Saving bone dust....am I the only one?
 

Many years ago when I was a budding young luthier (i.e. I was changing strings and doing basic work) I was told by the shop luthier that whenever I was filing a bone nut or saddle to save as much of the dust as possible and keep it in a container in my toolbox. This has come in handy many times for filling in nut slots. Yet....no one Ive ever talked to has ever heard of this practice. Any one here that does this? I also save rosewood and ebony dust for fill in and chip repair.

Loads of techs and luthiers do it. I've got a small pot containing a couple of teaspoons of bone dust. I keep it next to my gas fire to keep it dry as it is hydroscopic.

I don't save bone dust - it never occurred to me to do so and I can easily make some if needed. However, I have saved containers of dust of ebony, rosewood, mahogany, pakauk and a few others.

I'v never kept bone dust. But I do have a wood dust collection. I mix it with super glue and use it as a filler .

I save it in a tiny ziplock bag. It's a good conversation piece cause people think I'm dealing drugs. :) What I can never keep enough of is rosewood and ebony dust.

That's hilarious...I do the same thing...I have one for bone and one with baking soda in it...i bought the little bags at a head shop. I also keep things like little screws in them...i have a drawer full of 'em.

Yes, I do collect bone dust, but rarely now since the only time I would ever use it is if I had to build up one or tops 2 nut slots in a client's guitar where the nut slots are low but the client doesn't want to bother paying for a new nut for the sake of one or 2 slots. Like Charles, I also have my various bottles of wood dusts - ebony, rosewood, and mahogany.

Good to know Im not alone
 

I think this is one of the differences between a "luthier" and a "tech"....the methods of training. We all have our differences in the way we approach things, but some of the old school habits still remain. I have about 2 tablespoons of bone dust, Im actually currently out of eboby dust and I have about a tablespoon or rosewood dust on hand currently. My homemade bridge caul is made from an odd shaped brazillian rosewood bridge blank and if I need some rosewood dust I just file some of that off. Necesity is after all the mother of invention.

I began this practice long before I started working on my guitars. In knifemaking, it's helpful to save handle-dust as you work so you can blend it with epoxy for the final glue-up. Working ironwood is similar; you sand with 220 grit sandpaper + Superglue. Ironwood has minute cracks that appear as you smooth the surface, and the dust/Superglue naturally fill and polish as you go...

Sanding saddles and nuts just triggered the old ways, and I've got a number of small capped bottles of bone, ivory and various wood dusts squirrelled away.

Good thread - bet it gives an "A-ha!" moment to a few new builders..... :D

I don't save any bone dust. I would prefer to cut a new bone nut rather than just fill one but sometimes a customer wants a cheap quick fix and I have found the baking soda and CA trick to work very well.

I'll admit it
 

I am a dust hoarder.

what about tooth dust from the dentist?

Do they save that? That's kinda creepy. :)

Ewwwwww.....

I have been saving different saw dust and bone dust for years. It came from my habit of keeping good hardware from bad parts on cars and other things. I use empty medicine bottles, with the label removed of course. They seem to do a very good job keeping the dust dry.

Bill