loving curly maple binding

[David Houchens]

So far I haven't used wood binding on a mandolin but it's coming soon.

[Bluetickhound]

James Condino uses it to magnificent effect. I plan on trying my hand at it soon...

[Clinton Johnson]

That's beautiful David

[Dave Hanson]

My Eastman 915V has maple binding.

Dave H

[peter.coombe]

I have always used wooden bindings.

[Mandobart]

Very nice! I'm not a builder, but I've never liked the look of white or ivoroid plastic binding. I prefer very plain things, so I like my unbound Morris. I also love the wood binding (I think its maple) that Tom "TJ" Jessen uses (I now have four instruments he's built).

[j. condino]

You won't think curly maple is so cool after you try to bind an f5!

Here is a new striped ebony one under the Y30 and another African blackwood ported one from about ten years ago that was in my attachment file.

j.
www.condino.com
www.kaybassrepair.com

[Ivan Kelsall]

Maple binding is beautiful !.Here's a nice example,done by Jiri Lebeda on a mandolin belonging to a Cafe member in France - that's as good as it gets IMHO,
Ivan

[Jim Garber]

The only instrument I own that has flamed maple binding (actually any wood binding) is my slope shoulder Huss & Dalton DS guitar, but it is a real beauty.

[fidlplr1979]

So far I haven't used wood binding on a mandolin but it's coming soon.

I LOVE maple binding on mandolin.

[Andy Morton]

Yes--to me that is the holy grail of binding....curly maple used on the scroll of an F-5....below is a youtube of bending maple binding for f holes on an arch top guitar. He is using curly maple binding in the video (I contacted him to confirm this)---which may be hard to see in the video.

I was successful with bending curly maple binding on my A build...but with the scroll on the F --not so much!

Here is the video--

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJuuLcXTaGw

Andy

[fidlplr1979]

Yes--to me that is the holy grail of binding....curly maple used on the scroll of an F-5....below is a youtube of bending maple binding for f holes on an arch top guitar. He is using curly maple binding in the video (I contacted him to confirm this)---which may be hard to see in the video.

I was successful with bending curly maple binding on my A build...but with the scroll on the F --not so much!

Here is the video--

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJuuLcXTaGw

Andy

I would think, and this is coming from strictly a player/admirer of fine mandolins, that to bend the curly maple for the scroll on an f-5 would require soaking, heating and bending around a mold, smaller, more workable pieces and joining them in a discrete enough manner as to not see them once finished ? I may be way off base as I'm not a luthier although I do have quite a lot of woodworking experience.

[Andy Morton]

The problem comes in when you try to soak the curly maple--it tends to fall apart---the tight bends make that worse.

Securing sections in a mold....so that the outside part of the bend is supported by the mold...helps somewhat.

Andy

[Andy Morton]

Here is an "alternative approach" to bending curly maple binding.....check it out. I tried this with some success---but for the tightest bends on the F-5 scroll, it is still not guaranteed to produce a successful outcome .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTbc6FDusUQ

If you try some of these methods, it would be great to hear how it worked for you.

Andy

[Andy Morton]

Yes -- thats exactly right fdllplr1979.....those two videos show exactly what you are referring to -- discreet sections in molds and then attached to one another "carefully."

Part of why I am challenged with building and love it (mostly)!

Andy