keys, bowties, and butterflies.

[doc henderson]

well it is time for me to do this.  i was looking and found a brand new, still in package, set of plexiglass bowtie templates.  I ordered the bushing and bit, only to find I had one of those too in my router tool box, new in package.  i tried to use it and had a few glitches so thought I should read the directions.  (watch a you tube video).  turns out I did not have the surrounding frame to hold the template, and I should have use a plunge router.  I have a big PC 2.25 hp VS.  I am looking at a Bosch colt with plunge base.  I have one with a fixed base, but use it so much with a 1/8th round over, I think I will get another with a base.  the big one will be too clunky I think to try and follow the little template.  What say you all?  any advise, pics or video?

[btulloh]

I find it easier and quicker without the template although there's nothing wrong with using the template system.  

I just make some bowties, sized according to what is needed and what looks good. Set the bowtie on the piece and ouline around it with a sharpd marking knife, being careful to angle the tip of the knife toward the bowtie. The goal is to have the outline no bigger than the bowtie. An exacto can work, but pay attention to the bevel. 

Some times it helps to darken the knife mark with a very sharp pencil or rapidograph pen.  Use a router with a straight bit and freehand out the waste working close to the line, but leaving a 1/16" or so to pare later with a chisel. Obviously the routing can't stray across the line or you'll be needing a larger bowtie and making a new outline! lol  I just use a 1 3/4 Makita on a plunge base. (Their version of a PC690.)  I've tried with a trim router, but the full size actually is easier - better visibility and easier to control. Generally I use 1/2" carbide bit for roughing out the main area then switch to a 1/4" bit for the delicate job of working up close to the line. 

After that it's easy to take a sharp paring chisel and remove the last 1/16".  A very slight under cut is good, just don't let the sides slope inward at all. 

The description makes it sound lengthy but it's actually quicker than using the template system. (Ever seen a written procedure for tying a shoe?  Takes about three pages, single spaced!)

[btulloh]

And . . . a little compressed air to keep the area clear while you're routing helps either method.  One of those little bead looking nozzles on a base works well. 

[Larry]

I do them with a template and but most are done as btulloh described. 

I've had the Bosch Colt for years and think it would be perfect with a plunge base.  The base is on my wish list.  I normally use a Festool 1400 because it has great dust collection, but it's on the big side.

[kantuckid]

I use a plexi template and often just do them by hand with a chisel /mallet. I'm done by the time I'd set up my router stuff. I've also cheated using my lovable trim router to hog out the center of the lines than chisel the edges. But I'm old fashioned at times and never into a production run either. 

[Don P]

I think if you attach a cnc to the router it would do a pretty good job.

[Larry]

Shaper Origin  Anybody got one?  If you do can I borrow it? ;D

[Erik A]

Shaper Origin  Anybody got one?  If you do can I borrow it? ;D

I was going to mention one and try and help Doc spend his money! I'm glad you did it first.
And... yes I do have one and you can borrow it if you are ever in the neighborhood!  ;D
https://www.rockler.com/learn/video-cutting-complex-inlays
Thought I would add a video so people can see what it does....

[low_48]

Shaper Origin  Anybody got one?  If you do can I borrow it? ;D

I have one. Really nice little rig and they just released a plate for random small work like bowties and inset hardware. Also new drawing package and hardware library just released. Pricey though. Sorry, no borrowing.

[Old Greenhorn]

Setting up for the Luthier's show yesterday and also looking at all the work they have done to restore and rebuild the theater/studio complex we use for the show. They also have many new furnishings and I came across this one in the Green Room.



 


 I thought the butterflies were neat, but they do nothing structurally as they have no mechanical lock to hold things together.



 

 The again, it's not a crack repair, it a branch separation which is probably no going anywhere. These were made by a local 'high end' guy with a shop out on the main drag for decades. He gets big bucks for his stuff from city folks. Frankly I was disappointed. The finish quality would never have left my shop and the undersides of the tables is uneven, rough, and has physical mismatches. I found a brand new, yet to be used, black walnut table in the storage room where the bottom of the table was smoothed out with body filler that remained unpainted or stained. A real turn off. They all 'looked good, but nice wood treated poorly to my eyes. I thought this guy was better than that.

[kantuckid]

I suppose I could argue that those butterflies do, in fact have a mechanical lock as the grain orientation is 180 degrees to the tops grain and they are obviously inset and glued in. We don't know how deep they are either. In these pics I have no fault in the finish? Branch or crack they are one person's notion of artistic license.  
 I'm not real crazy about the overall shaping though. 
While some folks are attracted to gizmos such as the Shaper Origin, no matter the price, I simply am not. I do know about CNC and puters, etc., just not my thing at all when working with wood. I have much art training and lean that direction. I see the preciseness ot segmented turnings and other such work and appreciate the skills involved but free hands my thing, "warts" and all. 
 

[Old Greenhorn]

True, the glue will hold it. What I meant by 'mechanical lock' is that the geometry of these would allow the 'patch' to pull straight out, were there no glue involved.

 As for the finish issues, I did not take close photos as I had no intent of picking his work apart so you can't see it in the photos. There are voids in the top finish around knot holes where it was not fully epoxied shut. This was already creating cracks and lifting in the finish around those areas. Really I made the negative comments just because this guy is so well known in the area and I expected a little better of the work coming out of his shop. To be fair, after spending the weekend in and out of the various buildings on the campus, I saw hundreds of tables he made for  this place and that is a lot of wood. Most of it was black walnut. All looked good from the layman's point of view.
 He also makes amazing metal sculptures.