# Practice inlay piece



## difalkner (Jan 3, 2012)

Practice inlay piece to test technique for a larger project. This is Walnut, African Mahogany, and Cherry. It’s 12” x 6”. Pockets and inlay pieces were drawn freehand in Fusion 360, cut on the CNC, then each piece hand filed and fitted. Leaf veins were cut by hand, as well. Finish is 2 lb. cut Shellac and applied with French polish method. Veins are highlighted with Mohawk Van **** Brown glazing stain. Finish took about 20 minutes from bare wood.

























Enjoy!
David


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## Oscar36 (Feb 23, 2019)

David, beautiful sample. How big is the final piece going to be?


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

David, it looks great, only one thing wrong with it. You forgot the caterpillars!

Seriously, great match on the colors.
Herb


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## difalkner (Jan 3, 2012)

LOL! Yep, missed it on the caterpillars! 

The real project will be about 16" x 21" and I'll do it on the piece on the left -









David


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## marecat3 (Nov 30, 2010)

pretty


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## scottgrove (Sep 4, 2016)

nice job, have you tried inlaying metal filings? I get them from Home Depoe using the key cutting scrape. Cut a void and sprinkle in and add CA glue. Great for accents.


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## difalkner (Jan 3, 2012)

What a novel idea, Scott! No sir, never have. I've inlaid gold, silver, Abalone, MOP, but never any filings. I'll check on that next time I'm out.

I would imagine you get a good variety of color from the filings, right? Do you have any photos you can share?

David


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## difalkner (Jan 3, 2012)

Thought I'd show you the target project board and the practice piece together - 









David


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## ger21 (Feb 10, 2019)

Is that going to be a guitar?


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## difalkner (Jan 3, 2012)

The Walnut crotch piece? Thought about how it would look as a cap on a solid body electric or even as a back on an acoustic if I thinned it enough - right now it's 0.250" thick. But no, it's destined to be a wall panel with frame. That, however, is a fluid idea as are many things in my shop! :grin:

David


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## TenGees (Sep 12, 2012)

You're doing to have to make something with that 'test' piece, David. It turned out very nice.


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## MEBCWD (Jan 14, 2012)

That piece of Walnut will look great with that inlay installed. Looking forward to seeing the finished piece.


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## difalkner (Jan 3, 2012)

This is tentatively what I am planning although now that I've done the test piece I'll delete this drawing and start over. I learned that the way I have drawn this will back me into some corners on the CAM side of things, so it's just easier to start over.









David


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## ScottyDBQ (Jul 5, 2008)

Practice makes perfect, and after looking at that "test" piece, that final project is going to be something else.


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## dman2 (Sep 4, 2019)

Nice! You did that in 20 minutes?? Wow! A game changer...


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## difalkner (Jan 3, 2012)

dman2 said:


> Nice! You did that in 20 minutes?? Wow! A game changer...


The finish, yes. The machining, hand fitting, vein carving - no. Not even close! LOL!

Of course, the first round of French polishing was about 10 minutes and I let it set for an hour while I did something else. Then I put the glazing stain on and wiped it off and let it set for another hour, again while I was doing something else (I think we watched a movie). Then I came back for a few minutes for a final round of French polishing, so total time was 20 minutes or less but I spread it over 3 or 4 hours because I had other things to do.

If you've never tried French polishing with Shellac then give it a shot - it's a great finish and looks fantastic.

David


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## Oscar36 (Feb 23, 2019)

David, I love the French polish look when other people do it. lol

That is a time consuming process to get a high gloss finish. Gorgeous of course when other people do it since I won't do it. 

I hate quality finishes for myself. One or two coats of varnish, poly, or lacquer and calling it good. After a decade or two the wood will get hard any way.


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## difalkner (Jan 3, 2012)

Oscar36 said:


> David, I love the French polish look when other people do it. lol
> 
> That is a time consuming process to *get a high gloss finish*. Gorgeous of course when other people do it since I won't do it.
> 
> I hate quality finishes for myself. One or two coats of varnish, poly, or lacquer and calling it good. After a decade or two the wood will get hard any way.


I usually stop before reaching the ultra-high gloss, Oscar. I've done it before when I needed to for repairs to match an existing finish but when I do something from scratch I'd rather stop short of that. I just think it looks better for most projects.

This one is glossy enough that I had difficulty getting good photos but here's a shot about half way through the process to show the sheen, although I killed some of the sheen in post so you could see some detail (it's glossier now than in this photo) - 









David


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## dman2 (Sep 4, 2019)

I love it.


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## Oscar36 (Feb 23, 2019)

lol. Yup. Love it since I didn't do all the hard work.


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