Inlay Tools

[creasman]

I just finished making some inlay tools I plan to use on an upcoming project.

The first picture shows the two sets of specialized gouges for inlaying the football shapes you see between each pair of gouges. One gouge is beveled on the inside of the curve and is used for marking the cavity. The other is beveled on the outside and is used to cut the inlay. The curves of each pair are milled to match. The handles as well as the boxes are made of ash.

The second picture is a pair of small router plans I'll use to clean out the cavities. One has a standard, pointed iron (not seen). The other has a small, narrow iron that will fit inside lines and other tight spaces. I'm not certain of the wood, but I believe it's ebony. I had a small piece of hard, dark wood so figured this was a good use for it.

 

[Phil S]

Wow great job

 

[sawman101]

Looks like a pair of heirloom tools! Beautiful!

 

[nn4jw]

I liked the way you coded the pairs of gouges using the grooves in the handles. Easy to tell at a glance which are which and where they belong in the boxes.

 

[bbrown]

Beautiful heirloom tools.
I always admire folks who take the time to make tools like that.
BTW, I do a lot of Federal inlay (see website) & use carving chisels for much of it.
Your tools are much prettier than mine

 

[Michael Mathews]

very impressive!

 

[creasman]

Beautiful heirloom tools.
I always admire folks who take the time to make tools like that.
BTW, I do a lot of Federal inlay (see website) & use carving chisels for much of it.

Thanks, Bill. I took a look at your website. Wow! Beautiful work.
I do find that making tools for a project is almost as satisfying as the project itself.
My project is a Federal-style card table. It will be my first serious attempt at doing inlay and working with veneer. I'm doing a lot of practice pieces of the various effects before I start (sand-shaded fan medallions, inlayed lines, veneering on a curved surface, etc.). Looking forward to finally using these tools and a few others I've either acquired or made myself.

 

[danmart77]

Love those tools Jim. I'm waiting to see the project up and running. Till then.

Gettin' ready to eat a lobster near Deer Isle. Don't want to be dehydrated.

 

[Martin Roper]

Amazing.

You guys make stuff like that.

I make shelves. Harumph.

 

[Mark Johnson]

Very impressive!