I had an idea

[Eric_K]

I hope that it doesn't die from loneliness. I had a heck of a time marking for the doves in the last fingerboard inlay that I did.

What if I photocopied the item to be inlayed, flipped the image and printed it out on a clear label? Then I would have to stick it where I wanted and then just remove the image with the router and it should be a near perfect fit. And I get to see what it looks like before hand.

There might be a problem with stretching or shrinking.

Has anybody done this before? Thoughts?


Eric

[Dave Bagwill]

That sounds like a good idea, Eric. Why not try it on some scrap material first and let us know how it turns out? It could be something really useful if it works.

[Eric_K]

That sounds like a good idea, Eric. Why not try it on some scrap material first and let us know how it turns out? It could be something really useful if it works.

I'll try in on some scrap first. I have some letters to put in the headstock of the D38 if I get back to it this weekend.
They should be simple enough to start with. I'd been puzzling on how to mark more complicated inlay. I hope this works.

I got a flu shot two weekends ago which laid me out for most of the weekend. Last weekend it was plumbing issues.
So with a little luck I'll get the neck set and shaped and the bridge located.

Eric

[Dave Bagwill]

Cool!
'Plumbing' as a metaphor, or actually metal/pvc pipes and stuff?? :-) You don't have to answer..

[Eric_K]

Cool!
'Plumbing' as a metaphor, or actually metal/pvc pipes and stuff?? :-) You don't have to answer..

In this particular case, actual plumbing. The water company added some more supply which upped the pressure on
my supply line. The pipe burst at the meter back in August and that was taken care of. But I discovered a moderate
leak a couple weeks ago. I spent part of last weekend looking for it and it's in a place where I can't get to it.

Eric

[TonyinNYC]

Eric,

Your idea is a good one. The only problem I can see is if the copier you use alters the image in any way, it will create gaps when you install the inlay. Do you have a pic of the inlay you want to use? I use some drops of thinned TiteBond to secure the inlay to the wood, then scribe the outline with an exacto blade. I had documented the process on the kit forum, but since I was banned from there, my posts have been purged by the overzealous moderators. If I can dig up the photos, I will re-post them here when I have time.
Anyway, glue down the inlay piece, scribe all around it, then pop it off with some dental floss. Rub chalk on the scribed lines and rub off the excess. now your lines are bright white on a dark background.
Or, you could use water based paint to paint the surface so your scribe lines show up well.
I did see your method used somewhere though and it did work. So go for it either way!

Tony

[Eric_K]

Eric,

Your idea is a good one. The only problem I can see is if the copier you use alters the image in any way, it will create gaps when you install the inlay. Do you have a pic of the inlay you want to use? I use some drops of thinned TiteBond to secure the inlay to the wood, then scribe the outline with an exacto blade. I had documented the process on the kit forum, but since I was banned from there, my posts have been purged by the overzealous moderators. If I can dig up the photos, I will re-post them here when I have time.
Anyway, glue down the inlay piece, scribe all around it, then pop it off with some dental floss. Rub chalk on the scribed lines and rub off the excess. now your lines are bright white on a dark background.
Or, you could use water based paint to paint the surface so your scribe lines show up well.
I did see your method used somewhere though and it did work. So go for it either way!

Tony

Tony:

That's similar to the way that I did it the last time - I taped the area and secured it with clear poly. I scribed around the piece the best I could and removed the inlay and the tape that was under the inlay. Took me days to think of that. The problem is some of the spaces were too tight to get a knife into.
I'm worried about distortion with the new method too. I'll try it in some scrap.

I like your method.