How to do little bits of veneer in inlay work?

[Darren Null]

I'm playing with some 0.6mm burl walnut and birdseye maple (for contrast) and I want the ability to do fine inlay work. My first attempt (Blue Nude #1 by Monet) was a write-off...the veneer moved, curled and generally didn't behave. I was trying to get 100% coverage with the contrasting woods on an acrylic disc, which probably didn't help. And using wood glue.

Are there any methods to get little bits of veneer to cooperate? I used little springy clamps, but to little effect. I'm too embarrassed to post the picture.

[Dewey Torres]

I read this and I can't figure out exactly what you are trying to do. The pic would help but are you trying to finish or do marquetry or inlay

Dewey

[Darren Null]

Of the two, marquetry would be closest. I was trying to assemble a picture using laser-cut veneer on a piece of acrylic that was left over from something else.

Inlay would be easier, I presume, because I could laser a little nest for the veneer to sit in.

I just wondered if there are any tips and tricks from the masters to get tiny pieces of veneer to cooperate at the sticking in place stage.

EDIT: It was a bit of a sacrificial project anyway...I wanted the picture so I could attempt my first shellac covering. Nevertheless, the veneer going all over te place was a bit disappointing.

[Lee DeRaud]

Traditional marquetry mostly uses "glue as you go" for small pieces: glue the big chunks down first, then cut holes for the small bits. But for "laser marquetry" where you start with a big jigsaw-puzzle pile of precut pieces, peel-and-stick veneer is the best (only?) way I've found to make it work on small-scale stuff.

Plan B is to assemble the whole thing upside down on transfer tape and then glue it all at once.

And the right glue helps too: I have absolutely no idea what to use for veneer onto acrylic, but I suspect (as you discovered) PVA wood glue is definitely not the right answer.

[Darren Null]

Plan B! That's brilliant! I knew it would be something obvious, but I just couldn't think of it. Thanks. And the tape will minimise glue squidging up to the top.

You're right about the glue too. For proper projects, I'll mostly be doing wood-->wood, but for this experiment, I just used whatever I had kicking round, which in this case was acrylic discs I had left over from something else....get the technique down on something I can afford to lose. PVA is not optimal, but it's cheap, dries clear and I had some to hand.

[Steve Schoene]

If you are really headed toward doing this on wood, then hot hide glue is your best choice. Very rapid tack, shrinks into place as the glue dries, and takes stain and finish better than PVA. It is quite common to glue the inlay pattern good side down to paper. Then the completed inlay can be outlined for recessing into the wood. The recess should be less deep than the veneer is thick, so you can sand/plane the veneer flush to the wood into which it is inlaid.

[Darren Null]

Thanks for the advice.