I have used a lot of ebony tips and likewise never had trouble with it staying in place. One thing you do need to check is that it is dry. For some reason a lot of ebony turns up on the market in a very fresh condition. I use a lot of it in musical instrument work too for fingerboards, headstock overlays, bridges etc and it generally is no problem if you de-oil it before you glue it and before you start finishing. Simply rub it down with a solvent right before you apply the glue or finish.
I generally start early and cut the fore end to length and square it up while still a blank, and do the same to the ebony block. This lets you drill and face both pieces while still square and indexable. I then go on and join the two, then treat them like uniform blank. One style of tip I have used on small single shots like small frame low wall styles is a tip joined with a Vee connection. These almost have to be installed as mentioned while everything is square. With a set of V blocks or a 45 deg fence, you can cut centerline vees on the stock blank and ebony, with the female vee on the ebony. Then sand and fit the vees and glue them up with epoxy with carbon powder added. Make the stock as a one piece from there on out.
Last edited by AGS; 09/27/25 12:56 PM.
