Making bone nuts/working with bone

I have a uke that needs a bone apron for the bridge and a cbg that needs a bone nut. So I bought some beef bones from the market, boiled them for 10 minutes, let my dog suck the marrow out... now what?

Before cutting should I boil them longer? Bleach them? Not sure how to proceed.

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Permalink Reply by Randy S. Bretz on September 12, 2012 at 4:45pm

Bandsaw and a benchtop belt sander.

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Permalink Reply by Suspect Device on September 12, 2012 at 10:41am

I don't have a band saw either. I rough-cut some bone on my tablesaw/sled a while back, it stunk something fierce and was pretty hard on the blade. Going to try the Dremel/cutoff wheel, then Visegrips/belt sander. Honestly, that godawful smell is what's kept me from working with bone.

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Permalink Reply by Michael Cuell on September 12, 2012 at 3:10pm

One of these guys might save your fingers:

Universal Work Holder

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Permalink Reply by Thomas "Duck" Petry on September 12, 2012 at 6:11pm

That looks like a pretty handy tool. Might help keep some of the skin on my fingers.

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Permalink Reply by Randy S. Bretz on September 12, 2012 at 4:51pm

I don`t boil them, just give em to the dog to clean then let them dry out a few days. Boiling them tends to make them soft. These are cut-offs from slide makin, i only use a certain part of the bone, but i do cut the cut offs up for nuts and saddles, detail paices and now my harp mic housings. Nothing goes to waste!!

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Permalink Reply by The Phrygian Kid on September 12, 2012 at 6:45pm

Btw those of u guys who reckon bone stinks..

Well that's cos u ain't made horn or antler ones yet.. Heh..
It's a bit of a long dead cow whaddaya expect? :D

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Permalink Reply by bizzaro guitaro on September 16, 2012 at 1:53am

I put the bone in a vise,cut blanks with a hack saw. ait's a safe way to do it.Plus you don't need a dust mask.

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Permalink Reply by Randy S. Bretz on September 16, 2012 at 2:10am

I use a diamond cut off wheel on my dremel, cuts bone like butter. Plus you can use the surface of the wheel to sand the bone to the desired shape. Bone doesn`t stink to me smells like $$$$$$.

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Permalink Reply by Maddog on September 16, 2012 at 2:18am

I soak the bones I use in hydrogine peroxide to whiten them up and then let them air dry, bleach tends to make them chalky and brittle. I almost always use deer bones so I walk through the timber and find them on the ground ready for the peroxide bath. I would have to agree with the others and say to use a hack saw,band saw or Dremel to cut with, I'm afraid we would have to start calling you "Lefty" or "Patch" if you run them through the table saw.

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Permalink Reply by wormil on September 16, 2012 at 12:07pm

Do you guys seal the bone with any kind of finish? I've heard they can shrink over time.

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Permalink Reply by Michael Cuell on September 16, 2012 at 1:17pm

I think you've heard incorrectly. Bone is mostly calcium with a few extra minerals. As long as it's not exposed to an acid, it will remain as is. This explains why bleaching bone with "sodium hypochlorite", otherwise known as bleach, makes them brittle and chalky.