As I’ve mentioned before, I’m looking for various synthetic alternatives to natural skin. So far there’s only really been one thing that I known to perfectly match the needed tension and thickness for a shamisen that can be applied in a semi-traditional way on a small, beginner’s budget . And that’s stretch vinyl.
I got a great roll of faux snakeskin a few years ago and I don’t think the shop sells it anymore, but I got some plain black pleather there, too.
The former’s got a lot more stretch than the latter and while it’s also got a loose backing that would make it easy to remove and test out, it got misplaced when we moved house and I have no idea where it went. So now I’ve been left with small samples I’ve been ordering in. All of which have fabric backings that don’t stretch as easily in all directions as the vinyl on top does (Or even at all).
I know it’s possible to find ways to dissolve this backing but I have no idea where to look considering that every time I try to look something up it’s always about removing vinyl from fabric and not the other way around (so I have to avoid using anything with acetone in it).
Besides the limitations of the backing, the faux leather and snake skin I’ve got seem like they’ll work out fine by themselves and if I can get this conundrum sorted I could get the skinning done with a roll, some canvas pliers and a frame slightly big enough to put over the dou.
Anybody here have any working knowledge of what dissolves cotton or nylon but doesn’t wreck vinyl?
If not, thanks for reading, anyway.
