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I’m (very slowly) building my first kit and I know that I am probably not doing things in the order that others would do but it works for me and I am almost ready to do some inlay on my peghead and would really appreciate some advice.

I have my “Logo” (my surname) cut out of Mother Of Pearl and I was wondering how to ensure that I accurately cut/rout the area beneath the mother of pearl in order that it will fit exactly into my peghead. I have already installed MOP diamonds in my fretboard so I understand the principle involved but they were straightforward in comparison to my “logo” which has curly edges and fine tails etc. (Serifs?)

I’m not confident that I could hold the logo in place and precisely draw around the outline, like a stencil and I now can’t find the specific article I believe I once found on the matter but I seem to recall discovering that it is not uncommon for some luthiers to lightly glue the MOP in position and then spray a primer paint over it and part of the peghead so that when the Logo is removed, the area to be cut out is clearly visible beneath it.

Sanding afterwards is meant to remove the residue of the primer. Have I got that right? And if so, does it matter what kind of primer I use?

Many thanks
Jim

I have never used primer. I lightly glue down the MOB and just trace around with a .5 mm pencil lead (in a mechanical pencil). The pencil lead flashes brightly with a desk lamp angled on it just the right way. When routing if you can not clearly see the line stop. Never rout where you think the line is. I know that sounds obvious but …

also I personally have found that routing to a line is easier than routing out a negative space. I am not sure why this is the case for me.

Of course I like using ebony for my head stock veneer because you can hide any mistake.

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_q ... bluescreek
here is a video lesson to help

Another technique is to lightly glue the logo in place, trace around it with a #11 exacto knife (which cuts the wood fibers as well and aids in routing a clean line), then color over it in chalk, wipe the excess away and the remainder will stay in the line you just cut giving you a clearly visible line to rout to.

I use a scrollsaw technique and make an actual size copy of the logo on a scanner with and print it on regular copy paper. Mark 2 of the tuner holes for registration on the copy and faceplate. Spray the front of the faceplate and back of the paper with high strength contact adhesive (3M 90 is what I use), register the copy with the tuner hole locations and stick it together. (you get one chance so be precise) Allow to dry. Rout out the location for the logo, install the inlay and fill any edge divots. Remove the remaining paper pattern with mineral spirits, flush sand and fill any remaining divots. I use thick black CA.

I have glued on a paper pattern, and have traced with both pencil and razor. I find tracin with the razor to be the most difficult, but with the best results. Sometimes, the paper pattern has peeled across the paper layer, obliterating the line I was trying to follow, and therefore useless.

I have heard of a great little trick (maybe from Frank Ford's site?) for keeping sawdust out of your way: Tape a little "flag" around your bit, up out of the way of the cutting area. As the bit spins, the flag blows the dust out of your way. Simple, stoopid, and very effective.

Many thanks to all of you for your advice which has given me food for thought. It's interesting to see that there are several ways to approach it.

I'm just building up my confidence to get stuck into it.

Thanks again,

Jim

John P., how do you lightly glue the inlay in place so that you can easily remove it later? I have 3M 77 spray adhesive if that would work ok. I have a Cocobolo headstock on my current build so I have to be careful what I use to remove any residual glue as it can make the color in the cocobolo bleed.

Darryl Young wrote:John P., how do you lightly glue the inlay in place so that you can easily remove it later? I have 3M 77 spray adhesive if that would work ok. I have a Cocobolo headstock on my current build so I have to be careful what I use to remove any residual glue as it can make the color in the cocobolo bleed.

I use a dab of white glue. I hold it on ong enough to get a good tack about 1 minute or 2. I wait 10 minutes, trace and then use a razor blade to carefully pop it off. The glue never really cures.

For the life of me I can not hold an inlay in place and get around it without moving thus the glue. The 3M stuff might work, it is really sticky and I find it hard to get it right where I want it. I really only use a dab of glue in the meat of the inlay.

Thanks John, good tip.