Celtic Knot inlay

[Bope]

I am wanting to try some celtic knots but wonder how to accurately make the inlay. How do you make consistent thickness strips of wood this thin?

 

[wood128]

I use mostly pieces of colored veneer glued together that fit the kerf cut with your tablesaw or bandsaw.

 

[howsitwork]

I play with my bandsaw first .

Then sand or stick em to a plank of mdf and scrape or plane to thickness. Veneer might be a much easier way but I generally find the woods I want to use in my stockpile so do it the hard way

 

[NGLJ]

The drum sander makes thin stock of consistent thickness. Cut fairly close on the band saw and finish on the DS.

 

[randyrls]

Eric; Some time ago I made a jig that makes it dead easy to make the inlays and slices in blanks.
https://www.penturners.org/resources/celtic-knot-slicing-jig-version-2.430/

Version 1 is simpler and easier to make, Version 2 is more flexible but takes longer to make. Whichever you make the jig is married to the saw and blade you are using.

The only rule is to make sure the kerf matches exactly the thickness of the inlay slice.

 

[jfoh]

I use a jig and do not cut all the way through the blank. Made a set of spacers to get spacing between cuts exactly uniform. Insert must be exactly the same width of the saw kerf. Did this on a six sided blank making three sets of Celtic knots which interlocked, with zero slippage. Was a bear to turn as I was sweating bullets concerned about blowouts. Made it as a one price Cigar pen. Came out great. But time spent making the blank was hours. To be more efficient I tend to make multiple blanks at the same time. Only problem is if you make a single mistake, you make multiple copies of it. Don't ask how I know.

 

[Bope]

I wasn't too worried about making the cuts in the blank. My concern has been about the contrasting insert. I am surprised I didn't get a lot of responses saying drum sander. That sounds like the easiest way but I don't have one. The bandsaw I think might be safer than a table saw to cut the thin pieces but that leaves saw marks that need cleaning up.

 

[jttheclockman]

I wasn't too worried about making the cuts in the blank. My concern has been about the contrasting insert. I am surprised I didn't get a lot of responses saying drum sander. That sounds like the easiest way but I don't have one. The bandsaw I think might be safer than a table saw to cut the thin pieces but that leaves saw marks that need cleaning up.

If your bandsaw is dialed in and you can make accurate cuts then just a bit of hand sanding with a piece of sandpaper glued to a sheet of glass or flat tile will get rid of sanding marks quickly. That is how I dial in my veneers when doing knots.