Thread: DIY cutting Inlay strips & inlay engraving jig

G’day all,
I am trying something different for a Str8 for my son in-lay for his Bday (a new convertee)
so I thought I would add this tutorial of the process I have come up with, so others may be able benefit from it.

now I wanted to try and add his surname name in Runes as a inlay to the scales as per a tattoo he has.


so my first practice attempts free hand were rubbish to put it nicely, as the runes are made up of straight lines & that just wasn’t happening free hand for me,
so back to the drawing board to rethink my process & this is what came out of the mush in my head.

first problem I have a couple of abalone shell strips but not enough & I wanted the inlay to stand out a bit more and wanted to use bone in the black horn scales.
so first cutting inlay strips

I set up the dremel to the recently acquired drill press arrangement I got for my Birthday a couple weeks back, with the diamond cutting disk,
set it at about 1mm off the base.


used this to cut down some 1mm bone inlay blank made some nice slices


also used the same set up on a bit of horn for black in pieces.
easy as.


then to the fun bit for how to engrave the scale materials for the inlays
the grey matter thought of the guided sliding jig set up as follows:
I clamped a straight bar to my drill press base that I could adjust to suit the width changes,
then made a sliding block from a piece of wood I taped 1 side & marked the angles for my lines on it



sanded 1 side of the horn blank flat as normal as my inside to ensure the scales are flat
then tapped & marked the design on the horn material.

I stuck my piece of horn to the block at the corresponding angles using a small bit of double sided tape


I fitted the 1mm tungsten burr to the dremel,
set the depth gauge stopper on the press to about 1.5mm of movement a bit deeper than the inlay materials so I can shape the scales down to the inlay,
used 1 hand to lower the bit & the other to hold & move the slide block
Attachment 170883

re-adjusted the guide bar to suit each vertical inlay line as I moved across

then removed the horn from my block rotated to the next angle tapped back to the slide block
& repeated for the rest

it was a bit of fiddling with getting the lines right measuring each time & making sure the guide was straight,
but I now have straight lines engraved into the scales a damn site better than my free handed attempts

now the continued fiddling with the inlay pieces, that will eventually be epoxied into the horn then the usual shaping etc can proceed

The first test run still some refining of the symbles etc but should work I think



happy shaving

Good thinking. Looks like it worked out fine. He is going to love it !

This is great work,,, beyond me though, I got lost on the 3rd picture.
I can't wait to see the finished product,,,,,

Lookin good, is that a Tattoo on your arm?

Great work mate !!....I can appreciate the difficulty factor in this.
You're lucky though, his name is in runes, the inlays are all "straight", I guess "curves" would be far more difficult ?
This tutorial throws up all sorts of possibilities....Thanks for posting

Nice Work. I've done wood inlay and can appreciate what you are going through.
They make x-y adjustable drill press vices that you can use as an engraving jig. I haven't seen one for a dremel, but they probably exist.

Originally Posted by pixelfixed

Lookin good, is that a Tattoo on your arm?

no not nime this is his last name "Fraser", I got he daughter to snap it for me on the sly as it will be a suprise for him

I have portraits of the bride & my 2 daughters

Originally Posted by bongo

Great work mate !!....I can appreciate the difficulty factor in this.
You're lucky though, his name is in runes, the inlays are all "straight", I guess "curves" would be far more difficult ?
This tutorial throws up all sorts of possibilities....Thanks for posting

the straight lines was why thought I would give it a try
I tried to do a free hand spiral in horn I wanted for my Bruno blade when I did it, but gave it up as a bad joke for the inlay and the cut outs LOL
more thinking required for that one still

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