Thread: Pros and Cons of Bamboo

There are some scattered mentions of bamboo scales here and there on the internets, and I'm curious as to its merits as a material for scale making. It's been used for guitars, and is a highly sustainable resource--making it a good choice for the environmentally conscious amongst us (me, for one). Plus it's pretty looking.

So, is it any good for scales?

Seems like if it's a good material for cutting boards, it would do well as scales.

Used for guitars?!

Originally Posted by Howard Newell

Used for guitars?!

exactly my response...

Nenad

My mom used to always tell me how strong bamboo shoots (base of the bamboo) were. If I remember correctly, baby bamboo shoots were the best. I mean bamboos are pretty strong as they are, but the shoots are the strongest part. I believe they shouldn't warp in any way.

Yeah, bamboos look pretty cool. But they taste awful, in my opinion.

---------------------------Edited---------------------------
Correction: The older the bamboo the better. Bamboo shoots are "good" for eating.

Originally Posted by superfly

exactly my response...

Nenad

Back in 2000, Yamaha came out with a bamboo acoustic. From the blurb:

Bamboo has been used for centuries to make traditional Asian musical instruments. Generations have enjoyed its warm, crisp, resonant sound quality, while artisans have prized it for its stability and durability. It’s also very beautiful. Bamboo’s straight grain gives it powerful acoustic properties, and its warp resistance makes it a very stable building material. In addition, the fast-growing Bamboo plant has the ecological advantage of being easily reclaimable.

It got some decent reviews, too.

Originally Posted by Berticus

Yeah, bamboos look pretty cool. But they taste awful, in my opinion.

---------------------------Edited---------------------------
Correction: The older the bamboo the better. Bamboo shoots are "good" for eating.

Well, since you're not a Panda bear, this is hardly surprising.

Bamboo is plenty strong for scales. It has been used for many things including the blade portion of the knives. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/lostemp...a/miracle.html

Charlie

Originally Posted by Noam

Well, since you're not a Panda bear, this is hardly surprising.

Well some people consider bamboo shoots to be a delicacy. Whenever my mom put bamboo in the meals, I'm always disgusted. So after a few years she realized maybe cooking bamboo into the meals weren't such a great idea, and stopped.

But there are a good number of people who do enjoy eating bamboo.

Originally Posted by Berticus

But there are a good number of people who do enjoy eating bamboo.

5 billion south-east asians, for one!

Just to clear some things up from the original question...the bamboo pattern scales you mention on vintage razors were fairly common replacement scales and were made out of plastic, not bamboo.

As far as the appropriatness of using bamboo (the plant) for replacement scales...it should work just fine so long as you are aware of some of it's properties. Most importantly, it is very straight grained and quite brittle. So, as the scales are relatively thin you should be very careful about not trying to flex the material too much while pinning the razor. Also, make sure the holes are drilled to the proper diameter because splitting is a real problem when using fasteners (screws or nails) in bamboo. Along these same lines, be careful when pinning...one tap too many and you will certainly split the scales.

Just another data point,
Ed