Inlace-help

[Ernie Kuhn]

Hi All,
Need some experienced help.
Have a birdseye maple box top with cracks. Some ragged, "chunky" depressions. Just received my first inlace kit. Need suggestions/do's/don'ts.
Anything peculiar or helpful not covered in the rather brief directions???
Ernie

[Barbara Gill]

I never have been able to do much with the inlace epoxy. For large voids I use the West System epoxy; it comes in pump cans so there is no guess about ratios. I do use the black inlace crystals for filling small voids. I fill the void with the crystals and then fill the space with thin CA glue. After it sets I use a med. thickness on the top.
With the West System I use dry coffee grounds as a filler and the black color agent to darken. If I want brown I just use the coffee. If I want a little sparkle, I use some key filings. They are mostly brass and give a real nice fill in mesquite. A little turquoise mixed with the black might be nice in some instances.

[Doug Shepard]

I'm not a turner but I used Inlace for the first time a couple of months ago on some flat stuff. The working time on it isn't real long. From the size of your voids I can see, I think you might want to plan on not trying to do it all at once. Otherwise you can mix up too much and have to pitch it when it hardens before you can use it. I was doing some very small scale detailed stuff with it and found even a full one of the small 1" cups to be more than what I could get applied before hardening. Filling your voids should probably go quicker than what I was doing but you'll still want time to work it in well so you don't end up with air pockets.
The stuff stinks to high heaven, so if you've got a respirator, wear it. Otherwise I'd rig up a fan to move the fumes away from you while you're applying it.

[John Hart]

I can't help Ernie....Too much of a greenhorn I'm afraid....But it shore is gorgeous!!

[Michael Stafford]

That is some pretty wood and you did a fine job with it, Ernie. I think Barbara has given you some good advice. Since those knotty places already have some dark brown/black discoloration using the coffee grounds and epoxy mix would blend right in.... I have used that method on a couple of pieces with great success. If you find some posts by Glenn Hodges he also has used that technique to great effect on some of his work. I find it to be fairly simple to do. Just be sure to poke the epoxy mixture with a toothpick before it cures to eliminate air bubbles. It seems to help...

[Carole Valentine]

Ernie, like others, I often use fine coffee grounds. Works great. A couple of times I have used walnut saw dust as well. Have not tried the inlace, though.

[Cecil Arnold]

I tried inlace and was not happy with it. I filled the rim of a bowl using inlace and the "rocks" and had way too many small bubbles in the finished product. While no one else seems able to see the bubbles, I can. I've not had that problem using WEST system and black epoxy coloring agent so I would agree with the others to try WEST and coffee.

[Ernie Kuhn]

Once again, you guys come through. You are all awesome!
Sounds like coffee grounds with a few choice additives along with CA or Epoxy is the answer.
Doug, I have and use a respirator, with vapor canisters which seem to filter out the stink or oil vapors of whatever I'm doing. Good suggestion since I've heard that the Inlace process really does stink.
I will post a couple of pics when the box/urn is finished.

This is part of a personal project and I really appreciate your help.