Wire Inlay Again

Well decided to try to do a wire inlay again. Went alot easier this time since I used curly black walnut which is alot softer than the other woods I tried, but was still a PITA. Didn't turn out as good as I hoped it would. The design isn't perfect. I need to get a way to transfer the designs easier rather than trying to do it by hand. I need to make some more inlay tools so I can make smoother cuts. Still need to do alot of shaping with the scales, but figured I would do the inlay first instead of spending time just to have it ruined by the inlay. Think I might have to keep practicing. Might be a PITA, but was quite fun. Can't imagine how much practice some of the people have had to have that do this to make everything smooth and perfect. My hat is off to them.

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Not to bad. Looks darn good to me.

Doesn't look nearly as bad to the rest of us, but then again you are always your worst critic, right? I had the privilege of meeting Bill Moran when I first started off and both he and Joe Keesler told me that the reason that most people use curly maple is not only because thats what the old American gunmakers used when they did wire inlay, but also because it is one of the few figured woods that will not split out when you gouge it across the grain. As for tools, if you are inclined to spend a little moiety, check out the kit that Joe has, assuming he still sees it. Some of the best "chisels" are made from cut down Xacto knife blades. A little jewelers chasing hammer is also a good thing to have

Looks perfect to me! I would be tickled fluorescent if I could do it that well. Is there a tutorial thread here on inlays?

There are three shorter videos with Joe Keeslar out there on the interwebz and some instructional videos too. Search for silver wire handle inlay and you will find the Keeslar/ABS vids.

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Originally Posted by Steel

Looks perfect to me! I would be tickled fluorescent if I could do it that well. Is there a tutorial thread here on inlays?

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It does look good.
Wire inlay is a PITA to do. I usually have to do about 10 repetitions on scrap before doing the real inlay. Very sharp, fine blades are necessary. And strop the blade often.

I know how you feel
Nice job but

I have not had a chance to play around with them at all, but I did get some tools from Lee Valley for doing wire and string inlay. I have the intention of using them on box lids and after my skills pick up perhaps something a little more tricky, like what you are doing. Most times we just sit and stare at the tiny imperfections in our work. Nobody else see them. It looks very nice. I like your concepts and work.

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Originally Posted by Steel

Looks perfect to me! I would be tickled fluorescent if I could do it that well. Is there a tutorial thread here on inlays?

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Yep. I would be beaming like a 50 watt LED.

I built a Kentucky long rifle back in the 70s and did a little wire inlay and to tell you the truth it's not that easy. I believe what you did looks pretty darn good so don't beat yourself up not many can do that good. An artist always criticizes there work more than others do.

Well got them shaped and a quick coat of oil to see what they will look like and I think I will give it another try since I have enough walnut left for a couple more sets of blanks and some different wire on the way. I modified one of my chisel handles and hopefully that will give me better control. I need to work on transferring the design better. If I could print it out and iron it on it would work alot easier, but since I can't I have to do it by hand with carbon paper.

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For transferring the designs, I use a needle and poke through the pattern into the wood about every 1/16 of an inch. Then I join the dots on the wood with pencil (white pencil if on dark wood).

JSmith, this looks amazing. Think you've done an excellent job and you've inspired me to try something new. Thank you for sharing!

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Originally Posted by Suavio

JSmith, this looks amazing. Think you've done an excellent job and you've inspired me to try something new. Thank you for sharing!

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Same here. I have not attempted this task yet but would like to. It looks very well done!

Ok gave it another go and thanks to the idea of connecting the dots I was able to transfer the design alot easier and more even and cutting the groove was easier. I also made a push rod so I can push the wires from side to side to help keep the design flowing nicely. This time I also made sure to cut all the lines first and then set the wire. This helped with creating tighter junctions where the lines connected. I am happy with this attempt, but I ended up sanding the scales with more of a curve than the last one and that made me have to use a smaller pattern which made doing the inlay even harder. I also did some more reading and learned a tip that I thought I would share in case someone wants to attempt wire inlays. Unfortunately I didn't find it till after I already sanded everything smooth. Tip is to smear a glue (wood glue, etc.) over the inlay before filing/sanding completely flush and let it dry. After that then finish getting it flush. This is supposed to help keep the edges of the wire from creating a burr and becoming fuzzy looking and keeping the lines smooth and sharp looking. Will have to try this next time since now I got better tools, different wire and I am sure I will have to do this again.

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Originally Posted by JSmith1983

Ok gave it another go and thanks to the idea of connecting the dots I was able to transfer the design alot easier and more even. I also made a push rod so I can push the wires from side to side to help keep the design flowing nicely. This time I also made sure to cut all the lines first and then set the wire. This helped with creating tighter junctions where the lines connected. I am happy with this attempt, but I ended up sanding the scales with more of a curve than the last one and that made me have to use a smaller pattern which made doing the inlay even harder. I also did some more reading and learned a tip that I thought I would share in case someone wants to attempt wire inlays. Unfortunately I didn't find it till after I already sanded everything smooth. Tip is to smear a glue (wood glue, etc.) over the inlay before filing/sanding completely flush and let it dry. After that then finish getting it flush. This is supposed to help keep the edges of the wire from creating a burr and becoming fuzzy looking and keeping the lines smooth and sharp looking. Will have to try this next time since now I got better tools, different wire and I am sure I will have to do this again.

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Thank you for the extra tip! I will attempt this one of these days!

Looks great. Remember one who cares about the quality of their work is the biggest nitpicker.

Wow, that is very well done.
Congrats

Looks great!

Adding wood glue before sanding doesn't really reduce the burr, but it does fill in any gaps around the wire and hopefully help keep the wire in place if you get too heavy handed while sanding.