White ivory substitute

[quickcut07]

Curious as to where one could find an ivory like or white substance about 1/4 " thick suitable for scrimshaw work. I like to practice a little on something with the ultimate goal of making a piece that would look similar to a coaster. White centre either round or square flanked with silver or stainless. Kind of a gift idea. Any suppliers would be appreciated. Tried a couple of knike suppliers, and the size was a little small.

 

[Glenn]

Knife supply houses like K&G stock white micarta. This is much the same color as ivory.

 

[Tim Wells]

Corian, the stuff counter tops are made of.

 

[mdengraver]

How about clayboard used by scratchboard artists. The color is a little off white but should work well for scrimshaw.

 

[mdengraver]

ivory substitute-plastic piano keys

eBay: Piano IVORY keytops,tails;recover keys,scrimshaw,etc. (item ...Find Piano IVORY keytops,tails;recover keys,scrimshaw,etc. in the Musical ... Ivory was used to cover piano keytops before the advent of plastic. ...
cgi.ebay.com/Piano-IVORY-keytops-tails-recover-keys-scrimshaw-etc_W0QQitemZ110147528429QQihZ001QQcategory... - 73k - Jul 9, 2007 - Cached - Similar pages

[PDF] Scrimshaw.Com Catalog#030517File Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobat - View as HTML
scrimming tool, plastic piece for practice, two ivory piano key for practice or for crafts,. one extra large piece of pre-embargo ivory on a necklace, ...
www.scrimshaw.com/kitcatalog.pdf - Similar pages

The Scrimshaw Studio - Frequently Asked Questions–Materials taken from animals long ago, ie: piano keys, pool balls, etc. ... Scrimshaw has even been done on the back of plastic dinner spoons, though these ...
www.scrimshawstudio.com/faq.html - 33k - Cached - Similar pages

Amazon.com: Scrimshaw: A Complete Illustrated Manual: Books: Steve ...Even the modern ones made of plastic are hard to tell when done corectly.Old ivory piano keys the heads and tail pieces. (Check with your local piano repair ...
www.amazon.com/Scrimshaw-Complete-Illustrated-Steve-Paszkiewicz/dp/1565232410 - 155k - Cached - Similar pages

 

[mdengraver]

scratchboard/clayboard/engraving forum

Here's a website possibly worth exploring for scratchboard/clayboard/engraving

http://www.artspan.com/community/forumdisplay.php?f=72

 

[KSnyder]

WWW.JANTZSUPPLY.COM knife making supplies & handle material.
good co. to deal with.
Kent

 

[John B.]

You might like to try a plastics supply store or a sign shop.
They have sheet acrilic with a fully prepared surface. Available in many thicknesses.
It is available in white and many other colors including ivory.
It cuts well and cleans easily when inked. I used mainly 1/8 inch thick.
It is inexpensive and durable and I used it for as student practice plates more than twenty years of teaching scrimshaw.
Just use a little spit on a tissue and it will wipe clean. This works on ivory too.
Hope this helps. John B.

 

[KCSteve]

There's something called "Ivorite" (or is it "Ivorine"?) that a couple of artists I know use - one for Scrimshaw, one for miniature paintings. It's supposed to be a very good substitute for Ivory with very similar properties - except that it doesn't yellow which is only a problem in some applications.

 

[DanM]

Most of the knife making supply stores carry subsitutes,for something a bit more expensive see link.

http://www.truivory.com/

 

[PS_Bond]

Tagua nut? Won't get it in large pieces, but it scrims well enough. Heard some comments about dimensional stability, but I haven't seen it distort myself.

 

[Swede]

There's a company on eBay that sells legal ivory in two forms: Hippo tusk and warthog tusk. The prices seem reasonable, although I've never worked either variety. I do have some small samples coming; I'll try some carving and scrim, and let people know how it works.

ATLANTIC-CORAL-ENTERPRISE

There is also mammoth ivory, but it's quite expensive and mineralized to a certain degree.

 

[quickcut07]

Thank you for the information it has given me a few links to chase down and see what is going to be suitable for the project. I guess I'll have to check out and see what can be imported as far as real ivory into Canada.

Thanks again for the help

 

[Santo]

You've got a lot of good suggestions. I might ad that any of these will stain depending how you finish the piece or what you use to color it. Yes, even micarta will stain if you use the thinner india ink products such as higgins or such. I have found that I get less stain shadow if I use oil paint or printers ink. It is thicker and will not soak in the material as readily. Also, bone blanks are available to work on but you need to finish these highly polished and then seal them with super glue of clear nail polish or . . . something that will seal the material and prevent the chance of staining. Tagua nut is also notorius for staining, I found out by experience and learned a lot by posting on this fourm. Polish the tagua nut and seal and use oil pain or printers ink. You might still get a bit of shadow but hardly preceptable.
The "truivory" looks very interesting. This is the first I've heard of it and am going to check it out. I am always looking for an acceptable substitute for ivory. The supply, even mastodon ivory, is drying up and eventually ivory will be cost prohibitive (the stuff is selling on ebay for incredible sums -- and people are paying for it!!!) unless you're lucky enough to be sitting on a good supply. A good substitute also allows someone who might not be able to afford an ivory scrimshaw the opportunity to own a nice piece of art.

Much of what I have suggested I have learned right here. As you see the folks on this forum are friendly, helpful and above forgiving and patient.

Santo

 

[Thomas Wayne]

Try Bleached Camel Bone

Curious as to where one could find an ivory like or white substance about 1/4 " thick suitable for scrimshaw work. I like to practice a little on something with the ultimate goal of making a piece that would look similar to a coaster. White centre either round or square flanked with silver or stainless. Kind of a gift idea. Any suppliers would be appreciated. Tried a couple of knike suppliers, and the size was a little small.

And here is one source:

http://www.alabamadamascussteel.com...ory=Knife+Making+Supplies:Bleached+Camel+Bone

TW

 

[Thomas Wayne]

Try bleached camel bone:

http://www.alabamadamascussteel.com...ory=Knife+Making+Supplies:Bleached+Camel+Bone

TW

 

[Bill Brockway]

Somebody mentioned Tagua nuts. These are ivory-like tropical seeds from South America. Very inexpensive. Hard. Dry without checking. Scrimshaw easily. Readily available. Just google up "tagua" or "vegetable ivory." Only drawback is size. The nuts are about 1 1/4"-2" diameter. When polished, they look just like ivory.