Devon Headen Posted June 22, 2005 Report Share Posted June 22, 2005 I've not done much inlay work with these bits since I got them, but the bits work just dandy. I haven't actually tried any of the spiral bits, I've just used the rasps. There are some TIIIIIIIINY little bits in those sets. I snapped one right out of the package. I'm sure you can find those in Canada, I've seen them from all sorts of places. Most electronics places worth their salt that I've seen have them. Welcome thegarehanman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maiden69 Posted June 22, 2005 Report Share Posted June 22, 2005 Maiden: do you think the upcut would leave the kind of fuzz easily fixed with a bit of personalized attention? Greg ← I think so, just like when you rout your pup holes in some woods, just a light touch with sandpaper or go over it with a scraper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frank falbo Posted June 23, 2005 Report Share Posted June 23, 2005 Actually, it can be an advantage if you have any gaps. You can push those flips back down into your glue mixture to sort of close the gap. Any lifting is going to shear right off when you level the inlay anyway. If you score the wood, then the upcut is fine because there is no fuzz. It disappears when you reach your score line. Greg I have some bits I'll send you with those roller saddles (what?! you haven't sent those yet?! What the heck....well, you are sending me some free bits, I guess that makes up for it. ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregP Posted June 23, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 23, 2005 more than makes up for it. I don't have a personal family dentist, or I'd definitely ask. I was out for coffee tonight with my g/f and another couple (a double date as it were. ) and my g/f actually kind of hinted to the other girl, who had worked at a dentist's office, that I'm looking for such things. Unfortunately, she didn't seem too keen on asking around her old haunt, or her personal dentist either. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. <chuckle> My gf DID, however, get me a scalpel to add to my set of Xacto blades, so that may end up coming in handy. I'll certainly keep everyone posted. Now that my eyesight and patience have returned, I might be ready for a 3rd attempt at the Tracktion logo, in addition to trying something more simple. It occurred to me only today (I'm not that quick on the uptake) that I can even use my actual block inlays for practice... it's not like I actually have to glue them into the cavity, I'm just practicing making the cavities. Then again, some of my blanks are fairly square-ish, and at least I wouldn't be risking anything by using those. Frank, interesting point about the 'fuzzy flaps'. Makes sense. Cheers to everyone for the information-- and welcome to thegarehanman Greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregP Posted June 30, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 30, 2005 OK, then. A few things learned: 1. You don't THINK you're sanding off very much material, but sometimes you are. I barely saved this from doom when I saw that the colour was going funny. It turns out that it was the darkness of the ebony starting to show through the thin MOP. You can see it particularly in the bottom of the sprocket. For next time, I'm thinking of putting some white paper underneath the inlay just for some extra "luminence" in case I sand too thin in spots, plus just as a redundant safeguard. 2. CA works really well. The watery consistency is what's needed to get the inlay in there (thick stuff might cause a lot of pressure when it gets compacted into cavities? I dunno, but it seems to me that the really thin stuff like CA is a good idea when your cavities are already really tight) 3. If you're going to make ebony shavings to mix in with the glue, a Dremel tool does a decent job without contaminating it with sanpaper particles, etc. I got this idea after reading up on a guy who uses a file for his ebony shavings. I just automated the process. 4. MOP can and will flake off in figured areas if you're not careful. If you look at my pic, the upper left corner of the inlay has a small chip in it. The side showing was originally meant to be the bottom; however when I went to lift it out after a test fitting once (using the Xacto blade), I took off a chunk of the MOP. Since it's just a test and practice, I didn't bother fixing it up much. The rest of the top looks wavy in the picture, but is not this way in real life. Weird. 5. My digital camera sucks. I tried about 20 different shots, and this is the best I could come up with. Also, the whole thing looks much better in person. The edges of the sprocket don't look so 'wet', the gap on the bottom right of the T looks more filled in and smooth IRL, and the left side of the T is smoother, without that strange-looking 'bump'. Also, the surface is perfectly smooth and level. I have no idea why the camera is making this look so weird. --- SO, the "T" logo is actually the third attempt. The second attempt had TOO much space between the T and the sprocket. This one still had some, but it filled in nicely. The block is an unprocessed blank that was roughly rectangular. I didn't take any time making it perfectly rectangular, though I could have done. My block inlays are pre-cut, though, so that's no worry. It turned out to be pretty easy to do, and I'm almost ready to do my fretboard. I figure I'll do one more semi-intricate design for practice, and one more MOP blank to test 'basic' skills, and then I'll give'er. The pic: I put a quick slathering of Varathane on it just to darken up the wood, but I didn't take time with the finish, either, and Varathane wouldn't be my first choice I don't think. Greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gun Posted June 30, 2005 Report Share Posted June 30, 2005 Wow i didn't believe it was so difficult make a perfect inlay. BTW it looks fine to me. Cheers Why do you not try to take a shot far off? Gian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregP Posted June 30, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 30, 2005 That one IS far off. I cropped it to size, though. Even FURTHER off and there wouldn't be enough detail to see the flaws, which I wanted to at least comment on. Thanks for the positive comments, though! Greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregP Posted June 30, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 30, 2005 Just for giggles, here's a far off shot. It's also cropped, but I decided to keep the entire hunk of wood intact. You can see my first attempt at the "T" off to the right, and the second attempt just to the left of the final one. Greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Primal Posted July 2, 2005 Report Share Posted July 2, 2005 If this has already been said, I apologize. I didn't feel like reading the entire thread at this moment. Are there any hobby shops where you live? Hobby shops usually have a good selection of CA - from fast drying to sloooow drying. If you are still looking for some, check out a local hobby shop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregP Posted July 3, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 3, 2005 There's a hobby shop not too far away; I'll give'er a peek. Cheers! Greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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