Mother of Pearl Inlay #3: Steps 6,7,8 and 9

HOW TO CUT AND INLAY MOTHER OF PEARL—Part three

.
.

Two good books about mother-of-pearl inlay:

“Pearl Inlay: An Instruction Manual for Inlaying
Abalone and Mother-of-Pearl” by James E. Patterson

.
. “The Art of Inlay” by Larry Robinson

.
.

A small hand clamp and strong reading glasses (x2.5) are additions to my pearl-cutting arsenal. I recommend them to anyone for whom close viewing and tight gripping are a challenge.

.
.

Step 5: Clean up your work area

Sweep the floor in the immediate area in which you will be working. At the end of each cut, pearl has a tendency to “snap,” and the precious piece you have been cutting so carefully flies into the air and bounces on the floor. Finding a tiny piece of pearl on a floor cluttered with woodworking debris is a challenge. Here I am searching for “the one that got away.”

.
.

Step 6: The blade:

Pearl is cut on the down stroke, so install the blade in the jeweler’s saw teeth down.

Tighten it so the blade deflects about a 1/32”. Three things will cause the blade to break prematurely: overheating caused by cutting too fast, twisting the blade in a cut and forcing the cut. Beeswax helps in lubricating the blade and reducing overheating. As with any saw, let the blade do the cutting; don’t force it. Replace a blade if it seems to stick during cutting. It might have a bad tooth.
.
.

Step 7: Starting a cut

Beginning a cut is tricky. It is easiest to guide the initial cut by aligning it with the side of bird-beak cutout until the teeth engage.

.
.

Step 8: Cutting

Hold down the pearl firmly with your fingers or a clamp. The most critical part of cutting pearl is holding the saw at a 90-degree angle. A cut made off vertical creates an angle on the edge, which equates to a gap in an inlay.
.

Hold pearl with your fingers or a clamp or both.

.
.
When cutting a curve, let the blade follow the line as you would when cutting with a bandsaw. Don’t twist the blade into the curve. This usually takes a little practice.

.
.
As often as possible, keep the pearl well supported on the board part of your cutting platform. If your piece snaps in two, I’ll whisper a secret in your ear: That’s what God made super glue for.

.
.
When approaching the end of a cut, tilt the saw forward to avoid chipping on the top of the piece.

.
.
To hold the piece that often flies away, move a finger over to hold it down just as you are ending the cut.

.
.
After cutting and removing the pattern with a bit of water, you will come away with a piece of pearl that looks like this:

.
.
If need be, file or sand any poorly cut edges. Practice increases proficiency, so don’t fret if your first piece isn’t what you expected. Sandpaper (120-180 grit) glued to a stick or a dowel can replace a miniature file for touching up poorly cut edges.

.
.
As you cut each piece, glue it onto a copy of the original pattern with the Elmer’s glue stick. Don’t use super glue for this step.

.
.

Step 9: What to do with the cut pieces

When finished, cut off the excess paper around the design and press a piece of clear packaging tape onto the pearl.

.
.
Float this in a plate of shallow water for about a minute until the water has soaked through the paper.

.
.
Carefully remove the pattern.

.
.
Your pattern pieces are now stuck to a piece of clear packaging tape.

Set this aside and allow it to dry.

Next, we will take this to a piece of wood and start the inlaying process.

-- Autumn