skip sail - Posted - 05/12/2013:  22:41:22

I have several banjos and guitar cases dating from the 1890s to the late 1930s that are seriously tatty(i mean,almost no covering)and that i want to restore.

In particular,a high end redline case from a 1933 Gibson L5.

The case is covered with a black cloth leatherette material that is very similar to the headling material used in vintage cars of the period.

I have tried upholstery supplies,but all they seem to have is modern vinyl based stuff,and im only interested in the light,cloth leatherette.

Anybody have any contacts/advice?

Frank Ford - Posted - 05/12/2013:  23:38:26

As you poke around the Internet, try looking at bookbinding materials. . .

ravedog - Posted - 05/12/2013:  23:45:01

try auto interior suppliers or restoration people. they often have a handle on dated materials

banjonz - Posted - 05/13/2013:  01:16:17

Skip, you could research and try electric amplifier makers/restorers. Many amps used to have the leatherette finishing.  Ebay is worth a shot also

Edited by - banjonz on 05/13/2013 01:17:47

OldTimeGal - Posted - 05/13/2013:  01:30:41

Skip, similarly I have an old Favilla ukulele case I want to restore.  I think I'm going to go with bookbinding fabric, it's thin but tough, and better material than the vintage stuff.  Here are some resources for you from my own research:

Sources for bookcloth (you can order samples for testing):

The Society of Bookbinders, list of bookbinding suppliers (societyofbookbinders.com/links...iers.html)

Hollanders (hollanders.com/index.php/bookb...loth.html)

Talas (talasonline.com/)

    

on the Unofficial Martin Guitar Forum there is a nice Case Restoration Tutorial by Stringmaster, halfway down this page: thttp://heunofficialmartinguitarforum.yuku.com/topic/1449/Vintage-cases-for-old-Martins-30-s-40-s?page=14#.UZCSZYIZzoB

Some general historical info:

from the Mandolin Cafe Forum:

Keratol is one of the more popular prewar trade names for imitation leather. There were others. Believe it or not it's celluloid combined with linseed oil, applied to fabric, and a pattern then embossed with a roller. This stuff was developed in the latter half of the 1800's and used for suitcases, buggy tops, furniture, instrument cases, etc. In the 1950's it was gradually replaced by equivalent products made of vinyl on fabric.

from Wikipedia:

Tolex is the trade name of a flexible vinyl material used to cover Fender amplifiers, Coffin Case guitar cases and guitar cases from the 1960s onwards.  Tolex was filed as a trademark on August 30, 1945 by the General Tire, and is currently registered as "a plastic sheet and film material for book binding and case covering for speakers and amplifiers".  Tolex was also used in marine upholstery applications found in classic Chris-Craft models and other boats.  Although the term "Tolex" is often used as a generic description for any amplifier or guitar case vinyl-type covering, most are not actually Tolex brand except for Fender and Rickenbacker related products.

from Library Bookbinding, by Arthur L. Bailey, 1916 (gutenberg.org/files/38387/3838...387-h.htm):

Water-Proof Cloths

There are several cloths which are waterproof and therefore easily cleaned when the covers become soiled. The best of these are durabline, used exclusively by Cedric Chivers; rexine and pluviusin, used almost exclusively in England; Keratol, made in Newark, New Jersey; and Fabrikoid, made by the du Pont Powder Company, Wilmington, Delaware. All of these cloths are said to be acid, alkali and germ proof, do not absorb grease and can be washed with soap and water. They are strong, durable cloths, but they have at first a disagreeable odor, are hard to work and hard to letter in gold. In the application of paste to most waterproof cloths, either in the process of binding or in attaching labels to the back, it is first necessary to break down the surface of the cloth or the paste will not hold. This disadvantage no longer exists in the case of fabrikoid. Keratol and fabrikoid are made to imitate leather and are frankly sold as such. Probably the use of these cloths in libraries will always be comparatively small. Because they can be easily cleaned they may be used on the[Pg 82] sides of juvenile books, and in rare cases for full binding.

from Formulas for Bookbinders, by Louis Herman Kinder, 1904:

No. 87. The Stamping of "Keratol." We are living in an age of imitations. No sooner do we see a worthy originality, embodying the best of everything, honest labor and good raw material, than some one gets up a cheap imitation. In leather, The stamping of all of the popular grainings, such as seal, lizard, alligator, levant, monkey, etc., are to be had in cowhides and skiver. More, the very substance—the leather itself—has been imitated, and paper and cloth are being manufactured in large quantities in such a way as to resemble leather. I say "resemble, '' because it can never amount to more than a mere semblance of the real, genuine article. To this class of imitations belongs '' Keratol,'' a woven fabric, one side of which is coated with a very peculiar and very nasty waterproof concoction. We find this imitation of leather used on all sorts of cheap work, even blank books, much to the finisher's displeasure, for neither gold nor metal will hold.

Old Time Gal

skip sail - Posted - 05/13/2013:  04:48:43

Old Time Gal, thankyou,wonderful info,I will start chasing it tomorrow. Not sure i need a 10 yard roll,but hey ,who knows>.
Great to know the fabric was known as Keratol,that gives me a name to follow up on. Thanks again

Rick Polston - Posted - 05/13/2013:  08:31:05

Search the ebay and the web for Tolex