Federal Neanderthal Techniques

[Dan Sheehan]

I'm working on a simple writing desk and hope to use this as an opportunity to learn some skills. Basically I want to use my joinery skills from Shaker style work and learn some Federal ornamentation techniques.

So, having never used veneers or inlays, I wonder if it can be done with handtools only. I guess so, but am intimidated by the tight limits and thin veneers.

Any resources like books, dvds, or online postings/ tutorials would be greatly appreciated. I'm sure I'll have to tool up too, so any recommendations in this regard will also be welcome.

I'm just looking to do something nice with this opportunity and know you folks can point me in the right direction.

Thanks for your help.

[Jim Koepke]

Lie-Nielsen has some great DVDs with Steve Latta on doing inlay.

They have quite a library of DVDs available.

I have the inlay DVDs and find them informative.

jtk

[Pam Niedermayer]

Latta's dvd's are great; but you may want to take a look at his visits to the Woodwright's Shop before buying.

Pam

[george wilson]

I'd hardly want to do inlay other than by hand. For the ovals and other inlays,and for routing lines for inlay bandings in,a hand (not electric) router is a great,pretty indispensable tool. I make mine using 1/8" square W1 for the small blades. The annealed W1 is easily filed to narrow widths,hardened and tempered with just a Mapp gas torch.

I have a customer who does inlay work. Over the years he has asked me to make several cutters for him,down to 1/32" wide. I haven't seen his work,but I believe it is Federal style.

[lowell holmes]

http://www.homesteadheritage.com/gallery.html

Check the attached link. After the site comes up, select Gallery>Furniture.

The craftsman is Frank Strazza, an instructor at the school. The furniture on the page is his work. His work is almost all hand tool work, including the Federal Desk. The desk is mesquite veneers and inlays over mesquite boards.

If you are close to Waco Texas, they have a one day class on inlays and stringing with hand tools.

Frank often participates in Lie Nielsen events.

[greg Forster]

These cutters are set at 90 degrees - working as scrapers?

[John A. Scott]

Dan-
I just finished a "Decorative Details" class taught by Steve Latta at Marc Adams' school. If you have the opportunity to take his class, I highly recommend it. If not, his DVD's clearly explain his techniques and hand tools and will quickly bring you up to speed.

@Greg: Latta's cutter's are set at 90 degrees but are ground like a crosscut saw without any set, so they actually cut rather than scrape. He covers this in his DVD's.

[Mike Siemsen]

This guy cuts through most of the bs and keeps it cost effective.
http://www.youtube.com/user/BazCabinetMaker

[John A. Scott]

This guy cuts through most of the bs and keeps it cost effective.
http://www.youtube.com/user/BazCabinetMaker

All of Latta's tools can be made with wood scraps and bits of a discarded card scraper. You don't have to shell out the cash for the L-N tools. Can't be any more "cost effective" than that. Don't know about the "bs" to which you refer.

[Jim Matthews]

Thank you for this link.

I found myself laughing, out loud, at how simple this process can be.

I had never put the technique together with the tools I already own.

Brilliant, cheap and effective - would that I were any of the three!

jim
wpt, ma

[george wilson]

The cutters are at 90º,but their ends on the larger sizes are bent forwards so they plane the wood away. On very small sizes,I just take a round needle file,and make a concave surface just above the cutting edge,so that the concave surface forms the bevel of the cutter,and it planes the wood. You can't sharpen the tiny cutters many times,but they seldom get dull,as they are used for limited work areas. When I need a new one,I just make it and harden it from 1/8" square W1,or 01.