Tolex is a

trade name A trade name, trading name, or business name, is a pseudonym used by companies that do not operate under their registered company name. The term for this type of alternative name is a "fictitious" business name. Registering the fictitious name w ...

for a flexible, waterproof, vinyl material used as a cover material for books, upholstery, guitar amplifiers, cases, and other products. Tolex was filed as a trademark on August 30, 1945 by the

General Tire Continental Tire the Americas, LLC, d.b.a. General Tire, is an American manufacturer of tires for motor vehicles. Founded in 1915 in Akron, Ohio by William Francis O'Neil, Winfred E. Fouse, Charles J. Jahant, Robert Iredell, & H.B. Pushee as ...

, and was registered as "a plastic sheet and film material for book binding and case covering for speakers and amplifiers". General Tire was disconglomerated, and the trademark expired in 2005. TOLEX is a Canadian trademark and brand of

OMNOVA Solutions OMNOVA Solutions Inc., is a global manufacturer of emulsion polymers, specialty chemicals, and functional and decorative surfaces. OMNOVA was founded in 1999 when GenCorp spun off its Decorative & Building Products and Performance Chemicals bus ...

, Fairlawn, Ohio, now part of

Synthomer Synthomer plc, formerly known as Yule Catto & Co, is a British-based chemicals business. It is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. History The company traces its roots back to 1863, when Andrew Yule founded a trading house known as '' Andrew Yul ...

Usage

It has been used in Henney-Packard hearses and ambulances of the 1950s, Fender amplifiers, the Fender Rhodes electric piano, and guitar cases from various manufacturers. Tolex was also used in

Packard Packard or Packard Motor Car Company was an American luxury automobile company located in Detroit, Michigan. The first Packard automobiles were produced in 1899, and the last Packards were built in South Bend, Indiana in 1958. One of the "Thr ...

automobiles, hearses, and ambulances, and in marine applications, such as Chris-Craft boats and other watercraft. Musicians sometimes use "Tolex" as a generic description for any vinyl type covering on an amplifier or guitar case, but most are not actually Tolex brand, except for Fender- and

Rickenbacker Rickenbacker International Corporation is a string instrument manufacturer based in Santa Ana, California. The company is credited as the first known maker of electric guitars – a steel guitar in 1932 – and today produces a range ...

-related products. Fender, today, uses textured vinyl, not Tolex.

References

{{Reflist Artificial leather