Inlay test using some hard maple and bloodwood 80mm x 40mm. Needs a bit more sanding but this is the point where sanding reveals the true pattern. I have some boxwood and ebony that I will do for a project but I wanted to make sure it worked before I did it to the ebony.
How deep do you do an inlay?
I am wanting to do a few with maple as the background and walnut or cherry as the inlay
I used a 2.5mm stepped pocket cut 1mm deep and .5mm lip so by sanding down .5mm I get the true pattern. The step cut works better than a straight pocket cut in ArtCAM. Inlays are not trivial to calculate so I have no idea how you do them without some CAM package that does the correct toolpath for both male and female. ArtCAM does this very well.
BTW, the pattern is the Arabic frieze from the Omu mosque in Cairo from this womderful web site:
http://www.craftsmanspace.com/free-patterns/arabic-frieze-from-the-omu-mosque-in-cairo.html
That’s looking great Steve.