Going To Try

[JTTHECLOCKMAN]

Well this is the year I am going to give it a try. I have never done an intarsia project so I am in deep waters here. Hopefully I can get some needed help here. I see some talented intarsia people here and have read some of the posts already. I have some basic questions to get started. I am taking on a mid sized project and have not gotten all my woods together yet but will come in time. First question is how it is done. Do you cut each piece individually and then sand the edges to try to match the cut of the piece that this one butts against or do you cut them side by side??? My other problem is I have a 2 dimentioned mind and have a hard time visualizing 3D so making pieces stand out will be a challenge. How do I know when I need to place shims under pieces or to sand other thinner??? Is there any hard fast rules??? Are all pieces rounded over on the edges no matter what size??? What size and what kind of backerboard is used????

[wdkits1]

Hi John-- glad to hear that you are taking the plunge into the wonderful world of intarsia. Everyone that does it develops their own techniques so there really isn't and right or wrong way to do it. I have been creating intarsia since 93 and the system that I use works well for me. To give you a better idea of what is involved visit my blog on lumberjocks (6 parts). Good luck and keep us up to date with pics of your progress.

http://lumberjocks.com/wdkits1/blog/8224

[Clayton717]

Hi John. I;m glad to hear your going to try intarsia too. I wasn't sure if it would be something for me when I sarted, now intarsia is what I enjoy doing the most. Like Mike said each person has his own techniques. I started by folowing others advice, now I have came up with a way that works for me. After you have done a couple it will become easier for you.

I purchase the patterns I use, so I usually follow them as far as raising and lowering pieces. Most patterns I have bought show this, otherwise its up to your judgement. If there are a couple pieces with the grain going the same direction and the same type of wood I will cut the side by side so they fit together perfecly, otherwise one at a time and sand to fit.

I normally use 1/4" mdf or tempered hardboard for my backers, sometimes 1/4" plywood. Shapig is all up to you, some patterns give details but mostly its up to you. I try to shape to lok as real as I can. No matter how many of the same piece you make they will never be identical. We are here if you need help, just don't give up.

[amazingkevin]

Try to find out what tools are needed and what to watch out for .It's really fun to do a but start with one that has as few a pieces as possiable because there's a lot of keeping track of them and where they go .just like putting a puzzle together .Which you have to do many times over as you progress thru the project.

[heppnerguy]

several years ago, I saw my first intarsia piece and I could not believe my eyes. I just thought, " I wish that I could do that. I tried several kinds of art in an effort to find something I might really like to do when I was retired. I enjoyed many things and really could not decide on anything for sure. I had tried the scroll saw but found it just jumped my wood all over the place. I remembered the intarsia I had seen years before. I got on line and started reading about how to do it. Since I did not like my experience with the scroll saw, I decided to use my band saw. I bought an 1/8 inch wide blade and went for it. One thing I understood from my other attempts to learn something new is that no matter how hard you try something new, you will not be a pro with your first attempt. I had to learn the hard way. My advice is to try something very simple and see how it goes. I drew my own simple 6 piece pattern and to my delight, discovered that I could do this. With more research, I discovered that I needed to use different scroll saw blades, so I purchased some other than what the big box stores sell and I was off and running.. Go slowly and keep it simple at first. after just a few pieces you will discover you are ready to challenge yourself a little. Have fun..don't try too advanced pieces as they may discourage you...research scroll saw and intarsia web sights read their helpful hints, ideas and advice. This is a good place to ask questions because everyone wants you to succeed and be a part of our group.

[Charise2012]

wow that is a fantastic tutorial, I've always wanted to do intarsia since I saw a really need peice as the cover to a Lee Valley catalogue. My biggest fears are what if my peices that I cut don't quite match each other, and the sanding/shaping parts, how do I know I've sanded enough or shapped enough. I have a few simple patterns that I've collected over the years and think I'm going to give it a try in the new year!

[spirithorse]

Hi, John T.,

As far as your question about when you have sanded or shaped enough, that is pretty much up to your own vision of the completed project.

The answer to your question about what if the the pieces don't quite fit depends a lot upon your skill level and learning tricks to help reduce the gaps.. My preference is to trace the edge of one piece onto the adjoining piece and cut it as perfectly as possible rather than trying to sand the edges to fit..

Miner gaps can be reduced by either re-tracing the edge and cutting on that line again OR just re-drawing and re-cutting the piece again to try for a better fit OR holding the pieces together while running the blade between the pieces which will cut the tight edges and slowling bringing the gaps together OR trying the sanding method to close the gaps.

Small gaps can be expected when you start out and you will probably be your own toughest critic. Just progress slowly, keep the blade as square as possible to the table so that there aren't any beveled edges to your pieces making the fit harder to accomplish, and enjoy yourself with the project.

Good luck and God Bless! Spirithorse

[amazingkevin]

These are excellant suggestions are i urge you you write them down and fully understand them.be sure and mark the underside of the project pieces so you know which side gets the bevel.The more pieces you need to keep track of you have to find short cuts to save time.Your going to be puting the pieces together many times through out the project.like the cutting phase,sanding,staining,clearing,and cleaning each piece.As you do more and more intarsia's the process gets easyer as you've been there done that.Everytime you do one process the puzzle does'nt look the same so it's frustrating to try and figure out what goes where on large projects.An english bull dog i did was 33" tall and over 50 pieces that drove me crazy.But when finished it was my pride and joy .I did not want to sell it but some one offerd me a dewalt for some of my intarsia's.No other trade would have gotten them,lucky both of us!He took me to his condo and showed me his collection and wowed me forever.Of course mine stood alone and he even put one of them at the front door as an intiser to what come next in his house.you'll do fine ,keep the faith of i can i will and you'll make a star of yourself!