silver inlay on ebony ring

[ignacioblanch]

Hi there,

I am new to the forum, but i must say that I've been reading information from it for quiet some time now. It's a very useful and very committed community u guys have here, congratulations! and many thanks! =)

Here's my question

I'm about to start carving an engagement ring in ebony wood (yes, i know all the drill about engagement rings and diamonds, but, not really our thing, to be honest) The plan is a simple ebony carving, with a very small design on the front looking something like a yin yang design.
I'm planning on doing a silver string inlay around the ring also.
I did some exhaustive research on the web, and I've found that some ppl glue the inlay and some don't. Some take the wood off and some just make a path with the tools and hammer the silver onto it.
I'm thinking of not gluing it for 2 reasons:
1 I'm afraid that CA glues won't give me enough time to work.
2 I'm afraid that with time, the glue might get hard and don't be flexible enough to adapt to the different movements of the wood.

I would like to read your opinions! Should I glue, shouldn't I? Is there a more resistant and appropriated glue for inlays?

Any other advice on ebony, ring carvings, inlays, finishing rings, etc etc is also very welcome!! As i said, u guys rock.

Many thanks!!

[Maple]

I've not done a silver inlay (yet) but it's on my list to do in the near future. From the research I've done, I would say don't glue. Cut the wood slightly smaller than the silver and use friction to hold it in place.

I would love to see this ring when it's in progress/done, sounds like it will be beautiful!

[ignacioblanch]

thank you very much Maple!
I appreciate your answer... I guess i could try not gluing. If it shall come off during the process or in the future, i'll have time to glue it on.
I'll start this week hopefully. The ebony should arrive these days. I'll try to upload some pics of the WIP... if i can do what i have in mind, I think it will be nice. I'll do my best so it happens.
I am a bit concerned about the ebony wood... never worked it before! well, neither the inlay thing to be honest. =)
I will let you know!

[Maple]

I've never worked with ebony, but I've heard it can be a right pain. Go slow and be careful, if you can, i'd take a piece of ebony to practice the inlay before you do it on the real thing. I'm going to do a silver inlay into rosewood for a soundblock on my native flute, and before I do, I'm going to try to inlay the silver into a scrap hunk of wood just to see how it responds.

[dogcatcher]

I have done the silver inlay on maple, the cut for the silver has to be exact, not even a hair smaller or larger than the silver. After it is in place, a bit of moisture will cause the wood to expand, literally clamping the silver in place. I don't know how ebony works, the grain is tighter and the wood is more brittle than maple. Will your idea work? I think so, but I am not sure.

I think I would also consider a CA glue finish like the penturners use. For pens this finish is done with BLO and medium CA glue, and applied while spinning on a lathe. This can also be done on a drill press or even a hand drill. To get an idea of how a CA finish is done search You Tube for CA finishes for pens.

[ignacioblanch]

Thank you Maple, I'll for sure try it on a separate piece first! I don't trust me that much! lol

Thank you Dogcatcher! Very useful information also!!

I've checked on the BLO/CA finish on youtube and found plenty of info there.
The question is, u reckon that kind of finish is "flexible" enough to adapt to the different moisture changes on the wood?
And second, Once i've dumped the ring a bit so it clamps the silver, should I let it dry before applying a finish?

Thank you again!

[docdredd]

Thats just the thing, I use SUPER thin CA to stabilize dry wood when Im using them for scales on Knife handles. The dry wood combined with the very thin CA sucks it very deeply into the wood and results in very little change when exposed to moisture. It also makes the wood rock hard so get any carving done before you impregnate it.

[mpounders]

you might look at some of the info posted by this guy at lumberjocks.com. He makes and sells wooden rings and it appears either a laminated or bentwood ring is usually sturdier than a solid ring, due to grain directions. Handcrafted Wooden Rings - by FrankLad @ LumberJocks.com ~ woodworking community
He uses Gorilla Glue for his laminations and has found it more waterproof than others, but does also use a CA glue finish.

[dogcatcher]

The CA finish should be flexible enough, the wood is glued to the finish, and pens that are used daily seem to hold up to it really well. Like said in the above post, a laminated ring will be a lot stronger.

After getting the ring wet to clamp the silver, let it dry and you will have to sand it smooth again. The water will raise the grain.

I have made rings, but not out of ebony, I've used various woods, the one I had the most luck with was Osage Orange. I only make them for my wife and myself, and when I do I make about 3 sets, because if we wear them they eventually will break.

I haven't made any that are laminated, mainly because I hate glue ups.

[Dan S]

I've used CA glue to hold stainless steel wire in ebony. It worked fine. However, I also coated mine with a dozen coats of polyurethane. You will have to use something. Ebony breaks down if not sealed.

Dan