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My 1st Inlay Project.


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I'm new, but have gandered here for a week or so. Thought I'd post pics of my 1st inlay project, that included my 1st guitar refinish project too. It was a lot of work, but I really like it. :). If I can make it cost effective, I am thinking of doing this work on the side. :)

http://temp.corvetteforum.net/c3/im181owne...arProject.shtml

Here is a concept inlay I have came up with. Most on another forum think it is tacky, and think I should come up with something else. What do you think? Thanks for your input.

http://temp.corvetteforum.net/c3/im181owne...lay_concept.jpg

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*jaw hits floor!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!*

WOW!!!! WOW!!! this is your first inlay? AMAZING!!!! *cough tutorial, cough*

fabulous!

Defenately have to do a tutorial. And I think this smiley speaks for the inlay job... :D

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OMFG! HOLY CRIPES!!! THAT IS WONDERFUL!!

Especially for a first, that is A+++++ material... you could do it as a profession no doubt... I mean, after you learn how to re-install the electronics, that is.. :D

But th epeople on the other forum are just jealous, pay them no heed, it's beautiful!

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I wouldn't do the girl on the bike. It would take a lot of skill, and people would at least appreciate that-- but in the end, it's a girl with a thong on a bike.

The Celtic knotwork was much more elegant.

Excellent job on the red one by the way!! I'm thinking of doing plain old blocks in my fretboard, and I'm worried that I'm going to screw it up-- and you come along and do this kick-ass inlay as your first! That's an inspiration for sure.

BTW, it's the neck rather than the bridge pickup that's in the wrong way.

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I've commented on that inlay before and I'm glad you posted it in it's own thread. That thing ROCKS! :D TOTALLY KILLER! B)

The only thing I don't like about the girl on the bike is her nose, mouth and chin area but that's very minor.

That first inlay would make a cool tat :D

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Thanks for all the compliments guys!! It is an inspiration for me to continue.

I will get to work on the tutorial. Never done one before, but I think I can manage.

Yes, in some of the pictures, the neck Pickup is in backwards. My ignorance. B) Someone did point it out before I got the strings on though. :D I must get more pictures so that I can put that behind me. It is kind of funny though. I am only trying to keep you guys on your toes, making sure you catch things like that.

Greg P,

If you are thinking about doing the fret board, then I bet you will be able to do it. Take your time, and work with a few scrap pieces 1st. You will get the hang of it. Like I said, I'll get working on a tutorial.

Little Bit,

I know you didn't say the Motorcycle lady concept was tacky, but the general feeling I got from the thread was that it was tacky. There was one post that specifically said it was tacky. I just wanted a few more opinions before I invested the time in completing the design. I think I will keep the design as is, but I won't do it unless someone wants it. I will work on a new concept design. Thanks again for your honesty.

Daveq,

I used filler, but I cut the entire inlay pocket by hand, so it was a very good fit. There were not too many places that you could actually see the epoxy. In addition, I colored the epoxy white for gluing the pearl, and colored it black for gluing the Abalone. The epoxy I used was superglue quickset epoxy. It is in a red package, you can find it at Target for about $2.00.

Thanks again to everyone for their compliments. I will get to work on the tutorial. :D

And, I am going to scrap the Motorcycle lady and leave it in archive in case someone wants it. I can't afford to do something that wont sell.

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I remeber reading that you did most of it by hand with razor blades and exactos(?)

How was cutting the tight inside curves?

Did you use a different tool for this?

I can bend a razor and get shallow curved inside and outside cuts but I am having trouble with the smaller inside ones.

What I used was Xacto blades that were pointed. I also used a dental too that I filed to be like a very sharp spatula. The tight curves were not too difficult, just time consuming. I suppose that would imply that they were a little more difficult then the rest. What I did was use the Xacto an made a bunch of hatch marks in the shape of X, then use the spatula to dig it out. Since you can only safely cut so deep, I had to do this a few times to get the pocket deep enough for the inlay material. With larger pieces that have many curves, like the bottom part of the guitar I done, it will take some time to get it to fit down in the pocket. Just take your time. I hope to start working on the tutorial soon.

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Thanks a heap.

I have been practicing with some good results and I have also learned some techniques to be avoided.

It is meticulous work. My eyes don't bug, but my fingers do sometimes cramp.

Lots of taking a break.

Getting the proper depth on those pointy parts is a lesson patience.

Thanks again Buddy, couldn't have done it without ya'.

BuddyCrop.jpg

No problem, glad I could help. Feel free to email me if you can't catch me on here. I'll try to get back to ya as soon as I can. I usually don't mess with the inet on the weekends. My PC at home is still on dial up, and drives me to using words that are rated R.

Talk about maticulous, the guiar part of my inlay is in two pieces, cut about in the center of the neck part. It took me 3 hours to set the bottom piece. That was the hardest part of the inlay. It had so many curves and points on that one part that made it tough. The other parts didn't have as many areas to fit. The very bottom of the outer celtic part took the next longes time. It was a challenge, but it was also fun to see it come together. Keep us informed, and good luck!

:D

P.S. Unlike cutting the pearl, when cutting a point, cutting the pearl, you would want to start at the point, when cutting the wood, cut the wood going into the point out first. Gives you room to work with the Xacto in the point to make it a real nice fit.

Another thing, once I etched the design on, I used the Xacto to go around and cut a wedge out. First cut straight down on the etched line, then cut an angled wedge from the side the pearl will lay in. This will give you a better bearing on where to cut. Helps to prevent unintentional cut of wood you didn't want to cut. Don't try to cut too deep, you will eventually have the blade lock up, then slip, and cut wood that you didn't want to cut. Or you may cut a finger. :OUCH:

You can kind of see what I mean by a wedge in this picture on the upper parts. http://temp.corvetteforum.net/c3/im181owne...itar_inlaid.jpg

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