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Short Summary
Main recommendation: Add thin inlay strips to woodworking projects by cutting a shallow groove, ripping matching inlay strips on a table saw, then gluing and sanding them flush. Keep the inlay restrained, use contrasting woods like dark inlay on light wood, and favor thin strips over wide ones.
Key Points
- Restraint matters: a thin strip around a tabletop edge or box lid is a classic look, while inlay on every part of a project can look tacky.
- Use contrasting woods, such as maple and walnut, and prefer dark inlay on light wood over light inlay on dark wood.
- Thin inlay generally looks better than wide strips, which the speaker compares to furniture pinstriping.
- These aesthetic rules are general, and the speaker encourages experimenting and breaking them.
- Making your own inlay is presented as an easy way to feature exotic lumber without buying much of it.
Details Worth Noting
Concrete instructions:
- Cut the groove first: use a table saw or router to cut a fairly shallow groove, about 1/8 inch (about 3 mm) deep. Dado blades or several passes with one blade can widen it. For a thin pinstripe, use just the saw blade's kerf. On the router, the speaker used a 1/4-inch straight bit, the smallest he had.
- Rip the inlay strips on a table saw, using a zero-clearance insert plate so the wood does not drop into the saw, and test with a scrap board.
- Method one (resaw): set the rip fence for the strip width first, then resaw the good board on its edge, partway through, by raising the blade about half the board's width. Use a feather board for pressure and two push sticks to push the board through. Flip the board on a second pass if the strips are narrow to double the output. The speaker resaws partway because it gives more control in the next step.
- Cut strips to final thickness slightly thicker than the groove: use a stop block and feather board, moving the fence in for each cut. Make the first cut a test, aiming for the strip to sit slightly proud of the workpiece so it can be sanded flush. Batch cutting is practical with longer boards.
- Method two (thickness first): rip thin strips off the board's edge, using a stop block on the far side and moving the fence in each cut, which avoids unsupported thin offcuts.
- Keep thin strips from chattering or flipping back by applying pressure on both sides, such as a thin extension leg on a gripper or a 2x4. If the fence does not sit flush with the table, clamp an extra board to the fence to stop pieces sliding under it.
- Install: squeeze glue into the grooves and press the strips in. Clamping is usually unnecessary; use painter's tape for loose spots.
- Sand before the glue dries so the sanding dust mixed with glue fills small gaps. Finish with a little spray lacquer.
- Additional context: thinner strips yield more pieces from a board, which is more economical when using expensive wood. Very wide strips are easier to make by resawing on a bandsaw rather than a table saw.
Bottom Line
Custom inlay is an accessible way to add refined detail to a project, so start with thin, contrasting strips in a restrained spot and build from there.
