Inlays

"Teledude" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:8f048949-e4bf-463e-aead-622cbba7a567@s13g2000prd.googlegroups.com...
> Greetings folks,
> I'm a newbie hobbyist woodworker. I just made a backgammon board. I
> routed out the triangles to 1/8" deep and I want to fill them with a
> liquid colored epoxy type material. The two products that I think will
> work are 'Inlace" http://www.inlaceonline.com and system three's
> "Mirrorcoat". http://www.systemthree.com/p_mirror_coat.asp
>
> Does anyone have any experience with these products?
> Any ideas for other options/products?
> Thanks in advance for your help...

T:

I've used polyester and epoxy resins in other applications. Casting a
foundation layer without
lustrous waxes used in some top coat is a good idea for grab and
minimization of the exothermic reaction which may cause difficulty with
thinner wood. If you want a matte
finish waxes or the two-layer approach might not be an issue. If really
necessary, heat can be carefully moderated by ground ice in plastic bags
below the wood as long as you are also careful to keep the resin catalyzing
temperature above bottom point in the range literature will specify. Both
layers should have a UV inhibitor unless you will make the top layer truly
opaque with dyes or pigments.

If you find the range of colorants available insufficient, look at ceramic
glazes which can be very finely powdered; it is also a very wise idea to
make sure that any
improvisational use of these glazes does not involve materials which might
be toxic when released in dust if you decide to sand the entire board for a
mirror finish. The difficulty
with sanding is the differential erosion of interfacing plastic and wood
along with the
differential loading that can occur unless. Do experiments which test this
approach
with the particular materials proposed. Again, a matte finish is another
matter.

In your application, you hopefully can avoid the use of thixotropic
compounds which
invite trapped bubbles. Remember to stir in any colorants slowly and let the
mix
sit before catalyzation to allow release of any introduced bubbles. Lastly,
do your pour
evenly and in some place you can cover without dislodging floaters in the
process. Bugs, dust and debris love curing resin. See fossil amber for
proof. You might
want to run these points by your tentative suppliers for their reaction. The
report of anything interesting you learn would be welcome here.
.
Regards,

Edward Hennessey

On Jan 15, 7:46 pm, Teledude <[email protected]> wrote:
> Greetings folks,
> I'm a newbie hobbyist woodworker. I just made a backgammon board. I
> routed out the triangles to 1/8" deep and I want to fill them with a
> liquid colored epoxy type material. The two products that I think will
> work are 'Inlace"http://www.inlaceonline.comand system three's
> "Mirrorcoat".http://www.systemthree.com/p_mirror_coat.asp
>
> Does anyone have any experience with these products?
> Any ideas for other options/products?
> Thanks in advance for your help...

Please let us know what you find out and if it works for you.
I have a friend who has used colored epoxy instead of
string inlay with mixed results (he colored his own epoxy
with some powder from an art supply store which wouldn't
stay a uniform color). Why didn't you use a veneer inlay
instead of an epoxy one?

Also, be careful with the thickness of the poured "inlay" with
respect to the thickness and stiffness of your substrate.

I once made a BEAUTIFUL chessboard out of 1/8"-thick plywood squares
glued onto 1/4" plywood. I had a raised border around the chessboard,
maybe an 1/8" deep, and filled the playing surface with epoxy resin.

Long story made short: the curing resin caused the whole chessboard to
curl up into a bowl shape. It was BAD, maybe a 1/4" difference
between the edges and the center. It was a total waste.

The moral of the story: make sure you've got a heafty substrate or
adequate bracing to keep it flat.

-Zz

On Tue, 15 Jan 2008 16:46:58 -0800 (PST), Teledude
<[email protected]> wrote:

>Greetings folks,
> I'm a newbie hobbyist woodworker. I just made a backgammon board. I
>routed out the triangles to 1/8" deep and I want to fill them with a
>liquid colored epoxy type material. The two products that I think will
>work are 'Inlace" http://www.inlaceonline.com and system three's
>"Mirrorcoat". http://www.systemthree.com/p_mirror_coat.asp
>
> Does anyone have any experience with these products?
> Any ideas for other options/products?
> Thanks in advance for your help...

In article <8f048949-e4bf-463e-aead-622cbba7a567@s13g2000prd.googlegroups.com>, Teledude <[email protected]> wrote:
>Greetings folks,
> I'm a newbie hobbyist woodworker. I just made a backgammon board. I
>routed out the triangles to 1/8" deep and I want to fill them with a
>liquid colored epoxy type material. The two products that I think will
>work are 'Inlace" http://www.inlaceonline.com and system three's
>"Mirrorcoat". http://www.systemthree.com/p_mirror_coat.asp
>
> Does anyone have any experience with these products?
> Any ideas for other options/products?
> Thanks in advance for your help...

No answers, but a suggestion: you might find some folks over at
rec.crafts.woodturning with some experience using Inlace, if you don't get
the info you want here.

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

It's time to throw all their damned tea in the harbor again.

Teledude wrote:
> Greetings folks,
> I'm a newbie hobbyist woodworker. I just made a backgammon board. I
> routed out the triangles to 1/8" deep and I want to fill them with a
> liquid colored epoxy type material. The two products that I think will
> work are 'Inlace" http://www.inlaceonline.com and system three's
> "Mirrorcoat". http://www.systemthree.com/p_mirror_coat.asp
>
> Does anyone have any experience with these products?
> Any ideas for other options/products?
> Thanks in advance for your help...

I haven't used those products, but I use regular 30 minute two part
epoxy to fill defects and knots on a weekly basis.

Sometimes, I tint them with artist's oil colors (a LITTLE, not a lot!).
Black, burnt umber, burnt sienna, and yellow ochre, are all the
colors I've needed.