stevenhoneywell Posted September 22, 2005 Report Share Posted September 22, 2005 Hi all, I would like to make a some custom inlays / logos for my next project using either silver / copper or even a alloy combining both. I remember do some at school using some oily sand mould and pouring melted metal into the mould and then breaking the mould once it had cooled. Is there any other mould materials that I could use which could withstand the temperature of molten metal. I don’t mind breaking these moulds afterwards and the inlays won’t be very large. Again, any thoughts (or slaps around the chops for stupid ideas) would be appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clavin Posted September 22, 2005 Report Share Posted September 22, 2005 1) Buy sheet silver, at .05 to .06 thick from a jewelry supply house. Same goes for absolutely any "jewelery" grade metal. 2) Do not melt anything. 3) Cut it out with a jewelers saw same as with pearl. Treat the inlay as if it were pearl, nothing is any different with methods for pearl, metals, or woods, or plastics, or corian, or anything solid. Polish it out to a higher end grit so it doesn't look scratched. Good luck. Craig Lavin www.handcraftinlay.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevenhoneywell Posted September 22, 2005 Author Report Share Posted September 22, 2005 Cheers Craig, your suggestion somes a lot less work Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnsilver Posted September 22, 2005 Report Share Posted September 22, 2005 If the silver is inlaid into, say a headstock, and then covered with clear nitro lacquer like a normal finish, it shouldn't tarnish right? Seems if it is sealed by the lacquer that it won't tarnish. I guess using silver in an unfinished fretboard would be a different story. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clavin Posted September 23, 2005 Report Share Posted September 23, 2005 Believe it or not it will still tarnish under a finish, but with a good sealer on it first, then a good finish, it should take a long, long time. Craig L. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cSuttle Posted September 23, 2005 Report Share Posted September 23, 2005 (edited) Clavin has given you great advice. A +1 to everything he said. This is in addition to that. To polish out the silver, try using Heavy and Medium cut wax from Mcquires - yeah the car wax people. Use a dremel or other high speed polisher. I use silver all the time as well as copper, brass and nickel. The thorns in the inlay below are silver. It really looks great on a dark fingerboard (ebony or rosewood). Edited September 23, 2005 by cSuttle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batfink Posted September 23, 2005 Report Share Posted September 23, 2005 Oh, one thing Steven, you can't buy sheet stock from you're common or garden jeweller's you need to go to a bullion dealer. Seeing you're in London i'd try around Covent Garden if you haven't already got a supplier. Jem Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevenhoneywell Posted September 28, 2005 Author Report Share Posted September 28, 2005 Oh, one thing Steven, you can't buy sheet stock from you're common or garden jeweller's you need to go to a bullion dealer. Seeing you're in London i'd try around Covent Garden if you haven't already got a supplier. Jem ← cheers, I'm hoping to have some spare time next weekend to do some 'decent' Covent Garden shopping instead of the type my girlfriend forces me to do Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batfink Posted September 29, 2005 Report Share Posted September 29, 2005 If you have any trouble getting what you need - although you shouldn't - i use Gould's in Portsea, easy online ordering that only takes a day or two. Jem Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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