Real White MOP - will it discolor over time?

P

pongohops

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Considering the use of white mother of pearl, high grade pure white stuff, for inlays... the real deal shell material, not the fake composite material you can find.

I hadn't really thought of it until now... will these change color over time? I am seeing mixed information doing a search on the web. Some say they will turn yellow over time due to lack of moisture and drying and another place says they will remain virtually unchanged.

Has anyone had any experience with real mop inlays from a cue build a decent amount of years ago. What, if anything, happened?
 
scdiveteam

scdiveteam

Rick Geschrey
Silver Member
pongohops said:
Considering the use of white mother of pearl, high grade pure white stuff, for inlays... the real deal shell material, not the fake composite material you can find.

I hadn't really thought of it until now... will these change color over time? I am seeing mixed information doing a search on the web. Some say they will turn yellow over time due to lack of moisture and drying and another place says they will remain virtually unchanged.

Has anyone had any experience with real mop inlays from a cue build a decent amount of years ago. What, if anything, happened?
Click to expand...

Hi,

I don't know about discoloration but I do know that this material will shrink in dimension over a long period of time.

Rick
 
P

pongohops

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
scdiveteam said:
Hi,

I don't know about discoloration but I do know that this material will shrink in dimension over a long period of time.

Rick
Click to expand...

Okay, I guess we can add that to the conversation as that is something else which I have read the opposite. Are you sure this was real MOP you are referring to? I've been reading some guitar forums posts and seems people there experience this, yet their older guitars were using 'fake' MOP and didn't realize it. http://www.knifehandles.com/mother-of-pearl-types/working-with-mother-of-pearl
 
scdiveteam

scdiveteam

Rick Geschrey
Silver Member
My uncle was a navy welder in the South Pacific on an LST during WW2.

He made a ring out of stainless that was flat on top with a diagonal slot across the face where he machined and inlayed a beautiful piece of MOP.

A local islander told him that that piece of mop would shrink over the years.

He wore that ring his whole life and was buried with it on his finger.

After 45 years it had shrunk about about 15 to 20% of the slot length and width.

Of coarse this was not sealed under a finish in a cue.

Rick
 
JoeyInCali

JoeyInCali

Maker of Joey Bautista Cues
Silver Member
scdiveteam said:
My uncle was a navy welder in the South Pacific on an LST during WW2.

He made a ring out of stainless that was flat on top with a diagonal slot across the face where he machined and inlayed a beautiful piece of MOP.

A local islander told him that that piece of mop would shrink over the years.

He wore that ring his whole life and was buried with it on his finger.

After 45 years it had shrunk about about 15 to 20% of the slot length and width.

Of coarse this was not sealed under a finish in a cue.

Rick
Click to expand...
It didn't shrink. It was scuffed and exposed to the elements for 45 years.
Even gold would lose volume.
 
Mcues

Mcues

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
pongohops said:
Considering the use of white mother of pearl, high grade pure white stuff, for inlays... the real deal shell material, not the fake composite material you can find.

I hadn't really thought of it until now... will these change color over time? I am seeing mixed information doing a search on the web. Some say they will turn yellow over time due to lack of moisture and drying and another place says they will remain virtually unchanged.

Has anyone had any experience with real mop inlays from a cue build a decent amount of years ago. What, if anything, happened?[/QUO
**************************************************************************************************************************************************************
Ten years in a cue no shrinking or color change. Still have the remainder in my inlay supply box...same as it was ten years ago.

Mario
Click to expand...
 
JoeyInCali

JoeyInCali

Maker of Joey Bautista Cues
Silver Member
Ten years in a cue no shrinking or color change. Still have the remainder in my inlay supply box...same as it was ten years ago.

Mario
Click to expand...
Give it 35 more years. :grin-square:
 
P

pongohops

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Mcues said:
Ten years in a cue no shrinking or color change. Still have the remainder in my inlay supply box...same as it was ten years ago.

Mario
Click to expand...

Thanks, these are the kind of responses I was looking for - real world experiences with it. Any troubles with it when cutting, installing, etc?
 
cueman

cueman

AzB Gold Member
Gold Member
Silver Member
My experience is that just about anything can change color given enough time and sunlight. My experience also is that the finish will yellow before the pearl itself.
 
ELBeau

ELBeau

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
pongohops said:
Thanks, these are the kind of responses I was looking for - real world experiences with it. Any troubles with it when cutting, installing, etc?
Click to expand...

Please research before cutting; it should not be cut dry.
 
JoeyInCali

JoeyInCali

Maker of Joey Bautista Cues
Silver Member
scdiveteam said:
"The weakest dog always has the loudest bark"
Click to expand...
" The dogs with the loudest bark are the ones that are most afraid. "
Norman Reedus.




No one so far has claimed MOP shrinks outside of you.
You went from , " I know..." to " One islander told my uncle..."
You already had a waiver in there by mentioning there was no finish on that MOP inlay.

There might be thousands of Palmer cues out there with MOP dots.
Thousands more in Adam, Viking and other brands that are easily 3-4 decades old. They didn't even have the best glues and finishes then.
Those MOP's should be falling off if they were shrinking. Or least, you'd notice the gaps .
attachment.php

Like that one displayed in the gallery now.
 
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