn if it smells like singed hair when you apply a naked flame
.

 

 

Yes. The smell should tell you what it is. You should be able to easily distinguish horn or bone from plastic when burned.

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Horn will tend to melt or singe when heated using a naked flame. Bone tends not to, but will scorch/burn if the heat is sufficiently intense. This is because horn is something that's primarily derived from a form of keratin, whereas antler is a form of bony growth.


You'll be on the right track if you think of tusks as teeth (Enamel), horn as hair (Keratin) and antler as bone (Often a seasonal form of bone derived growth).


--------


Buffalo/bovine derived pins will typically be made using horn and not bone when opting for a coloured alternative and bone in cases involving white or cream colouration. It's not unusual to find horn pins/saddles buffed to a sheen using a wax derived compound, but it's horn if it smells like singed hair when you apply a naked flame.

 

 

 

Good to see you back Gary.

 

It does smell like burned hair when burned. I think the sent me horn instead of bone. Thanks.

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Many thanks folks. :)

 

--------

 

If pins are black, brown or any shade between the two, you'll typically find they're either horn, ebony, rosewood - if natural products - or plastic. If white/cream they'll tend to be bone, horn (Both bleeched) or plastic. I'd tend to err on the side of thinking a little was lost in the vendor's translation/definition between bone and horn. Especially if English isn't his/her native language.

 

IMHO horn derived pins are a bit of an upgrade from bone or timber as they tend to be less brittle and take less maintenance.

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I'm talking about actually melting, not turning to ash like it does during cremation. To my knowledge, only certain bands of radiation can make bone melt.


The reason I ask is I got around to putting in the bridge pins I ordered from the eBay seller mentioned in this thread:


http://acapella.harmony-central.com/showthread.php?t=2394818


The pins seemed an awful lot like plastic. When I dropped them and a plastic pin on a wood surface they made the same sound. Finally, I turned on a burner on the electric oven and held a pin on the burner with a pair of metal tongs. It melted fairly quickly. The pins are supposed to be made of water buffalo bone. I thought I would just ask and confirmed just to be sure before I leave bad feedback.

 

This is definitely not bone, as bone does not melt. Simply put, you get jerked and I would call BBB or do whatever you think needs to be done.

No pics are needed, nothing. Bone just does not melt and takes extremely high temperatures to burn. And it does not matter what animal the bone comes from.

Pure bone is MINERAL with very little in the way of organic matter, mostly calcium.

So don't listen when people are saying what brand, type, vintage, show pics etc.

 

This is all irrelevant!

Bone does not melt!:cop:

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I have no idea whether Water Buffalo
horn
pins would melt that way.


I will say that I have never heard of Water Buffalo
bone
pins, but I have heard of Water Buffalo
horn
pins.


It quite possible that you got horn instead of bone. In that case the seller should make it right. If not, make a case and leave bad feedback.

 

 

Horn will not melt, but burn, but different than bone and at a much lower temp.

 

Horn is the same organic materials as hair, fingernails, etc. Ever burnt hair?

Then you know what to expect.

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