Diamond Plate W.I.P

[powderpost]

A little while back, I shared the story of my mil and the plant pot saucer saga. There was some interest in a wip, so here goes.
This is a good opportunity to use some of those pieces, "To good to throw away".
The first step is to select a series of different coloured timbers. For this job, I have a mixture of red cedar, ash and northern silky oak. The pieces are 25mm x 12mm and 780mm long, 6 strips in all. I have chosen to insert a strip of walnut veneer between the strips for accent. The seventh strip is simply a caul, because a strip of veneer is added to the last strip. The "plank" will be cut into three pieces and joined to make a piece 210mm wide x 260 long . This is the reason for the out board veneer.
Pic 1 shows the assembly glued up.
Pic 2 shows the "plank"
Pic 3 The plank is now cut into three pieces and glued up and being cut again. I have chosen to cut at 60 degrees to get a diamond effect, but any angle will work.
Pic 4 Shows one option. The cut pieces are re assembled and every second piece turned over 180 degrees. This way will work even if the strips are different widths. In fact it does add a bit more interest.
Pic 6 shows the same thing but this time the cut strips are moved forward one section to form a "toothed" pattern. This does not work with unequal strips.
Pic 5 Shows the diagonal cut strips glued up, again with a piece of veneer between the cut timber strips.

The assembly is still in the cramps, so the next instalment will be tomorrow.
Jim

[Ad de Crom]

Wow Jim, promised a lot.
Really a work for a woodturner with a lot of patience.
Waiting to see the finished plate.
Ad :2tsup:

[jchappo]

I wait with bated breath :2tsup:
Your angle cutting sled looks interesting too :)

[Sawdust Maker]

Interesting thread thanks for posting this

I thought your cross cut sled looked interesting a well
can we have a couple of detailed piccies of it as well. please?

[wheelinround]

I was browsing this morning and came across another web site with a fellow's name Jim L /something or other a European name with excellent work in a web gallery. I never gave it a thought, didn't save the site one or two pieces looked simialr to our Jim's PP's.

Jim love your WiP's I just wish i could get cracking :;

[powderpost]

Ok, the glue has dried and it is time to get fair dinkum.
Pic 1 The disc cut from the "plank", ready to mount in the longworth chuck. I prefer the Longworth chuck because there is no need for screws in a blank only 22mm thick.
Pic 2 The bottom cleaned up. A ring of black walnut is glued to a waste block screwed to a face plate, ready to glue to the bottom of the plate for a foot. When the glue is dry the job will be removed from the Longworth chuck, turned around and fitted to the head stock.
Pic 4 The edge of the plate is now cleaned up. A ring of walnut is fitted to the plate to finish it off.
Pic 5 Shows the top surface cleaned up and sanded and ready to polish.
Pic 6 The plate has been reversed chucked to finish off the bottom and foot ring ready for polishing.
Pic 7 The bottom of the finished plate
Pic 8 The finished plate
This is one of the easiest laminating projects and good for some of those left over pieces. This one was started after lunch yesterday and finished today just before lunch. The time wasting part is waiting for glue to dry.
Thats the project, simple really. Time for questions.

If needed, tomorrow, I can take some photos of the sled and add some information about it.

Jim

[hughie]

If needed, tomorrow, I can take some photos of the sled and add some information about it

Jim,

Great work, would appreciate the info, especially what type of saw do you use?

[brendan stemp]

Fantastic sequence of pics, thanks for taking the time to share it with us pp. I've done very little of this style of work so I have found it interesting to see how you have done it. Looking forward to the sled pics.

[jefferson]

Jim, great thread! :2tsup: And thanks for sharing.

First question:

- do you need to use woods that roughly move at the same rate?

Second, if so, where do you find the details for each timber?

Third, do you moisture test before gluing? (I suspect not, given you are using scrap that has been sitting around for a while).

Thanks in advance.

[jchappo]

Thanks Jim, very nice.
At step 4, is the walnut ring glued to the bottom face of the plate, or is it turned to fit around the ring?
I would love to see pics of the sled :)

[powderpost]

Thanks everyone for the complimentary remarks.
Hughie, my saw bench will take a 300mm saw blade, but for this type of work I prefer to use a 250mm blade. The saw blade is a Ghudo, 60 teeth with 10 degree hook. I keep this blade sharp and dedicated to laminating.
Jeff, no I am not all that fussy about the species, I will even mix hard woods and soft wood to get the effect I am looking for. Colour is more important for laminating, and no, I don't test for moisture content, I only use timbers that have been around for a while.

[Ad de Crom]

Jim, fantastic!!
And a lot of fun too, to consume on this way scraps of wood.
As being a maker of my own tools, is it possible to see a picture of the sled.
Ad :2tsup:

[powderpost]

The sled seems to have created a bit of interest, so here are some details.

Before I go any further, the saw guard needs to be removed for this operation. It is possible to manufacture a guard to fit, but that is the responsibility of the operator. You have been warned. :oo:
On a more pleasant note, we shall continue. The sled base is a sheet of 12mm exterior ply about the same size as the saw bench top. Exterior grade is more durable. The "front" board is a piece of 100 x 50. The piece cut out of the bottom edge on the right hand side is to allow a longish piece to be cut at an angle. The movable fences are made from Quila, but any hardwood will do. I have access to a milling machine to cut the various grooves and slots. You can get around this by laminating the fences with a 6mm piece glued between two pieces of 19 x 19. All the fixings are 6mm tank bolts and they screw into "T" nuts fitted from underneath. The "heads" of the "T" nuts are left proud of the base and makes it very easy to push the sled. I haven't included any sizes, because it will depend on the dimensions of the saw bench that it is made for.

Pic 1 Shows the general layout. The timber is fed from the left. The fence on the left is adjusted to the required angle. The fence on the right is set against the cut end, for the required length after the first cut is made. That makes sure the fence is perfectly parallel to the saw blade. For this sort of work accuracy is paramount.

126900

Pic 2 shows the hold down. This is very necessary to prevent the cut off piece does not flop around between the saw and the fence, I think you would agree that might be a little hairy, it also keeps fingers out of the way. I have since taking the photos, fitted a second hold down to the fence on the left hand side of the saw blade.

126901

Pic 3 Here you can see the holes for the fence and hold down. As a guide to dimensions, the holes are 175mm from the saw and 60mm in line apart.

126902

Pic 4 Here you can see the movable angle fence. It is about 175mm long.

126903

Pic 5 Shows the holes for the angle fence. These are located as needed. Use the length of the angle fence as a guide for dimensions.

126904

Pic 6 You can see the construction details here. the curved recesses in the fence were done by boring a hole with a hole saw on both sides and opening out the hole at 45 degrees by hand. The slot in the pieces with the bolts were cut on the band saw.

126906

Pic 7 shows the detail for the hold down.

126907

Pic 8 show the under side. The two sliders MUST fit accurately. Any side ways slop will cause serious inaccuracies.

126905

After the sled is completed, fit it to the saw bench and make that first cut

Again I must emphasize careless use will result digit modification.

If you need more information, just holler.
Jim

[RETIRED]

If you need more information, just holler.YELL, YELL. Piccys would be good.:wink::D

[Sawdust Maker]

YELL, YELL. Piccys would be good.:wink::D

ditto :D

[DJ’s Timber]

There you go Jim, I have merged your posts and hopefully I've got the pictures in the right order :H

[jchappo]

Fantastic!:2tsup:
Thanks Jim for a very well presented photo essay.
I already have a jig for cutting 12 sided rings, but your jig is much more versatile.

[powderpost]

Thanks D.J. you are a gentleman and a scholar. Not only that, you handle these computers better than I can. :- :) And you they are in the right order too.
Jim