Background
I'm building a computer for my wife and the top is 65"x33" using 8/4 sapele. The top is glued up from 4 boards. While there are no cracks/checking my wife likes the look of the bowtie inlays (butterfly keys, Dutchman, etc...) and wants them added. I'm familiar with using these to mitigate existing cracks from getting worse but I've never used them purely for aesthetic reasons. I'm thinking of just using some ~1/8" or less soft maple rather than the typical thicker bowties that one would normally use since they'll really serve no functional purpose here. She wants several here and there down both sides (long the glue joint potentially on the 33" width). Also will be staying in this region and in a conditioned office space so I do not expect a lot of seasonal wood movement.....plus it's quarter sawn sapele.
Questions
Thank in advance !
I'm building a computer for my wife and the top is 65"x33" using 8/4 sapele. The top is glued up from 4 boards. While there are no cracks/checking my wife likes the look of the bowtie inlays (butterfly keys, Dutchman, etc...) and wants them added. I'm familiar with using these to mitigate existing cracks from getting worse but I've never used them purely for aesthetic reasons. I'm thinking of just using some ~1/8" or less soft maple rather than the typical thicker bowties that one would normally use since they'll really serve no functional purpose here. She wants several here and there down both sides (long the glue joint potentially on the 33" width). Also will be staying in this region and in a conditioned office space so I do not expect a lot of seasonal wood movement.....plus it's quarter sawn sapele.
Questions
- Will using bowtie inlays when I have no cracks create any issues to mitigate wood movement thus creating an issue I would not have had otherwise ? I'm thinking of how folks will afix a table top that doesn't allow for wood movement....am I creating that issue here being that I'll be using several inlays ?
- If using thin ~1/8" soft maple for bowties be too thin potentially and thus create a issue during seasonal movement where the bowtie could itself become an aesthetic issue such as the tips crack or pop up, etc ? I'm not sure how this would happen if glued and inset properly but not sure what could go wrong...
- Could anything else potentially go wrong I'm not thinking of here ?
Thank in advance !