Members Okieslims Posted June 25, 2009 Members Share Posted June 25, 2009 Hype or beneficial? I'm thinking about investing in some ivory bridge pins for my acoustic. I read a lot about the tonal benefits, but every site I looked at was linked to a sales page. I would like the opinion of some folks that aren't trying to sell me something. So if you guys have some experience with going from plastic to ivory bridge pins(or any premium material), please let me in on what tonal differences you noticed. Thanksmuch Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members irishstu Posted June 25, 2009 Members Share Posted June 25, 2009 You can buy those? Legally?? Ivory??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Krash Posted June 25, 2009 Members Share Posted June 25, 2009 Check out Freeman's Bridge Pin Test in the Tech section at the Annex. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Stackabones Posted June 25, 2009 Members Share Posted June 25, 2009 You can buy those? Legally?? Ivory??? Perhaps it's Fossilized Walrus Ivory? Kinda spendy. http://www.maurysmusic.com/inc/sdetail/4320 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Okieslims Posted June 25, 2009 Author Members Share Posted June 25, 2009 Yeah.. Im actually interested in all the different tones of different materials.. thanks a load for the link annex suggestion.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Okieslims Posted June 25, 2009 Author Members Share Posted June 25, 2009 I think Ill go with bone after listening to the demos.. there is a definite difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members seagullplayer77 Posted June 25, 2009 Members Share Posted June 25, 2009 You can buy those? Legally?? Ivory??? I'm not an expert, but I'm fairly certain that ivory can still be harvested from elephants as long as the elephants are dead of natural causes when said ivory is harvested. Poaching elephants for ivory is illegal, but I don't think that harvesting the tusks of elephants that are already dead is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RizinRico Posted June 25, 2009 Members Share Posted June 25, 2009 legal ivory comes from tusks harvested before the ban went into effect maybe late 70's or fosilized ivory from animals long dead. i did buy an ivory saddle which made my alvarez md90 go from sounding very good to sounding great. i received with the saddle a print out of where the tusk was harvested and when along with the control number for the tusk from which the saddle blank was cut. the name of the elephant and the next of kin (kidding) and a note at the bottom that pointed out that the saddle could not cross national boundaries (not kidding, so I will have to leave my dread behind when I do my international tour). I would NOT buy any more ivory as now i have been helped to realize (from posts at HC) that it only fuels the illegal trade of ivory (same for tortise) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RizinRico Posted June 25, 2009 Members Share Posted June 25, 2009 seagullplayer77, ivory can not be sold unless it was in this country before the ban went into effect. as such ivory can not cross national boundaries no matter how dead or how the animal died when the tusks were removed after the international ban went into effect. fossilized ivory can be sold but may or may not cross national boundaries depending on the country. if you take it in you may or may not be able to get the fossil out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bigald18 Posted June 25, 2009 Members Share Posted June 25, 2009 You should check with Stackabones about bridge pins. He'll give you the lowdown. BigAl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MDR Posted June 25, 2009 Members Share Posted June 25, 2009 if you take it in you may or may not be able to get the fossil out. If customs finds ivory (or any CITES-restricted material) in your possession when entering a country, they will confiscate it and anything that it's attached to. An ivory saddle could result in the confiscation of your entire guitar. And it would be highly unlikely that you'd get it back. Be careful. Leave such material at home. Better yet, don't buy it in the first place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members knockwood Posted June 25, 2009 Members Share Posted June 25, 2009 I recently purchased some bone bridge pins from this feller: http://www.guitarsaddles.com/ Bob Colosi is a great dude to do business with, and he makes some very snazzy products. Did the bridge pins alter the tone of my jumbo? Not that I can hear. My recollection from Freeman's pin test was that, if anything, I liked plastic. I bought these strictly for looks, though, and they look fantastic. The West African hard ivory saddle I also purchased, on the other hand, did seem to give me a little boost in clarity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Krash Posted June 25, 2009 Members Share Posted June 25, 2009 Poaching elephants for ivory is illegal, but I don't think that harvesting the tusks of elephants that are already dead is. Elephants are already dead after you shoot them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members guildfire Posted June 25, 2009 Members Share Posted June 25, 2009 Yes, it would be hard to drag a dead elephant through customs without generating suspicion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members boxorox Posted June 26, 2009 Members Share Posted June 26, 2009 Before I boned my fake-28 I traded out the lousy plastic pins for ebony. Didn't change strings. I thought the sound was somewhat better, but it could have been because I wanted it to. The bridge saddle really helped though. Pins, they may be mostly cosmetic, but something dense and light couldn't hurt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members seagullplayer77 Posted June 26, 2009 Members Share Posted June 26, 2009 seagullplayer77, ivory can not be sold unless it was in this country before the ban went into effect. as such ivory can not cross national boundaries no matter how dead or how the animal died when the tusks were removed after the international ban went into effect. fossilized ivory can be sold but may or may not cross national boundaries depending on the country. if you take it in you may or may not be able to get the fossil out. I stand corrected. I wasn't aware of the exact terms of the ban, but it seems like you are. In any case, thanks for clearing things up ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Okieslims Posted June 26, 2009 Author Members Share Posted June 26, 2009 Just an FYI. Apparently it is legal to purchase ivory products. http://www.guitarsaddles.com/products.asp This guys sells them and goes over the legality of it all. You can get a saddle for I just realized that you could also harvest old pianos for these materials. I see busted up free antique pianos on craigslist all the time. I'm sure some of them have ivory keys. That would be a politically correct way to get some materials I suppose;D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MDR Posted June 26, 2009 Members Share Posted June 26, 2009 Just an FYI. Apparently it is legal to purchase ivory products.I just realized that you could also harvest old pianos for these materials. I see busted up free antique pianos on craigslist all the time. I'm sure some of them have ivory keys. That would be a politically correct way to get some materials I suppose;D Purchase is one thing, but moving ivory (or any other CITES-listed material) across an international border is something else entirely. As for old piano ivory, the onus is on the possessor to prove that the material is pre-CITES. To a customs officer, ivory is ivory, and therefore illegal unless proven to be otherwise. Keep in mind that customs officials have a lot of individual autonomy and discretion in how they deal with individual situations. Note: never, never argue with a customs offical. The best way to avoid problems is to leave the ivory at home. Or don't buy it at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members guitarcapo Posted June 26, 2009 Members Share Posted June 26, 2009 Personally I don't think bridge pins make much difference in sound with acoustic guitars. Most of the vibrations are transmitted through the bridge saddle and the pins just act like an anchor for the strings. If they do have an effect it might be due to their weight and inertia as the soundboard and bridge moves with vibrations...but I would think you could tape a penny to the bridge and it would make more of a difference in that respect. Ivory bridge pins are more likely just bling than a sound improvement. I DO think an ivory bridge SADDLE makes a difference in sound though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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