# Inlaid Lidded Box



## gwilki (Nov 12, 2012)

The box is hard maple with a walnut inlay. 

I used VCarvePro for the CAD/CAM work and UGS as the code sender. 

All comments welcome.


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

sweet!!!


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## difalkner (Jan 3, 2012)

Looks nice, Grant! Did you do the turning on your lathe or on the CNC?

David


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## gwilki (Nov 12, 2012)

Tks, guys.

David: I did the lid work on the CNC. I did the inside of the box on the CNC. I use VCarvePro and it has a dish clipart, so the bottom is a 30° dish. For the outside, I did the first 1" on the CNC. That's the longest end mill that I have. Then, I cut the rest to within about 1/16" of the final diameter on my bandsaw and used a flush cutting bit on the router table to take it down to final dimension.

The inside of the lid has a 1/4" deep rabbet so that the lid sits snugly inside the box bottom. I did that with a straight bit on the router table.

I did the finish sanding and polishing on the lathe.

When you include the jointer, planer and table saw to mill the rough-sawn lumber, it adds up to lots of machines for such a small project.


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## Cncest (Apr 26, 2020)

How deep did you cut the design on the lid?


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## scottgrove (Sep 4, 2016)

nice, how thick was the walnut? veneer? or thin hardwood?


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## marecat3 (Nov 30, 2010)

very pretty


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## ScottyDBQ (Jul 5, 2008)

Very nice project!


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## gwilki (Nov 12, 2012)

Thanks to you all. The process that I use is set out in detail in this youtube video.






It's not a typical inlay process using thin veneers for the inlay. Instead, the male and female pieces mate because they are both cut with a V bit. It makes for a very tight inlay with some wiggle room.


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## MEBCWD (Jan 14, 2012)

Grant I guess this was a V-carve inlay. Looks like you have the inlay technique figured out. 

Nice little box and well done.


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## Danman1957 (Mar 14, 2009)

Grant, 
Beautiful can also be simple. The contrast between the 2 woods is simply stunning ! I can't imagine another detail that would make it better. Another fellow giving me the CNC itch !
Dan


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## TenGees (Sep 12, 2012)

Very nice, Grant. Simple but detailed.


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## gwilki (Nov 12, 2012)

Tks again for all the kind words. I appreciate it. 

The process for me is still a bit hit and miss. Using walnut as the inlay is a bit of an issue. Small parts of the design can break off. I've done some now where I cut the "female" with the CNC using a V bit, then fill it with coloured epoxy. It's a nice look, the available colours are pretty much endless, and it allows for finer detail.

Have fun.


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## gdonham1 (Oct 31, 2011)

What kind of CNC did you use. I have seen that tutorial on youtube and the Carbide3d (Shapeoko) has a similar tutorial on their community page I am going to make a v carve inlay for a game my son in law wants me to make called Catan. It has 6 sided board pieces with inlays of trees, farm land and other. The game is a settlement and trading game.


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## gwilki (Nov 12, 2012)

I used a Sienci Long Mill. It's a Canadian-developed machine. I use Vectric VCarvePro as the CAD/CAM software and UGS as the code sender. 
I would think that pretty much any CNC would do these. The milling is not particularly complex. 
Just for giggles, I looked at the Catan game. It would appear that you have a lot of work ahead of you.


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## scottgrove (Sep 4, 2016)

WOW- video is very well done. I am now teaching remotely and like to know which program you use to explain the first part (side view) of the inlay.
simple and very well explained.
thanks for sharing.

have you ever inlaid veneer using this method? 1/42" thick

I have shopbot handy bot on loan from them and trying to figure our how to inlay veneer with sharp corners. this method might do the trick, not sure if veneer is too think for this.
thanks


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## gwilki (Nov 12, 2012)

Scott: I'm sorry for the long delay in replying. 

The video is not mine. I linked to it to show the method that I used.

I have not tried thin inlaid veneer using this method. I don't believe that it would work. This method depends on the inlay being thick enough to form the "male" part of the V. That's the secret of this method. The inlay is like a wedge that you press into the female side. I can't see how you could cut a veneer that is only 1/42" to form a good V profile.


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## Ziegler WoodWork & Spec. (Jan 9, 2019)

Very cool, nice contrast.


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