Official Luthiers Forum!

I ahve lots of acrylic stabilized woods--scraps from my grip making. I would like to use them for inlays--dots and diamonds. Is there an easy way to cut them. I was thinking about using a forstner bit for drilling the flat bottom hole in the FB for the dot. Is there a tool for cutting the dots themselves?

Depending on the size you need you could use a plug cutter and then slice your dots off from there...you'd have to do several plugs and use the slices in order because the plugs will be tapered...the difference between top and bottom diameter on a single slice is not that great, but from top to bottom over the entire plug would be...here's a link to the tool of which I speak...

Plug cutter

_________________
http://www.presnallguitars.com

Has anyone ever used the core bits you can get from the jewelry supply places.It looks like they might work well for cutting dots. They come in teeny tiny size and up. They're not that expensive.Around $5-$8. I may buy one and give it a try.Jimmie D38920.5312847222

I use a 6mm Veritas plug cutter it works a charm, this is one I am working on at the moment.

I think somebody here may have mentioned it, but to inlay the small dots on the side of a fret board, they took a piece of the material (not sure what) and sharpened it in a pencil sharpener. Then they drilled the hole for the inlay and pushed the pencil tip into the glue-filled hole, and just cut of the material above the fretboard. I wish I had more detail about what the material was and where to get it. It may even have been a piece of maple for the side inlay dots. I can't remember.

John

We had a discussion on this recently. Here is the link.

_________________
Don Atwood
Arlington, VA

John I did exactly what your talking about with some left over Maple I had.I learned this from Robbie O`briens video.The Maple actually turned a bit rosy colored when sanded inlaid in a rosewood neck,for side dots.Kind of nice.
                          James W b

_________________
James W Bolan
Nashville Tennessee

[QUOTE=RussellR] I use a 6mm Veritas plug cutter it works a charm, this is one I am working on at the moment.

[/QUOTE]

Details please Russell. Walnut/rosewood?

Colin

_________________
I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

Hi Colin

The Center Ring is Walnut, with Madrose and spruce dots, and Madrose around the outside.

This is for guitar I was after the Madrose Binding for, the body of it will be Walnut, the Top is Lutz Spruce.

[QUOTE=RussellR] Hi Colin

The Center Ring is Walnut, with Madrose and spruce dots, and Madrose around the outside.

This is for guitar I was after the Madrose Binding for, the body of it will be Walnut, the Top is Lutz Spruce.[/QUOTE]

Thought so, looks really nice.

The bindings are packed and will be in the post Monday. I'm starting to look very closely at the London Plane bindings again, Yesterday when I was sorting my bindings out, both Penny and my sister, (women see in 64 million colours men only in 16 right?) both liked that combo, so it is now down to the madrose and the London plane. The London plane appeals to me as then the only non-native wood will be the Swiss top, which has been in the UK for nigh on a hundred years so is nearly English. Both look fine as they all come from the same pallet. Decisions, decisions!

Colin

_________________
I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

Colin

Thank you.

If you need any London Plane for End Grafts or Headstock Veneers etc. Let me know.

Russ

Thanks Russell, my plan at the moment is to use some of the walnut as the end graft, I tend to like using the same wood as the sides rather than the same as the binding, just with the grain orientated vertically (it's such nice, stripey, figured walnut ) I'll keep your kind offer in mind though as I'm just as likely to change my ideas at the last moment.

Colin

_________________
I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.