That's English art right thrrr!
Very well played ol'chap!
I'm digging your pearl inlays!
Maybe you could e-mail me the procedure:)
-Pinecone
I got some nice Mother of Pearl 3mm thick from E-bay. I saw it out as a rectangle using a hacksaw with it clamped in the vice with some sheet rubber around it to grip it whilst preventing damage. The belt sander with a fairly fine belt grinds it to shape.
I then position it on the bow, draw round with a sharp pencil and the use a crafy knife to carefull cut just inside that line.
Some people just score right round with a knife rather than using a pencil first.
To make sure I don't cut too big a hole I make sure I cut the lower straightish edge a fair way inside the line. That way I can always adjust the hole or the MOP and push it further up into the pointed end (hope that makes sense).
Once the outline is scored I cut cross hatch lines inside the outline (see pic) and then flick out the resulting pieces with the tip of my blade or an old needle file ground down to a small chisel point. Once you've removed that first layer of cross hatching you have a nice clean edge to work to and it's relatively easy to cut the outline deeper and repeat the process til it's deep enough. Of course the final fitting requires some adjustment to get it just right, but it's simply slow and steady. I normally need a couple of breaks and a few mugs of tea
I also put on some higher strength glasses, get myself sat comfortably with the bow held in the vice. I find it helps to reverse the bow quite often to avoid the danger of the knfe slipping along the grain.
Hope this helps.
Del
