Thick Stack Cutting

[WoodChips]

Morning,

I have been working on an inlay design.  The wood that i have to use is a piece of 3/4" poplar and 3/4" walnut.
I have tried to single cut the pattern twice but the pieces don't fit well together.
Has anyone stack cut anything that thick before and what size and type of blade should I be using?

Any help is appreciated

Thanks
Randy

[dunk]

I have tried to do that with 3/4 stock.  It is not easy.  You have to take your time and allow the blade to do it's job or you will get bowing especially in 2 different species of wood.  I believe I'd try a #7 Ultra reverse from mikes or a #7 Polar from him.  The polar does a good job of cleaning out its own kerf line.

[Rapid Roger]

Actually, I cut 3/4" stock quite a bit. I generally use a #10 blade for thick wood. The ones I use are Olson's FR408TW- Thick Wood and have only 7 TPI. They are thicker too, .018 and .080 width. The fewer teeth help to clear the saw dust easier so it doesn't build up and get the wood as hot as fast as the "more tooth" blades do.
As for making an inlay fit tight and flush, you need to stack cut the two pieces at the same time and tilt the table a bit so that the top of the upper piece is a bit larger than the top of the lower piece and then it fits into the void like a plug.
As far as "How much do I tilt the table?" The only way to find out is to do some practice cuts using the same thickness of wood as the project and cut a few small circles or shapes.
Different thicknesses cause the table tilt to vary. I usually start with 3 degrees tilt and after a practice cut or two will change it by about 1/2 degree at a time. Either add a 1/2 degree or subtract a 1/2 degree depending on how the cuts fit together.
I did an inlay of names on box tops for the grandchildren's Christmas gifts using 3/8" thick material.





Thinner material will require a smaller blade and there for a different angle to the tilt too. I think I used a FD5 on this project.
Sometimes a picture is worth 1000 words. 

Rog

[Jim Finn]

I do lots of inlays like has been mentioned. (double bevel inlay).  I usually use 3/8" stock but when I do an inlay for a fireplace bellows I inlay 3/8" Maple into 3/4" cedar using the same blade and cut angle.  The front looks fine but the backs do not line up at all. The 3/8" inlaid wood is recessed in the back.  This does not matter for my bellows though.

[WoodChips]

Actually, I cut 3/4" stock quite a bit. I generally use a #10 blade for thick wood. The ones I use are Olson's FR408TW- Thick Wood and have only 7 TPI. They are thicker too, .018 and .080 width. The fewer teeth help to clear the saw dust easier so it doesn't build up and get the wood as hot as fast as the "more tooth" blades do.
As for making an inlay fit tight and flush, you need to stack cut the two pieces at the same time and tilt the table a bit so that the top of the upper piece is a bit larger than the top of the lower piece and then it fits into the void like a plug.
As far as "How much do I tilt the table?" The only way to find out is to do some practice cuts using the same thickness of wood as the project and cut a few small circles or shapes.
Different thicknesses cause the table tilt to vary. I usually start with 3 degrees tilt and after a practice cut or two will change it by about 1/2 degree at a time. Either add a 1/2 degree or subtract a 1/2 degree depending on how the cuts fit together.
I did an inlay of names on box tops for the grandchildren's Christmas gifts using 3/8" thick material.





Thinner material will require a smaller blade and there for a different angle to the tilt too. I think I used a FD5 on this project.
Sometimes a picture is worth 1000 words. 

Rog

Thanks Roger, lots of good info and pictures. 
Question:  How do you hide the starter hole when you put the pieces together?

Thanks
Randy

[Rapid Roger]

YOU DON'T! 

Ha Ha just kidding.    It really is a problem. What I do generally is use glue and saw dust from one of the pieces of wood. Use the darker wood if that is where most of the hole is or the lighter wood on the other hand. I have been known to use a tooth pick and glue to fill the hole and then snap it off and sand down.
For the most part, people don't notice where the hole is but of course it stands out like a sore thumb to me. I try to drill the holes in a tighter area of the letter and vary the location around each letter as much as I can. For instance where I had a double letter (DD, RR or TT) I try NOT to put the hole in the same area of both letters.
If you enlarge my photo, you will notice that I put the hole in "WYATT's" box top between the "W" and the "Y" and between the "T's".
See, I told you that they stand out like a sore thumb to me but, I'll bet you never noticed them before.   
Hope that helps.

Rog