Woodinblack Posted October 2, 2021 Share Posted October 2, 2021 Sort of of topic I guess, but it is inlays in general! I have a chapman stick railboard, its basically a slab of aluminium, and it has a group of the long inlays, either painted or moulded in - not sure how it is supposed to be, but can be seen here: http://www.stick.com/instruments/railboard/inlays/rb_bronze_linear_close.jpg Anyway, when I got mine they just had small strips of gold (paper / leaf? not sure) that sort of but not quite fitted in the hole, like this: Never liked them that much but not an issue. At the bass bash one of them fell out. After getting home another one fell out. Not generally a problem as I didn't like them but the problem now is it turns out it is really hard to play without the fret markers as from the top it is just a series of frets with no contrast. So I want fret markers. I made a mould with wax, then a reverse mould with some hardening putty things, and then an inlay with some acrylic stuff with glitter in it, but turns out surprisingly that it looked a bit sub-par! The slots are 1.6mm deep, 6mm wide, 56mm long (incuding the 3mm radius at the end). How would anyone approach making an inlay for this? What is that normal stuff that people make inlays with? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Cribbin Posted October 2, 2021 Share Posted October 2, 2021 That job sounds perfect for a 3D printer, if you know anyone with one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodinblack Posted October 2, 2021 Author Share Posted October 2, 2021 Sadly not, but do they not just do rather flat plain plastic? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Cribbin Posted October 2, 2021 Share Posted October 2, 2021 7 minutes ago, Woodinblack said: Sadly not, but do they not just do rather flat plain plastic? Have to say I've never seen one in action in real life, but on TV some impressive complex items have been produced. If it was mine and I was in mad professor mode ... Cling film on the neck Mix a bit of car body filler - Push into rebate for marker and level with fret board. Carefully lift the cling film when set to remove the solid piece and lightly sand to level up. If you want the glitter effect, try adding some fairy dust from a craft supplier in the mix. Mad professor mode doesn't guarantee perfect results, so try at your own risk! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulThePlug Posted October 2, 2021 Share Posted October 2, 2021 (edited) A light fill with humbro enamal type paint... vast array of colours maybe applied with a pipette or dropper? Edited October 2, 2021 by PaulThePlug Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NancyJohnson Posted October 3, 2021 Share Posted October 3, 2021 I think the issue with filling those is the cleanup after. Initial thought was that rather than trying to create something to fill it (and then glueing it in) you could mask off the area and pour a little bit of resin into it, then sand/polish it back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodinblack Posted October 3, 2021 Author Share Posted October 3, 2021 22 hours ago, PaulThePlug said: A light fill with humbro enamal type paint... vast array of colours maybe applied with a pipette or dropper? 2 hours ago, NancyJohnson said: I think the issue with filling those is the cleanup after. Initial thought was that rather than trying to create something to fill it (and then glueing it in) you could mask off the area and pour a little bit of resin into it, then sand/polish it back. These are almost certainly the right answers, but it just makes me really nervous, there is a bit of a risk of damaging the surface, or if it gets messed up, cleaning it up afterwards. Maybe the real answer is to give it to someone who won't mess it up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NancyJohnson Posted October 3, 2021 Share Posted October 3, 2021 3 hours ago, Woodinblack said: These are almost certainly the right answers, but it just makes me really nervous, there is a bit of a risk of damaging the surface, or if it gets messed up, cleaning it up afterwards. Maybe the real answer is to give it to someone who won't mess it up Find a luthier (or someone adept at working with resins and finishing)...Simms? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted October 3, 2021 Share Posted October 3, 2021 Is the aluminium fret board painted/coated with something? Painting the recessed marker and then, when dry, tidying up the edges by lightly rubbing the fretboard surface with some fine wet n dry would be my way to go, depending on the finish already on the fretboard. Or, test an area of the fretboard with a solvent to make sure the solvent doesn't take the finish off, the paint the markers with a paint that the solvent will take off while wet. Then carefully paint and clean up any excess with said solvent on a cotton bud or similar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodinblack Posted October 3, 2021 Author Share Posted October 3, 2021 The fretboard is anodised, I am not sure how robust, other than I haven't scratched it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yorks5stringer Posted October 3, 2021 Share Posted October 3, 2021 I'd just like to say I was present at the Bash as the inlay fell out: at the time I did not realise the significance of that event. Now I am intrigued as to how a solution will be found. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted October 3, 2021 Share Posted October 3, 2021 35 minutes ago, Woodinblack said: The fretboard is anodised, I am not sure how robust, other than I haven't scratched it In theory anodised aluminium is very very hard, so should be resistant to scratching. Rather than a coating like paint, it actually converts the top layer of ally to an oxide, which is porous. Pigment fills these pores so that the colour is actually in the top layer of aluminium rather than sat on top like paint. It is also resistant to most chemicals that don't eat into the surface. So either of my suggested methods 'should' work. Personally I'd fill with something like Humbrol model paint and clean up whilst wet with white spirit. From memory white spirit removes Humbrol paint. The white spirit is relatively tame and shouldn't touch the anodising. As always, try a tiny area first. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodinblack Posted October 23, 2021 Author Share Posted October 23, 2021 OK, finally tried it with the enamel pain, gold humbrol. It is pretty lifeless. I think I might pick up some acrylic. It won't last as well but it is a lot brighter! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulThePlug Posted October 23, 2021 Share Posted October 23, 2021 (edited) I think that looks a nice neat subtle job... and better apperance to the bar in an earlier pic... Do they do a metaflake, or white underneath if you want something more sparkaly? Got a fuller pic rather than close up? Edited October 23, 2021 by PaulThePlug Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodinblack Posted October 23, 2021 Author Share Posted October 23, 2021 5 minutes ago, PaulThePlug said: I think that looks a nice neat subtle job... Who wants subtle on a Chapman Stick And also that is the best of them - the humbrol gold separated trying to paint the others. I also haven't cleaned the edges yet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodinblack Posted November 6, 2021 Author Share Posted November 6, 2021 Didn't like that so I got rid of it. Then I bought some gold leaf as it wasn't that expensive. Never done gold leaf before, didn't realise how flakey it was, and how hard to put on. But, although it is a bit rough at the moment and a bit uneven (I might try a bit more), it is way more umm.. lifefull? than the gold paint Still needs a bit of a tidy and removing of excess, but its much better than what was there before and you can really see it, which was the original problem 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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