how do you make flush fitting inlay rings?

Tano · Post by **Tano** » Sun Apr 30, 2006 9:24 pm

Although I have completed six pipes since March of last year, the whole process so far has been one of complete experimentation. Now, I would like to make some pipes with inlays. I'm having a problem cutting them so that when they are glued together they will fit flush with each other. I have a wood lathe, 3/8" spindle gouge, 1/16" parting tool and I'm turning those small pen blanks. I've also bought delrin in 5/16, 3/8 and 7/16.
Is there any help for me, or do I have to put the whole thing off 'till I get enough money to buy a metal lathe.
Thanks to all in advance...Tano

StephenDownie · Post by **StephenDownie** » Sun Apr 30, 2006 10:04 pm

It can be done, but expect to spend a lot of time sitting and sanding. First off get a lapping plate or a piece of flat glass. You'll use this to put your sandpaper on and sand a flat surface on your inlay pieces. Using a Delrin sleeve for the shank or tenon for the stem will actually help in the process. Here's how I've got some good results before I bought my metalworking lathe:
1Cut your inlay pieces as well as you can and sand them flush with the glass plate.
2 Drill out your inlay for the Delrin insert.
3 Insert the Delrin in the inlay pieces and check the fit.
4 If the fit needs work get out your sandpaper (320 is a good place to start) and a drill bit that is the same diameter as the Delrin. A brad point works best here.
5 Make a hole in the sandpaper with your drill bit and sandwich it beteween your inlay pieces. Having a surface that you can trust as being faced 90 degrees to the Delrin really helps here. Put the smooth side against this surface.
6 Rotate the sandpaper, remove, check the fit and repeat as needed.

Note: Due to the fact that the sandpaper moves faster on the outside of the inlay you will get a kind of coning effect over time. When you see this happening take the piece and sand it flush again on the glass plate. Once you see the fit getting better graduate to finer sandpaper for a better fit. This technique also works if you have problems with the fit of the stem and face of the shank.

bvartist · Post by **bvartist** » Sun Apr 30, 2006 11:48 pm

Tano,

Here's the procedure I use, so far I haven't had any problems with the inlays not fitting flush.

Chuck your piece of rod stock in the lathe and face off the end with a good quality forstner bit. That will give you a flat surface to glue on the inlay piece. Next, chuck a piece of the material you want for the inlay in your lathe and face it with the forstner bit. Cut off a length of inlay material a little longer than what your finished size will be (I usually go about 1/8" longer). You can cut the inlay piece off either with the parting tool on the lathe or a saw off the lathe. Epoxy together the rod stock and inlay material making sure you glue together the faces of the rod and inlay you faced off with the forstner. When the epoxy cures, chuck the rod/inlay assembly in your lathe(inlay will be toward the tailstock) face off again with the forstner bit, cutting to the length you want on the inlay, then drill a mortise the size you need for your delrin tenon through the inlay material and approx 3/8" into the rod stock. At this point you can either finish drilling the airway, then epoxy in the derin tenon, or epoxy the delrin then drill the airway. I find it easier to drill the airway first. This method should give you a delrin tenon perfectly perpendicular to the face of the inlay. Hope that makes sense????? 8O

Just be sure your forstner bit leaves a perfectly flat surface, it needs to be precision ground.

David

Tano · Post by **Tano** » Mon May 01, 2006 1:54 pm

David,

So what you're saying is that, the inlay and stem rod are glued together then insert delrin and shape stem. Voila!! Seems fairly simple, all one has to worry about is flush fit two sides.
What about the makers that use several rings, alternating in color or width? That definetly would need a metal lathe woulnd't it?
Here is what Ive done so far. To keep it simple I wanted to inlay one ring.
I faced the two sides with forstner bit drilled hole to inserted delrin with enough length to fit in the briar mortise, then glued everything together, when glue is dry I drilled the correct size hole to fit a a pre made stem. Now I would like to try multi rings.

Thanks again.
Tano

Post by **KurtHuhn** » Mon May 01, 2006 3:19 pm

What I do is take a piece of rod stock, insert an extra long delrin tenon so that I have enough sticking out after it's epoxied in to hold all the rings and have enough for the tenon. Then I drill holes in my material and slide those bits onto the delrin, epoxying each piece to the one previous. I like to use finish planed wood from woodcraft for this, but it can be done with pen blanks as well. Just use a 1/16" cutoff tool and a steady hand - you'll need a good eye to keep the cut straight.

Once it's all put together, I insert the tenon into a drill press gauge, and clamp it tight so that I know the face of the last ring is perfectly perpendicular to the tenon.

bvartist · Post by **bvartist** » Mon May 01, 2006 4:46 pm

Tano wrote:David,

So what you're saying is that, the inlay and stem rod are glued together then insert delrin and shape stem. Voila!! Seems fairly simple, all one has to worry about is flush fit two sides.

Actually I worry about flush fit on 3 sides! The stem material, and both sides of the inlay!

What about the makers that use several rings, alternating in color or width? That definetly would need a metal lathe woulnd't it?

What I do on multiple rings is similar to the procedure for a single ring except I face off an end of the inlay material then cut off the length I want with a parting tool, I do that for every band I want. I cut the band on the end of the inlay that will be against the shank of the stummel slightly longer than I need then I glue the bands together making sure I orient them so I have a "faced" side that will be glued to the faced end of the rod stock. After the bands dry, I glue the assembly onto the rod stock making sure the band I cut longer isn't glued to the rod stock. After that dries, I face the band on the end to proper length then drill the mortise for the delrin tenon.

I do a couple more steps than Kurt does (he's better than me

has more experience and better tools!) The reason I do mine this way is if your bands aren't perfectly flat and square, you can end up with an inlay that isn't perpendicular to the delrin tenon. By facing and drilling the assembly in one operation after the bands are glued to the rod stock, I can eliminate any small irregularities in cutting the bands and the tenon will be perpendicular. Hope that makes sense!

David

Tano · Post by **Tano** » Mon May 01, 2006 8:39 pm

David
There is another pipemaker that glues the rings around a delrin rod, leaves about a 1/2 " then glues that 1/2" into the stumell then redrils the delrin with a smaller diameter to fit a delrin tenon stem.
Do you think that your aproach would also work this way, because I use a premade stems to fit it into the delrin mortise? I don't see a problem with one ring, but to have several rings already with holes in them and then fit them onto a delrin is where my problem lies. Does this make sense?

Tano

bvartist · Post by **bvartist** » Mon May 01, 2006 11:23 pm

Tano wrote:David
There is another pipemaker that glues the rings around a delrin rod, leaves about a 1/2 " then glues that 1/2" into the stumell then redrils the delrin with a smaller diameter to fit a delrin tenon stem.
Do you think that your aproach would also work this way, because I use a premade stems to fit it into the delrin mortise? I don't see a problem with one ring, but to have several rings already with holes in them and then fit them onto a delrin is where my problem lies. Does this make sense?

Tano

I think maybe I've got it. Or maybe not. 8O So you'd be using the inlay rings as a shank extension with a delrin rod in the middle, glued into the stummel? Or am I off on that one? My procedure should work just do the same procedure epoxying the trim rings onto the stummel, drill for the delrin rod and epoxy it in place, face the trim rings and delrin with the forstner bit, then drill the mortise in the delrin. I've never tried it that way but should (in theory) work ok.

David

Tano · Post by **Tano** » Mon May 01, 2006 11:33 pm

That's it! So it should work. Thanks.

bvartist · Post by **bvartist** » Tue May 02, 2006 7:59 am

Let us know how it works!

Tano · Post by **Tano** » Sat May 06, 2006 11:04 pm

Hi All,
The first attempt at inlays was a success, I want to thank all who contributed. I just wish I could show you the results, but I don't have a clue how to do it.
Tano.