Nakashima style honeylocust crotch table

Daren · November 27, 2007, 03:56:53 PM

Well the title says what it is. An old busted honeylocust crotch I had laying around and some walnut. I just doweled and glued the top to the base and put a few coats of Tung oil on it for a finish.

RynSmith · November 27, 2007, 04:07:14 PM

That is beautiful!

Quote from: Daren on November 27, 2007, 03:56:53 PM
An old busted honeylocust crotch I had laying around and some walnut. I just doweled and glued the top to the base and put a few coats of Tung oil on it for a finish.

Apparently all in a days work for you

beenthere · November 27, 2007, 04:32:10 PM

Looks great. Shows some real talent in design and forethought...I'd like to be that visionary in potential project designs like you are...well done.

getoverit · November 27, 2007, 04:55:06 PM

Well done Darren!

Engineer · November 27, 2007, 08:16:38 PM

Daren,

How do you do the butterfly inlays? I have always been fascinated by them but can't figure out how they are done.

Daren · November 27, 2007, 08:43:44 PM

Quote from: Engineer on November 27, 2007, 08:16:38 PM
Daren,

How do you do the butterfly inlays?

This is how I do them...and I am not saying it is the right way, just the way I do it ;). For example these were 4" long and 1" wide on the big end. The table top stock was 4/4 so I used thicker for the butterflies, explained later. I cut the butterflies on my bandsaw and then use a upright belt sander to slightly taper them from top to bottom on all sides.

This may be cheating but it works to make the cutout in the stock. For these since the bfs were 1" wide after I cut them I traced them on the top. I used a 3/4" forstner bit on each end to make a hole. From that hole I used a jigsaw to cut most of the material out.

Then I use a chisel to clean up the hole. I take each bf and tweak it as needed, maybe with a sharp chisel or sandpaper on a block. After I am sure ( ???) it is going to fit I slather it with glue and pound it into the hole with a wood mallet. I would rather it fit tight at the top (show side) than make it all the way through to the bottom. Some times they just don't go all the way, from the bottom they may not be flush. I am sure someone with more skill and patience can do it, but for me it is not a big deal, it's the bottom.
That is why I taper the butterflies, so I can hammer them in to get a good top fit.

Then what is sticking up just gets planed/sanded off. It is important to make the bfs with the grain running straight from end to end. Some day I will post some pics of a busted wide walnut slab I actually pulled back together 3/4" with a million clamps and hammered some quilted rock maple butterflies in and closed the gap.

I have more Nakashima stuff I am working on. It is time consuming, but fun and a cool way to use stuff that blows up :D.

Engineer · November 27, 2007, 08:53:44 PM

OK, I get it. I was assuming that the butterfly was a decorative inlay and only about 1/8" thick. That's the way I've seen it in magazines. Didn't realize that for your work, it's structural.