ernie Posted June 28, 2003 Report Share Posted June 28, 2003 I was wondering what is the best material for the stalk of the vine of the Jems?? I did a full vine inlay on a blank and when I was radiusing it, the brass that I used popped up in different spots. How do you think I could avoid this problem??? Thanks Ernie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clavin Posted June 28, 2003 Report Share Posted June 28, 2003 Hi Ernie. Any time you sand metals they will heat up, and want to rise. Especially in super glues. The best way to avoid this is to keep moving your sanding position. Don't stay in any area too long. Feel the metals with your wrist during sanding, to see how hot it's getting. if it heats up to much, move away to another area, and let it cool down. This will happen with any metals, gold, silver, brass, copper, etc.. Thin vine and bezels seem to come up easiest. As for the best materials for an inlay.. , the ones you like the most.. Craig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ernie Posted June 28, 2003 Author Report Share Posted June 28, 2003 Thanks a lot. That is what I thought was happening, but I guess I have to be more patient and give the metal much more of a rest. Patience is a virtue!! Thanks for your help. Ernie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest AlexVDL Posted June 28, 2003 Report Share Posted June 28, 2003 Well that's a good tip Clavin... thanks so much!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clavin Posted June 29, 2003 Report Share Posted June 29, 2003 The waiting is the hard part.. especially when you are starting to see what your inlay will look like. It's worth it! just an aside about metals, I tend to use silver and gold the most- copper tarishes very fast, and even under a finish metals are not too safe from turning. I refrain from using copper if I can, and use dixgold (red brass) , or gold pearl instead. Craig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LGM Guitars Posted June 29, 2003 Report Share Posted June 29, 2003 You can usually buy brass in solid square rod as well, I prefer that, as you can still bend it, but it fits nice and snug with square corners in the routes. and, you don't have to sand down half the diameter like you do with round brass to make it look right. You can route full depth instead of half depth, then you have less sanding to do, less heat, and less chance of popping up. this vine stem was done with round, but I also made sure to really rough up the side that got glued in so hopefully it will never pop on me. you can see the rest of the pics here on Jemsite Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ernie Posted June 29, 2003 Author Report Share Posted June 29, 2003 what I ended up doing was buying a sheet of brass and cutting out the strip. I will give this a go again with maybe some square wire and this time I will do it on a board that is already radiused so that I will not have to sand that much. another question on the side: does dixgold tarnish or will it remain nice and shiny?? thanks guys ernie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clavin Posted June 29, 2003 Report Share Posted June 29, 2003 I agree about the square wire. Make sure you get it a good enough size to grab into the wood, and maybe rough sand it a bit as well. I only inlay into radiused boards. It helps a lot, just watch your glue spots, and make sure you are using no more than 220 grit by the time they start to dissapeqar in spots. Then finish with 300's or 400's then go to micromesh for a totally shiny glow. Unless you are engraving- more on that later.. As for tarnishing, only gold will really resist it. Expecially on a heavily played board. The good news is tarnish comes off pretty quick with a 600 grit polish, so it doesn't take much to keep it looking pretty new. Good luck! Craig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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