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Coffee Bag Micarta
http://mowrystrings.luthiersforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10101&t=54379		 Page 1 of 2
Author:  jfmckenna [ Fri Sep 03, 2021 8:24 am ]
Post subject:  Coffee Bag Micarta
This stuff is really cool. I'm building one of my folk art barn wood parlor guitars for a guy now who had a cool vision for aesthetics. It's a burlap composite made from the burlap coffee bags and epoxy resin. He wanted it used as a rosette and for the head plate veneer. Apparently it's real popular for the knife makers who like it for handles. But I think it's going to look great on the guitar. Just thought I'd share.

Here's where I got the stuff: https://www.shadetreecustom.com/shop

It comes in a sheet that's like 12x18 inches or so. I cut that in half and it thinned out nicely in my drum sander.

Image

You can see the burlap and it almost looks like marquetry. The burlap even had inked lettering on it from the original bags.

Image
Author:  Chris Pile [ Fri Sep 03, 2021 9:45 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
Interesting to say the least. Post pix of the peghead veneer when you're done.

I bookmarked the website. I like the ruby pattern.
Work for a pickguard, maybe? I see they have scraps for sale...
Author:  Pmaj7 [ Fri Sep 03, 2021 9:48 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
Wow, cool! Why does the color change?

Pat
Author:  J De Rocher [ Fri Sep 03, 2021 10:46 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
Very cool! I like the look. Is the surface of the material flat from the epoxy or is it textured?
Author:  Skarsaune [ Fri Sep 03, 2021 11:00 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
That looks pretty cool. But....

Pmaj7 wrote:
Wow, cool! Why does the color change?

Pat


Looks blue in the first pics, then darkish brown installed.
What did you do?
Author:  Colin North [ Fri Sep 03, 2021 11:28 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
THAT is really nice, tasty.
I would imagine many similar things could be shop made made from jeans, gauze, steel scrubbing pads and other materials - maybe even find a use for old Xmas jumpers.
Author:  jfmckenna [ Fri Sep 03, 2021 11:37 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
I'll definitely take pics of the headstock when it's done.

The color in the first pic is that way right off the drum sander. When it's inlayed there is a Naptha swipe over it which picked up a lot of the dust and makes it look like what it will look like under the finish. So that is more representative of the true color. You can really see the burlap grain texture in it but it is dead flat. The epoxy just soaks the whole thing up. so it's almost like taking the burlap and sandwiching it between two pieces of glass.
Author:  Dan Miller [ Fri Sep 03, 2021 12:28 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
I've got quite a few jute coffee bags - I happen to run a coffee roastery, too. I'll have to experiment!
Author:  meddlingfool [ Fri Sep 03, 2021 3:20 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
Interesting…
Author:  guitarjtb [ Fri Sep 03, 2021 3:48 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
Very interesting. I should have used some of that on my Harmony Sauvignon, that I re-topped with wine crate panels.
I like the barn wood that you used.
Author:  jfmckenna [ Fri Sep 03, 2021 5:35 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
James! I freakin' love that. Fantastic!!!
Author:  jfmckenna [ Fri Sep 03, 2021 5:37 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
Chris, I don't see why it would not work for a pick guard. I have not tried to thin it that much but it does seem to be rather homogeneous.
Author:  Chris Pile [ Fri Sep 03, 2021 8:10 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
Well, it's essentially a phenolic material. I made plenty of airplane parts and tooling from that nasty old brown stuff made of canvas and resin. Smells horrible when cutting or sanding, but it's nearly indestructible and is unaffected by water or other liquids. I seem to remember Luthiers Mercantile making some high quality black phenolic material for nuts from linen and resin that worked really well. There's no reason this stuff shouldn't work for parts or tools, and it looks nicer to boot. It has promise in my estimation.

It just struck me - pickup rings. Should be dandy. Can be flat or arched, obviously easy to route, drill, and shape. Would look better than injection molded plastic and won't crack or dry out like wood. Bet it will take a finish, too - lacquer, TruOil, shellac, what have you.
Author:  Clay S. [ Fri Sep 03, 2021 8:58 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
J. F. ,
Since you are getting into working with epoxy resin you could mold a back and side set out of a pair of Levi's to go with the rosette on the Barn Wood guitar. bliss
Author:  Pmaj7 [ Fri Sep 03, 2021 11:13 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
Grippy, not slippy!

Pat
Author:  jfmckenna [ Sat Sep 04, 2021 9:12 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
LOL I like the idea but I did not make that coffee bag sheet. I purchased it.

I think it would definitely work well for pickup rings too. I glued the rosette in with CA but I plan on using epoxy for the head plate veneer. seems to be the right choice to me. I suppose CA would work ok there too.
Author:  Clay S. [ Sat Sep 04, 2021 10:06 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
jfmckenna wrote:
LOL I like the idea but I did not make that coffee bag sheet. I purchased it.

I think it would definitely work well for pickup rings too. I glued the rosette in with CA but I plan on using epoxy for the head plate veneer. seems to be the right choice to me. I suppose CA would work ok there too.


In one of my boatbuilding books there was a builder who used cloth in place of glass fibre as a layer in a layup of a small dingy. The cloth provided the color and pattern to the outside surface of the boat. I thought it was an interesting idea.
Author:  Chris Pile [ Sat Sep 04, 2021 12:30 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
I emailed the owner and a box of scrap is already on its way to my door.

Also, it occurred to me that some name makers have been using high quality phenolic composites for fingerboards.... Gibson uses Richlite (layers of recycled paper in resin) on several upper end guitars. One of my long time clients owns a nice ES-275 with a Richlite board. It looks great, and he has no complaints.
Author:  jfmckenna [ Sun Sep 05, 2021 2:11 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
Cool! Post up some pics of what ever you make out of the scraps.
Author:  Chris Pile [ Sat Sep 11, 2021 3:04 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
My box of scraps arrived yesterday - quite the variety of colors and surfaces. Filled that little box to the max - it was heavy. Out to the shop!
Author:  jfmckenna [ Sat Nov 13, 2021 4:46 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
Follow Up:

Here is what it looks like under some French Polish shellac. The pics don't really give it the depth but it's perfectly flat and has a lot of dimensions to it. Pretty neat stuff in particular for this oak barn wood folk art parlor guitar.

Image

Image

Image
Author:  Clay S. [ Sat Nov 13, 2021 5:31 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
I wonder how well it would hold frets.
Author:  jfmckenna [ Sat Nov 13, 2021 5:50 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
Clay S. wrote:
I wonder how well it would hold frets.


I can do an experiment with that. My guess is that it will hold them just fine especially if you use CA or probably even HHG to hold them in
Author:  Chris Pile [ Sat Nov 13, 2021 6:21 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
Agreed - glue them in.
Author:  Jim Watts [ Sat Nov 13, 2021 8:48 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Coffee Bag Micarta
That's really cool, nice work!
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