his past summer we started with a drought and_ by summer's. end it wouldn't stop raining. All that rain seemed kind of fishy to me, The weather all over the world has gone strange, So why fight it? Make fish This tropical fish i a good way to play round with some colori hard woods and warm up your winter months. I used yellow, black and white. There are red, purple and green woods to try as well, Use your imagination. I's also fun to make iin iminiature — oF make a school of fish i diferent sizes. Ws a fain straight-forward intarsi project: Find the woos of your choice or follow the pater suggestions ‘Transfer the pattem tothe wood: Use one ofthe following methods: + trace directly tothe wood with apes make a template ofthe patter fom 1/8" plywood, MDF board or plexi- las, Trace carefully, holding your son pencil or pen at a4S degree angleand ut the pieoes with a small lade such a or #3 double tooth. + ake photocopies ofthe pattern, cut ut te pieces and spray gle tem onto the wood, Like to make template. | find that | get better fit. Cut out the plocos: Cutting the pieces i done witha bandsaw ‘or sorol saw, A band saw is faster, but leaves a rougher edge and « wider kerf. soroll saw is better for intarsia and itis certainly safer. The kerf are tighter and you get abeter edge Make sue thatthe blade is square tothe table. Cut catefuly, right onthe lne. Ifyou cut carefully the pieces will fit better and the whole process will be a lot more enjoyable Tike a #7 PIS blade fr the 3/4 in. soft woods, a 9 P’S forthe hardwoods and a #3 DTIR or #3 PR blade for the backing plywood, Assemble and check fort Theft will work ithe pieces are withina saw kerf or 1/16 Try using light box to see which places are holding the pieces have to sand, trim or even remake a piece to get an acceptable ft Raise and lower any pieces the pattern suggests, Glue some Seap othe bottom of the pieces tobe ralsed. To raise the pieces, glue scrap 1/8" plywood tothe bottom of the piese raise and lower in inerements of 1/8". To lower Pieces just resaw them thinner or sand them thinner on a belt sander, again in increments oF U8", Resaw any pieces thinner to lower the Piece. Afterall the pieces ae raised o lowered assemble the project and mark on reference lines These lines will help with the shaping Shape and sand: Try to achieve a smooth transition from one level to the next, Try to avoid Mat exposed areas, Shape the ouside edges ofPattern reduced to 60%. ‘can be sized to preference. TROPICAL FISH W- white: aspen, spruce, pine B - black: black walnut Y -yellow: i yellow: pau amarillo ‘wood grain @® -ralse 4/80. (©) - tower 4/8in. ralse 4/4in. the fish ight down tothe bottom edge, to Back and gue up: Finish: sive ita real rounded lok, AUS in, backing board would be Any Wood fnish wil work. Tsualy only sand to 220 grit to reduce adequate for thissize projet, or you could Use a finish you like the look of and ike the amount of sas am creating, also use V4 in. backing top ‘Wear good dust mask Assemble the project on the backing I brushed on satin Varathane finish, Three ‘material. Trace around, remove the projet coats on the front and one on the back. Penne ‘nd cut out the backing board shape Sand between coats, Reassemble the project on the cut out "When the finish has dried, atach a eA” x 6" = Black Walnut | _ ba*kand glue tup hangerandt'sadone deal Use ordinary carpenters glue. Don't put I hope you enjoy the project. It should 10 4” x 12" - Pou Amarillo | any elue on the dees ofthe piece, itean make a good wall hanging fora child's Sauceze tothe surface and cause clean up room. Play argund with some interesting problems hardwoods or make it out of pine or spruce ce 1/8" or 1/4” ‘Allow the glueto dry atleast 30 minutes. and paint the pices. Have fun! Baltic birch plywood 11” x 8” aintarsiaproject s css His & Hers Lighthouse his i ly simple tars proj thatook am ie of is Dun. My wife ah abi ‘quflir and she made the Observation that intra pastors could werk for stained glassqilt- Ing projects, So | took up the challenge and comercd this wood pattern imo. a stained glass/quiting pattem, Then it ‘occurred to me people might enjoy work- ing on similar projets atthe same tne. A ‘great many couples share an interest in rats and ofen, ifs the women ho are ine fabric andthe men who ae into wood. Soy thie isthe fst offering of such 8 project. As a special offer to Canadian Woodworking reader, both paltems in ful sie form wil be avilable for $10.95 postage included. The. pattern can be ‘ordered by writing to: Sawbitd Designs. Box $49, Stoughton, Sask. SOG TO, 1-800-729-2473, fix. 1-306-157-2713, ‘email, trsiai@sawbid com 1 pioce 6” x 6” Yellow Vx 6" x 18" White Vr 6 x 12" Pine Vx 8" x 12" Medium 1x 4" 12" Dark 1 piece 1” x2” VE Mad bing 12. 1/8" x 16 1/2" Intarsia by Gamet Hall, Fabre allows for more latitude in colour selection. Fhave been dragged around to ‘many fabric shops and am amazed at all the differen fabric colours and pater they have to work with My wife made the ‘ne pictured ere and since then, we have Fou matrial with a brick pattem that would Took great. Us poor eld woodies have to scour the plant to find the nie woods This project isa fairly simple, straight Forward, Intra projet. The pieces, for ‘the most par, are big. As a esl, you will ot encounter oo many iting peablems. Select the Wood Use the woods suggested, o¢ use your imagination to make unique wood choos. This is avery cretve step and can make ‘or break the look of the project. Remember, i'your ifs working on this pattem infarc, yout has 0 Took ete. ‘Transfer the Pattern "Transfer the pftern tothe ood, with whichever method you prefer trace from the pattern ato the wood ‘Snake a template of he paterm and race oni the wood photocopy’ and cut and pasteby Robert J. Hlavacek Sr. Use Character Of Woods To Advantage 1 used walt, poplar heartwood and sapmogd, ad sycamop-saprood, With wood. You'll also need thick ply- ‘wood for the backing, one glass eye, a savtooth hanger, and finish. You'll find the sawtooth hanger and the Krylon fin- ish at hardware stores. You can mail- ‘order glass eyes fom: Van Dyke's, 4th Avenue & 6th St. P.O. Box 278 Woonsocket, SD 37385. Telephone: (605/796-4425. Specify tout eye, no wire, gold color, either 6mm (for the ‘small trout) or 10 mim (large rou), A Stock Kit For Either Fish For those of you who have diffi culty buying less common woods, Woodworker's Journal asked a stock kit ‘company to put together a kit including all the woods that you'll need. They offer kts for both the large and small trout (see Kit Source), Follow My Step-By-Step Instructions To cut out the trout, I used my band- saw fitted with a Ys" blade. Then, to achieve the desired tight fit of the pieces. I smoothed the sawn edges with sanding drums mounted in my drill press, which T have equipped with an auxiliary table ‘Step 1 Copy the pattem from the ‘magazine page by placing a sheet of tracing paper over it and tracing the out line, The tracing paper | use (Bienfang Satin Design No. 147M) allows me to see the wood grain through the pattern. This way I can position the pattern on the wood to take maximum advantage of the grain. The Bienfang paper has proved to be quite durable, and can bbe reused several times should you want to make more than one trout. If you wish to make the smaller trout, use a photocopy machine to reduce the patter to about 9 long, Step 2. Sclect your wood. For the trout shown above, [used walnut for the fish's back (A) and two top fins (L, M); poplar heartwood for the side (B), head (D, E, F, tal (K), and lower fins (H, | poplar sapwood for the lower jaw ); and sycamore sapwood for the belly (©). The flecked grain of sycamore rakes it ideal for the trout belly Position your patter on the appropri- ate piece of wood, slip a sheet ofeatbon Paper between the patter and the stock, and trace the part’s profile with a fine- tip ball point pen (Photo 1). The arrows cn the patter indicate the general gra rection. However, if you have a piece of nicely figured wood with interesting‘grain figure, by all mcans use it For clamp the three pieces together (Photo to a larger carrier board using double- projects like this, the figure and color 3). To make it easier to clamp this faced carpet tape.) ‘of the wood may be more important assembly, leave the outside edges of Next, use a sanding drum to smooth to the final appearance of the project parts A and C square, the cut surface and to contour both the thm simply matching the grain direction front and back edges ofthe fins and tal with the pattern ‘As shown in Photo 6, use a "diameter ‘After transferring the profiles 10 the sending drum to contour the underside stock, dil a 3'-diameter eve hole in Part of fins H and L. Photo 7. shot ofthe fin- Ao the smal trout, "%" eye hole inthe ished project, shows what these fins large trout. Because of the size differ look like after contouring. For strength, ence, | use a 6mm eye for the smaller trout, a 10mm eye for the lige one. The Photo 4 thickness ofthe glass eyes varies some- Step 4 Once the glue has dried, cut hat, so test-drill the hole in scrap mate~ the ouside body contour, and then sand it Fal first to determine the best depth. ‘smooth (Photo 4). When sawing out the ‘Step 3 Cut the contours where pats areas to receive lower fine H and 1, ct ‘A,B, and C join, Start by cuting the slowly and accurately, because you won't toviom contour of Part A, then smooth be able to sind these tight areas easly the eu edge with a sanding drum in the Position the body over the tracing of dril press. Always uae the largest diam- fins I and IAs before, redraw the eut- Photo 7 cict sanding drum posible, especially lines (Phot 3). Although you can cut 1 vary the fins from thin atthe edges to for parts like this with a long curved outall he parts a one time and put them thicker near the center. Don't glue the edge. I've found that a small-diameter together like a jigsaw puzzle, 1 found fins o ail in place vet. drum, such as a", tends to create that doing it this way results in a rather Stepp 5. Put the fins aside, and go to ripples in the edge, making it difficult to roughtooking assembly. For the pre- work onthe head. Add the head parts to flushfit the picces. cl fied lok ofthe aoutshow 1° the Guat body walkin meme “ace recommend tracing cach cut diecly ct and saco-ft procedore™ detailed from the adoining piece to the part it earer. Start with Part D, and when wile fo, Uses sme proceqge to you're satisfied with he, se masking bo fat and M) phe a(R) 1 B iraccurtely the wacbedes 2! Photo 2 Once the bottom contour of Part A has been cut, position Part A on Part B, using A as a template to trace the actual s cutline onto Part B (Photo 2), When making the cut on Part B, keep the ence saw blade on the outside edge of the Photo S tape to hold the part in place (Photo 8) line. Then, drum-sand the edge for a The fins (J, L, and M) and tail (K) Next, fit parts E, F, and G in the order smooth, precise fit to the adjoining should be approximately %" thick. I start listed, temporarily taping cach one in piece, Repeat this process to transfer the with "-thick stock and resaw it on the place as you work, Part B profile to Past C. bandsaw. (To keep your fingers a safe Step 6 Cut the %"-thick scrap shims After fitting parts A. Band C, apply distance from the blade, 1 suggest yoo using the dashed outlines on parts Eand glue (1 prefer carpenter's glue), then adhere your small, thick workpiece Fas the pattern. Glue the shims to the undersides of parts E and F. Note that the shim under Part F raises only the ‘wider end of the piece. This shim tilts the piece up slightly, so you need to sand back the edge of part F where it meets parts E and G for a tight fit, Next, round the outside edges of the body. You can use a large sanding drum or a" round-over bit in your table-mounted router for this. If you use a router, make the cut in two passes toavoid chipping. Do not attempt to route the small forward section of Part C between parts D and H, as it will Hikely break off ‘Neat, sand the body and smooth the rounded edges. (I use a quarter-sheet pad sander.) Keep in mind that fins J. K, Land M need to have a square edge 10 serve as a gluing surface, 30 don't sand so far over the edge of the body as 10 ruin the fit of these pieces. As also shown in Photo 7, you need to remove a litle material from the body surface so that fins H and I as well as part D stand, slightly proud. Step 7 As noted, several pieces, among them part E, are raised a bit high- er than the surrounding parts. On the edges ofall raised pieces draw a pencil Photo 9 line 9 guid ee conpuring(Phatp 2). then geil dom thd edge tepid sist ne. Contouring the raised parts 50 they flow into the lower pars makes the trout seem almost seulprural This is mach ofthe “magic” of intarsia, ‘Step 8 Now that youve shaped all the pieces, the ridges left by the sanding drums should be smoothed out, Hand- sanding will take care ofthis, but I find Photo 10 the work goes much more quickly using a Mutter-head assembly inthe dil press (Photo 10). Flutter sheets in 1$0-grt do 42 quick job of smoothing the picoss You can order then from The Sanding Catalogue (telephone 800/228-0000). Step 9 Dry-assemble the head parts to the body, and double-check to make sure that everything fits nicely. Now spread a sheet of waxed paper om a Mat surface, and begin edge-gluing the parts together. I prefer S-minute clear epoxy for this. Once the g fon the head parts, glue the ‘Step 10 After the glue dries, poo! the waxed paper off the back of your trout. Place it on a piewe of "thick backing plywood and trace the outline ofthe fish e plywood. Cut the plywood approximately inside the traced pro- file, taen sand to round the plywood's ‘edge so the backing board doesn't show ‘when you hang the projet. Step 11 Several small C-clamps ‘come in handy for gluing the trout to the backing board. Place a block under the tout to provide clearance for the C- clamps, and use clamp pads to avoid Suetace -(Phodd11). Once cut, sanded ‘elued, and clamped to the trout, the ply- ‘wood should resem- ‘le the tout. ‘Step 12 Apply the finish of your choice to the trout. | prefer Keylon no, 1317 clear ‘mate Finishon mest of iy projets, because it dries fast im my dusty workshop. The trout shown in the photo have five couts of fine ish. After the third pplication dries, iht- ly sand with 320- of 400-grit paper to smooth the surface. Then, wipe away any ‘dust, and apply the Final two finish coats. Give the glass eye in place (use S-minute epoxy), and adda sawtooth hanger to the back Finally, sign your work. Some fuure relative admiring your work will no doubt marvel at your creative prowess! SEP SREES A stock kit including the rec- ‘commend woods ond ply- ‘wood backing for either the small_oF large trout con be ordered from, Heritage Building Speciatties 205. Cascade Fergus Falls, MN 56537 Tel, 1-800-524-4184 Specify Project-PAK Kit no, 5945A for the large trout ($14.95. ppd) oF Project-PAK Kit no. 59458 for the small trout ($995 ppd). Designer. builder, photographer: Robart J. Hlavaoek Sr.eye in omall trout, ole For 1Omm eye in large trout, aril Ze" hole‘WEEKEND WORKSHOP es Knothole Gang adding dott at, Ka fear tag een te Debep ists weodrir Robe Race oct te Paper een Gated mart. tiscra formof era res ee Tapet woods, or Giron wll cola oer weal Teate ree Umer "ME pees se ‘Peconic Tiree eet fle sntie eta home pene feneenl is Pewee eed elena e (ea eo a afer wiich the individual pieces ore shaped. pained and eee eee the pate deca in heb Ieee Te cei Bo Bee eval dea if sins aaighforsard ening pe ine cent he Knothole Gang is made from the cut is made at a basowood frame. You'll also need a 1 I just three boards, with a few i's a thick by 6'/2 in. wide by S'/ in, long ‘Scraps of plywood used as shims Title longer than it wide. If you have piece of basswood forthe raccoon faces, to rise some of the raccoon's facial a chainsaw, your woodpile might yiekd a anda / in thick by 8 in, wide by 1 parts. The frame is 4/4 in. thick by atmulitude of slices forthe frame (make long piece of rough-sawn cedar forthe Teast 9 in, wide by about 12 in.long slice sure the wood is well dried), but we've backboard. The 12am Brown eyesar ff tee trunk, log or branch, with the included a mail-order source (see Mate- availabe at craft stores or by mail-order bark tll on, Instead of bsing cut exactly rials List fora pre-cut, dried and sanded (see Materials List).Prepare Log Section, Backboard & Shims ‘Once you've gathered together al the nal nth eran te (te ctavay section ot of wich te taccone ar pcring) fem the fli fate to your section, Any vay {dothin ist jot alia pee of xton apes tewcn the pe nd the wo, fn eth profile Then il sare ole forthe st lade ar un the srl Sw teat te prof ext ay the log secon ona pie of rs, tee al around te oasie Profile, then cit oot the paper, staying Bout inv the ise of the sre Tne Use this paper template fo sri the profile nthe back oar then the shape wth he srl nan cr bald gnaw Take four cova tnd screw the backboard (ougrasen Side facing forward othe hack of the ington Tow #2 jn ine to ace and ew the sop. pywch ty mee ie a Teco oobi icone ingltiding the paw of the left Se rccoon) cto sf. sock, tice bah accon’s mazes onto hin Sock, and trace the nse profiles of bah faccoons oot in sock. Sand the tp cdg of th in shim ocx 2 lp underet, then pin this ede back One the pot sy, elie the in shim n poo onthe backboard. Cutting The Faces ‘Trace the raccoon profiles onto the | in. thick basswood, using the same system as before (slipping carbon paper be- twicen the page and the board). Dill the 12mm diameter by sn. deep eye holes (ain. diameter drill can be used if you don't have metric sizes), and also drill the pair of sin. diameter by "in. deep holes that serve as the nostrils on each Using a scroll saw, or a band saw equipped with a fe in, blade (you'll reed to use phenolic guide blocks with so narrow a blade inthe band saw), cut fut the raccoon faces. A '/s in, blade ‘andthe phenolic guideblocks are availa- blesteomn= Garrett Wade (1-800-221- 2042), Cut the smaller parts first (chins, noses and ears), then the larger parts. ‘Once the face parts ste all cut, glue the "Ys in. thick shims to the back of the ‘noses and the sin. thick shims to the back ofthe muzzles. Shaping & Sanding ‘Test assemble the raccoon faces. in position on the backbourd. Since thes in, thick shim is already in place on the backboard, andthe sin and "in. thick shims are already glued to the muzzles and noses, respectively, everything should be Set at its proper final level. Now take a sharp pencil, and using the front ofthe log cutout as a guide, seribe Aine arossthe facial parts that protrude igher than the surface of the log. This line serves asa guide showing you whatpokey tage side ne tora ie Mast of tn sadig tne wih 28 Te bo cesta ced er wd RR eee De ee eres fespragch (et comers pe ee Soke p ee ied nase cvae ora Bar tydapiog ie on of hoat of ae pee aT Toe sade en ee eal tae en Diner apes eon prs: a poe tok Ub pep peo ohana aie pay oe Sen nem ene ee uehie emstrs) me, ir rind eal Gee at eee perro aeet shape bea pry eh pte cue foment oo Ry the Phhoteelosely as you proceed, and cee ogee =e ‘ace all the rough shaping and Se fant he ee Ie stan Femoiecig pa faethe eesidie ater te =e Painting “The pais are common acrylic paints thinned with just enough water to allow the wood grain to show through. Have & jr of water handy to keep the brush wet, fad be sure to use brush thats at least "Yin. wide, so you can apply the paint quickly Working slowly or with a {oo-smal brsh allows some of the paint to dry before an entire piece is painted, ‘whieh ean produce a blotchy finish ‘The parts ate all painted individual and allowed t0 dry before final assem bi. Refer to the eolor photo and the “Materials List for what colors to use on what paris. Colors look darker when Wel, so allow the paints to dry before judging whether to add subsequent oats. The noses are painted with lunthianed black. The backhoard, the lo, & SD. S € Buck view showing screws ‘and hanger attachment, face and the edge of the cutout in the log are both painted black, followed with 3 light coat of burnt umber. When dr. the face of the log is sanded, whieh pro- dduces the light grey look contrasting ‘with the darker cutout area ‘Once the colors have all dried thor: ‘oughly, spray on several very light coats of a clear matte finish, like Krylon no, 1311. A litte high loss clear finish on the noses give them their shine. Final Details ‘When dry, glue the pieces in place. Any wood sluc is fine. As you work, adjust the spaces between the individual pieces 0 any gaps eaused by the saw kerf are even. Use alittle epony to glue the glass eyes in place. A sawtooth hanger at- tached 10 the backboard (see. photo above) provides. handy Wayeto=hang the Knothole Gang on an obliging wall