Harder Saddle Material

Paul December · Jan 18, 2012

I'm thinking of changing the ebony saddle on my Kala Acacia to something harder. It is my understanding that ebony already is pretty hard...
...what material would definitely be a step harder?

Camsuke · Jan 18, 2012

I'm thinking bone probably.

ukecantdothat · Jan 18, 2012

Brass. Mind if I ask, "Why?" (guess I just did...)

Paul December · Jan 18, 2012

ukecantdothat said:
Brass. Mind if I ask, "Why?" (guess I just did...)

I originally thought about writing, "what commonly used material would definitely be a step harder?" ... but then thought that would be silly

Why? ... Experimentation.

PhilUSAFRet · Jan 18, 2012

Posts Ive read suggested bone not all that much harder than ebony, but could produce a brighter tone. I have a Mele soprano, and I'm thinking of doing the same thing.....I want to "brighten" it.

Paul December · Jan 18, 2012

PhilUSAFRet said:
Posts Ive read suggested bone not all that much harder than ebony, but could produce a brighter tone. I have a Mele soprano, and I'm thinking of doing the same thing.....I want to "brighten" it.

Same here. I do like its warm tone, but would like to hear what it would be like a little brighter.

Do you know a source for bone saddles?

Paul December · Jan 18, 2012

Bill1 said:
http://www.maurysmusic.com/fossilized_mammoth_ivory_saddle___todd_s_review

A review of mammoth tusk saddles which includes other useful info.

Thanks!

gokidd · Jan 18, 2012

Paul, if Maury Rutch doesn't happen to have the size you need, you can also trust Bob Colosi -- another fine gentleman.
http://www.guitarsaddles.com/

Paul December · Jan 18, 2012

gokidd said:
Paul, if Maury Rutch doesn't happen to have the size you need, you can also trust Bob Colosi -- another fine gentleman.
http://www.guitarsaddles.com/

Thanks!

PhilUSAFRet · Jan 19, 2012

Lots of synthetic bone nuts, saddles, slotted & shaped or blanks on ebay

RyanMFT · Jan 19, 2012

Mainland ukulele sells bone saddle blanks. I got one that I haven't yet installed.....very affordable!

garyg · Jan 19, 2012

Having taught various aspect of animal ecology for many years I doubt that bone is harder than ebony, but it clearly would have different resonance properties. In fact I would think that you wouldn't want a super hard saddle but one that would help string resonance. But then again I'm an armchair expert at instruments, maybe one of the builders can help us here or you could ask your general question i.e., difference between saddle materials, in the builders lounge. cheers, g2

mik55 · Jan 19, 2012

Paul December said:
Do you know a source for bone saddles?

You can get bone saddle blanks from every luthier. They're quite cheap and easy to work on. I changed the saddle inlay to bone on my Kala ASAC-T and used this as an oportunity to widen the string space by cutting small groves into the new saddle inlay.

tjomball · Jan 19, 2012

I've looked at glass as a viable material.
Also a couple of metal alloys as well..
I come from a mechanical background so metalwork comes easy to me.
But the glass sadle will have to be custom made for my uke. Luckily my old colleague has become a highly proficient glass artist. So he'll hook me up..

ukecantdothat · Jan 20, 2012

Paul December said:
I originally thought about writing, "what commonly used material would definitely be a step harder?" ... but then thought that would be silly

Why? ... Experimentation.

Yes, that would be silly! :nana:

I love experimentation, like the glass idea above. Very intriguing. Looking forward to what you come up with!

tjomball · Jan 20, 2012

ukecantdothat said:
I love experimentation, like the glass idea above. Very intriguing. Looking forward to what you come up with!

I'll let you all know how it goes.
But another thought occured to me after a nights worth of sleep..
Stone. More specifically Grorud Granitt. Or Grorud Granite for you non Norwegians..
Granite as we all know is quite hard as a material. What might be a concern is the brittleness of the material.
So working with it might be a challenge. But a challenge is a challenge..
So I'll ponder my options thouroughly

But you're right. Experimentation is fun..

Dougf · Jan 20, 2012

What about carbon fiber?

ukecantdothat · Jan 20, 2012

tjomball said:
I'll let you all know how it goes.
But another thought occured to me after a nights worth of sleep..
Stone. More specifically Grorud Granitt. Or Grorud Granite for you non Norwegians..
Granite as we all know is quite hard as a material. What might be a concern is the brittleness of the material.
So working with it might be a challenge. But a challenge is a challenge..
So I'll ponder my options thouroughly

But you're right. Experimentation is fun..

Stone is a good idea. Onyx would be a good choice, easy to work with. Most people are familiar with black onyx, which would be fine, but honey onyx has a more wood-like look which may go well with a lot of light colored grains.

mm stan · Jan 20, 2012

Aloha Paul,
Not sure I'd want a harder saddle on a Kala...arn't they bright enough already.....however if you want extreme..I remember a post last year on glass saddles...don't know how that would work out
though....wood saddles provide a much warmer tone...to me ...

Moore Bettah Ukuleles · Jan 20, 2012

One of the hardest saddle materials that's fairly easy to work with is pearl shell. I'm not sure why anyone would want to go much harder than bone though. I'm personally not fond on the "banjo" sound.

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