Hey all,
Its been a while since I’ve posted or even been to the site. Lots of other things going on but winter is arriving in WI here and I’m gearing up for some time in the shop.
A project that I’ve put off for a while that I would really like to tackle now is a jewelry box for my wife. I have the design 90% finished but there is one thing that is a bit of a road block. I’ve never done inlay work of any kind but I’ve must do an inlay in the door of this jewelry box.
I’m planning on making the doors of Tiger Maple and would like to inlay the design I’ve attached in the image (hopefully it attaches). Any suggestions on how to do this would be must appreciated.
Replies
Carefully.
Start by transferring that image to your wood and cut a recess for the inlay no more than 1/8" deep. I would start with a small bit in a laminate trimmer, free hand. After wasting away as much as I dare, I would finish off with hand tools. For such a curvy design, and especially if it's that small, I'd use coloured epoxy for the inlay.
Chris @ www.flairwoodwork.spaces.live.com
- Success is not the key to happines. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer
Hey thanks. I guess I should have said that is not the actual size. Its going to be more like 6"x6" or 8"x8". How do you define the edges and make them smooth and flowing? Would you outline them with a knife first?Also, I've heard of inlay with epoxy but know nothing of it. How does it go. Do you just dye epoxy? What kind of epoxy? How do you keep it from staining the surrounding wood and getting all over the place?I'm guessing I'm going to be doing this at least once before I try it on the real deal.
There was an article in FWW a few years ago about epoxy inlays. Maybe somebody has a better memory and can help you with the issue number.
Best wishes,
Metod
Edit: FWW #118
Edited 11/5/2008 7:16 am ET by Metod
After drawing the pattern on your work, use a knife to define the inlay area. A pointed knife like the top two will be easier to guide around corners, while the bottom two will want to follow a straight line.
View Image
Depending on how wide the inlay is, you may be able to use a router plane. If not, a small chisel can remove the waste. When I did a 1/16" inlay, I made a 1/16" chisel from an old Craftsman screwdriver which has held a surprisingly good edge over the years.
Choose your epoxy based on the size of inlay. For a relatively small area such as your 6x6 or 8x8, a 5-minute epoxy should be fine. If you are adding an inlay all around a desk, you may need a longer working time.
After you have incised the pattern in the work, stop. Apply a thin coat of paste wax over the area around the inlay to prevent the epoxy from sticking where you don't want it to. Don't worry about keeping the wax off of the inlay area - that waxed wood will be removed when you cut the recess. Next, cut the recess with a router, router plane, chisel, or whatever tools you like. When the recess is to your satisfaction, mix up a batch of epoxy. I like these plastic glue spreaders - glue just doesn't stick to them.
View Image
Then add colour. I've had good success with Universal Tinting Colours which come in a little toothpaste-like tube in the paint section (careful - you only need a little!). Once you've got the colour mixed in evenly, spread it in the recess and wait for it to dry. Then, level the inlay. Don't forget to remove the paste wax on the surrounding wood before finishing.Chris @ http://www.flairwoodwork.spaces.live.com
- Success is not the key to happines. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer
gcg,
As delicate as this design is, I'd strongly advise you to consider cutting this into a larger background veneer, using a marquetry technique. Stack the black veneer on top of another veneer, that contrasts with the design and the wood you are using for your box. Then saw them out together, using a fine blade (2/0 or smaller) in a jeweler's saw. Separate the two veneers.Discard the outside of the black veneer,and the spiral cutouts of the contrasting veneer; drop the spirals into the cutout, glue a paper "cover" onto the assembly. You can now treat this as a single piece, inlaying it as a square, or oval (depends on how you shape the outside of the contrasting veneer). Much less fussy than trying to inlay all those curliques individually.
Ray
I'm experimenting and struggling with inlays myself. Each attempt is better than the last but still not as good as I want. I attended a seminar on marquetry and am trying to use those techniques. Specifically I cut out the inlay on a scroll saw, attach it to the piece and trace around it with an Exacto knife. With the Exacto knife, the first pass should be very light so the knife doesn't get redirected by the wood grain. Subsequent passes are firmer and deeper. I then trace around the piece with a pencil because it easy to loose sight of those Exacto knife cuts. I then remove the piece and use a small router with a 1/8" bit to cut as close to that line as I dare and remove the rest of the wood in the inlay recess. If it is a large inlay, I may switch to a bigger bit after establishing the boundry with the 1/8" bit.
After the routing, I reestablish the knife cuts again with the Exacto knife. I do this freehand. This is because the routing tends to push the cuts shut and you need them open so a chisel can be positioned in them. I then carefully chissel to the line using a combination of down cuts with the chissel in the cut and horizontal cuts along the bottom of the inlay recess. Curved chissels as close to the curve of the piece would be best for the down cut but I don't have any so I take small "bites" with my smallest straight chissel.
This still an evolving process for me and I have only done practice pieces but I think I will eventually get to the point I am satisfied with the results. Like an idiot, I started with a complicated piece to inlay and am inlaying into hard maple but if I can master this I figure the rest will be easy.
Chris beat me to it, but colored epoxy would be far easier for you to accomplish, considering your lack of experience. It all depends on whether you wanted to inlay to be woodgrain, or a solid color.
It should go without saying, but......practice on some scraps first.
Jeff
Thank you gentlemen,I am moving forward with the epoxy plan. I'll give it a go on some scraps of course and I'll be sure to post pictures of the final product at some point.
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