MAY 2014 Project of the Month - Duo-Tone refrigerator Magnets

[mtylerfl]

Hello,

This project features a duo-toned set of refrigerator magnets. The effect is achieved by gluing two sheets of contrasting woods together, then machining the patterns so the upper and lower layers of wood form a contrasting colored design. The project uses the 1/16" Carving Bit and the 1/8" Cutting Bit.

Main items you will need:
1) The Project Files (included):
• Butterfly_Board.mpc

2) Boards with the following dimensions:
*Light Wood: .25" x 5.5" x 24"
*Dark Wood: .25" x 5.5" x 24"
* These boards are glued and clamped together for 2 or 3 days until fully cured, to create a laminated 0.5" -thick slab

NOTE: Do not use boards that are smaller than specified above unless using an appropriate jig to achieve these minimum dimensions.

3) 6mm x 3mm Neodymium Magnets (approx .25" dia. x .125" thick )

4) Sandpaper, drill, glue, epoxy, clamps, stain and/or paint and clear finish.

5) A Dremel-type rotary tool with assorted sanding wheels and bits to sand small details and speed up preparation for finishing.


Apply stain/paint and clearcoat of your choice. Here’s what I used on my Duo-Tone Magnets made from laminated Red Oak and White Poplar:

• One coat of thinned Zinsser Bulls Eye Seal Coat
(50% denatured alcohol and 50% Seal Coat), then one coat full-strength SealCoat, sanding after each coat
• Two coats Zinsser Bulls Eye spray Shellac
• Several light coats of Krylon Clear Acrylic spray for final topcoat


I created the project to illustrate how a “laminate” project can be done. I hope you’ll experiment further with projects of your own design in the future. For those of you who may not know, the advanced Designer 2.xxx software has the ability to actually display the two-toned woods on-screen. (It can even display a top and bottom veneer color with a different core color, if desired.) The Laminate Mode feature is accessed via the Edit/Board Settings and Stain/Finish menu.

For this particular project, you can set the top layer at .25-inch thick and choose a dark wood. Then choose the Core Thickness, set it at .25-inch thick and choose a light colored wood. These settings will represent the two laminated boards used in this project, as shown in one of the attached photos. NOTE: This enhanced feature is only available with Designer 2.xxx. (Earlier versions of Designer will display a single wood color, as usual.) If you plan on creating your own duo-tone/laminated projects, the Laminate Mode is invaluable and removes all the guesswork on how your project will look before you actually carve it!

[mikemi]

Michael,
I have done 2 or 3 projects in the past with layering two different tones of boards. Glad to say, they came out really well, but I am sure I will learn something from your technique, I always do.
I will be looking forward to the email to download the POM.

Thanks,
Mike

[mtylerfl]

Hi Mike,

I expect a lot more folks will be inspired to create "laminate" style projects since the new Laminate Mode display in Designer 2 makes it so much easier to visualize. (It's a little nerve-wracking to design those kinds of projects with the standard single-color board in previous versions of Designer.)

I used both Designer 2 and Designer 1.187 when laying out this project. I used Designer 2 to make sure the project was coming out as intended with the 2-tones, then I recreated it with the same depth settings, etc. in Designer 1.187 for the POM public release version (all POM's are still required to be compatible with 1.187 at this time).

Ever since I saw Ken Johnson's (DocWheeler) laminated projects he created, I've wanted to do/include that technique for a POM. Ken also made me a terrific gift a few years ago. It's a gorgeous two-tone Walnut & Maple desktop name plaque/business card holder that I cherish. It comes with me to most CNC Conferences when I travel!

[rickyz]

any sign of a pom for june????

[lynnfrwd]

Nope. Not yet.

[mtylerfl]

any sign of a pom for june????

Hi Ricky,

Click to see the June 2014 POM