epoxy resin for inlays?

[Dimitree]

I'm trying to recreate the inlays that Rickenbacker used..like those:

so I bought some mother of pearl flakes, like those:

now I'm wondering if I should pour epoxy resin on the inlays, or epoxy glue? as far as I know, epoxy resin should be crystal clear while epoxy glue could be a bit yellow.. But epoxy glue would stick better to the wood and not shrink, also maybe easier to polish?
another option could be CA glue, but that would require a lot of it
what do you think?
thanks!

 

[Freeman Keller]

What do the people who make the flakes suggest? There must be some instructions on the can. We have a couple of members doing similar inlay, maybe they will chime in. I have only done standard mother of pearl, for that both epoxy and CA can be used

 

[eallen]

I have done crushed pearl inlay with thick CA but for large areas I would use slow cure epoxy glue which is quite clear. Epoxy Resin which is just slowww cure epoxy glue will work as well but as you mentioned tends to shrink for some time.

I have done quite a bit of experimenting with dying mop flakes with good success. I found that by soaking it in a fairly light/medium tint of dye mixed in denatured alcohol it comes out quite well. Dark dye not some much. Blue green and charcoal grey turn out nice. It is best to warm the epoxy so it really soaks in between the flakes. For really small detail inlays the pearl really has to be crushed up quite small.

I have also played with mixing glow powder into with the dye or sprinkling on the inlay area. It is a bit tricky as white color of the glow powder can give the pearl a bit of milky appearance in light that isn't as nice, but oh so cool in the dark! The last pick is the daylight pick of the glow one above it. 50 micron glow powder glows the best with less used to wash it out.

Eric

 

[Jupiter]

I personally used casting resin, with no issues with shrinkage or adhesion, but I poured it "proud" and sanded it flush a while later. I also have made small sheets of it that I later cut/routed to fit into FB inlays and glued in w/ CA

 

[tomasz]

I'd support the approach of purring resin into sheets and cutting to size. Why make your life hard and risk working on the neck directly, if the shape is a straight one.

 

[Jupiter]

I'd support the approach of purring resin into sheets and cutting to size. Why make your life hard and risk working on the neck directly, if the shape is a straight one.

Yep that’s what I did for these:

 

[hopdybob]

not google is your friend but @Laren

The Cut Off / Scrap Wood Set Neck practice build

Hi guys. Just thought I'd create a thread for those interested. I've not built a set neck guitar before so I thought I'd give it a try to see how it's done, learn the pros and cons as it were. I'll be using a wrap around bridge so that I have to have a break angle on the neck. This doesn't...

www.tdpri.com

 

[metecem]

Definitely casting resin. It doesn't give a yellow tint as the epoxy glue does to begin with. It dries harder, can be polished up better. Just watch the instructions and pay attention to how it's supposed to be measured.

If you are going for white pearl, I'd paint the inlay pocket white first to make sure I won't have any dark shadows shining through the resin.

 

[tubedude]

Jewellers epoxy from Rio Grand. No shrinking, discoloration and holds like no other.

 

[SacDAve]

I used epoxy resin on a Ukulele, I painted white under the inlays first.

 

[schmee]

I'm trying to recreate the inlays that Rickenbacker used..like those:

View attachment 939219

so I bought some mother of pearl flakes, like those:

View attachment 939220

now I'm wondering if I should pour epoxy resin on the inlays, or epoxy glue? as far as I know, epoxy resin should be crystal clear while epoxy glue could be a bit yellow.. But epoxy glue would stick better to the wood and not shrink, also maybe easier to polish?
another option could be CA glue, but that would require a lot of it
what do you think?
thanks!

My only caution is that the resin gets bubbles in it which may not come out before it hardens up enough to leave them there. It sands hard, gummy and fills sandpaper in a flash. It's difficult to keep from sanding the surrounding wood lower as it sands much easier than Epoxy.
I have used it to fill dents in guitars though. Takes time and attention.

 

[Dimitree]

thank you everyone, I'm doing some test the next weekend and I will let you know

 

[Ripthorn]

I bought a small casting resin kit from the craft store a while back and it works fantastically well. Fewer bubbles and voids than regular epoxy, handles higher solids/powder content much better, etc.

 

[Greplington]

My only caution is that the resin gets bubbles in it which may not come out before it hardens up enough to leave them there. It sands hard, gummy and fills sandpaper in a flash. It's difficult to keep from sanding the surrounding wood lower as it sands much easier than Epoxy.
I have used it to fill dents in guitars though. Takes time and attention.

Use a small blowtorch and "fan" it over the surface as the bubbles form. It will thin the resin very slightly and allow them to come to the surface and pop.

 

[Slowtwitch]

Use a small blowtorch and "fan" it over the surface as the bubbles form. It will thin the resin very slightly and allow them to come to the surface and pop.

If you don't have a blowtorch, use a lighter or any high heat source. The rule is: the hotter the epoxy, the more viscous it is, the better it fills pockets and corners and gives bubbles/ air easier chance to surface.

Heat up the epoxy before you do the pour (I let the epoxy container sit in a tub of boiled water for a minute or so to heat up). And heating to wood into which you are pouring also helps, but not needed if the the epoxy is hot/ warm

Just watch, if you tint the epoxy, it may bleed into the gain lines of the wood when very viscous (think black dots on a maple fretboard with black line running past the dot). So first seal the cavity with sanding sealer

And as Jupiter said, pour it proud and sand flat when properly set

Epoxy doesn't shrink

 

[pshupe]

I'm trying to recreate the inlays that Rickenbacker used..like those:

View attachment 939219

so I bought some mother of pearl flakes, like those:

View attachment 939220

now I'm wondering if I should pour epoxy resin on the inlays, or epoxy glue? as far as I know, epoxy resin should be crystal clear while epoxy glue could be a bit yellow.. But epoxy glue would stick better to the wood and not shrink, also maybe easier to polish?
another option could be CA glue, but that would require a lot of it
what do you think?
thanks!

Go to the BeatGearCavern forum for anything Rickenbacker. I don't actually think they use pearl flakes it's more of a dust, which would be easier to pour.

Cheers Peter.

 

[Jim_in_PA]

The rule is: the hotter the epoxy, the more viscous it is, the better it fills pockets and corners and gives bubbles/ air easier chance to surface.

I believe you meant to say "less viscous" which would make things flow better and release air more readily.

 

[Slowtwitch]

I believe you meant to say "less viscous" which would make things flow better and release air more readily.

Always getting them mixed up, yes thx Jim

 

[Jim_in_PA]

Yea, kinda like the difference between Pepto Bismol and vodka. One flows much easier 'cause it's less viscous. (the same only likely tastes better, too, unless you have an upset stomach from having too much of the other...)