Laminating A Zia Into A Turning Blank by W. H. Kloepping, Jan. 2009 This describes how a zia (the New Mexico state symbol) can be laminated into a turning blank. Materials needed: Square Turning Block (Yellowheart, Bois D arc or similar color wood suggested) Thin Veneer, dyed to contrast with the color of the block (e.g. turquoise or red) Wood Glue and Glue Brushes (TiteBond 3 recommended) Tools needed: GENERAL NOTES: Band Saw with narrow, thin kerf blade (must be able to cut tight curves) Wood Clamps (screw type recommended) Wood Chisel Drawing Tools pencil, compass, ruler, square Care and patience are required while drawing and cutting in order that the zia has the correct shape on the final turned piece. This procedure calls for cuts to be made into pieces at specific orientations that are difficult to describe clearly in words. A sequence of pictures is provided at the end of this write-up that illustrates each step of the process and should be used to understand the orientation of all pieces being cut. Some of the lines pictured may not be in the optimal locations. The procedure lists the correct positions. It is recommended that the turning blank be trimmed to have a dead square cross section (all sides equal length and at 90 degrees to each other with diagonals of equal length). This will make it easier to position all cuts with respect to the turning axis and will result in a better looking zia. The blank height can be whatever is desired for the intended final piece. Laminating a reasonable looking circle into a blank can be done using a Quick Corner jig or with a compass and combination square. Use of a compass alone to make a circular outline to cut out will, when turned, result in a horizontal, squat oval rather than a circle. Figure 1 shows the results of laminating using a circular cutout (compass alone), vs. using a quick corners jig or a compass and a combination square. Figure 2 shows the circular outline made by a compass alone. Figure 3 shows the outline made by a compass along with 45 degree tangent lines from blank edge to circle edge made with a combination square. When laminating a circle (or any other shape) into a blank, the depth of the cut will define the extent of the circle as it wraps around the piece. If the cut outline extends to the centerline (the turning axis) of the piece the circle will extend from one side to the other side on the front of the final turned piece. If the cut outline doesn t hit the centerline of the piece, the circle will appear on the front of the piece. If the cut outline extends past the centerline of the piece, the circle will wrap around to the backside of the piece. PROCEDURE: 1) Determine how large a zia you want to laminate into the piece. Typically, the outer circle will be slightly smaller than the width of the blank. Carefully draw a zia on paper that has approximately the same dimensions that you want the zia on the final turned piece to be. Measure the radius of the inner and outer circles and measure the spacing between the horizontal and vertical lines (see Figure 4). 2) Determine and mark the dead center on both end faces of the blank (see Figure 5). This defines the turning axis of the piece. It is important that the piece be turned along this axis. If turned off axis the zia may be oddly shaped. 3) On one side face of the blank, a) mark the centerline of the blank (parallel to the turning axis and down the center of the face), b) mark the horizontal centerline where the zia will be placed (your choice, however somewhat above the horizontal center of the blank is suggested to account for chucking and for the thickness of the bottom of the piece), and c) mark the outside edge of the final turned piece (should be at least! from the edge of the blank or the cuts in step 12 will be difficult to do without cutting too far and possibly cutting the wedge in half which will make it difficult to realign correctly). It is helpful to indicate which end of the blank will become the top (or bottom) of the piece (see Figure 6). Page 1 of 9
4) Using a Quick Corner jig or a compass and combination square, draw 2 half circles with radius the same as the paper zia drawing from step 1 onto the side of the blank so that the center of the circles coincides with the intersection of the zia centerline and the outer edge of the piece (drawn in step 3c-see Figure 7). 5) Using a band saw, carefully cut along the circle lines drawn in step 4 to saw out the smaller (inner) circle first, followed by the larger (outer) circle wedge (see Figure 8). Laminating In The Vertical Zia Lines: 6) On the outer face of the outer circle wedge, draw a line where the zia centerline should be (use the zia centerline on the face edge as a guide). Mark the exact center of this line (this is the center of the zia shape). Using a compass, draw a circle centered around the marked center point with a radius equal to the radius of the inner circle of the zia (see Figure 9). The circle is actually optional but is useful to help judge how well the marks made in the next step for the vertical zia lines line up to the final zia shape. 7) Along the marked zia centerline drawn in step 6, and using the measurements made in step 1, make marks where the vertical zia lines should be located (see Figure 10). The four lines should be symmetric around the zia center point and should be equidistant from each other. Use the circle drawn in step 6 as a gauge to judge placement of the marks and adjust the spacing if necessary for better proportions. 8) Draw a line along the edge of the outer face of the outer circle wedge that indicates where the outer edge of the final turned piece will be (see Figure 11). Use the outer edge line mark from the edge face as a guide. This is the cut stop line. Note that Figure 11 has this line drawn too far from the edge of the wedge which resulted in having to turn the piece down further than was originally envisioned. 9) Securely tape the wedge to the back side of the blank so the bottom edge of the wedge will be flat along the table when sawing and the cut stop line drawn in step 8 is visible on the top side (see Figure 12). Putting a piece of tape along the bottom edge will help keep the blank from moving around while you are sawing the vertical zia lines (see Figure 13). A note about this technique: The piece must be turned down until the veneer is exposed or it won t be visible in the final piece. By cutting the veneer in from the back side of the wedge you have to leave a bit of the front edge uncut (no veneer) so you don t cut the wedge in two this bit of the front edge that doesn t have veneer will have to be turned off to expose the veneer. This is not optimal. The problem is caused by the method used to hold the wedge vertically and square (using the front edge of the wedge taped to the back of the blank for alignment). The best way to cut the vertical zia lines would be from the front edge, cutting in to the back of the inner curve, however, holding the wedge vertically and square can t be done reliably with only the curved edge of the back of the wedge available to align and hold the wedge (at least, not without making some type of holding jig). It shouldn t be too difficult to fashion a holder for the wedge to enable you to hold the wedge vertically and square and allow you to saw into the front edge instead of the back but this was not investigated here. If you figure out a good way to laminate the vertical zia lines in from the front edge you can substitute your technique for cutting the vertical zia lines for what is presented here and the rest of the procedure should be unaffected. 10) Clamp a straight board to the miter gauge on the band saw to use for push support and alignment. Ensure that the miter gauge is set for a 90 degree cut (see Figure 15). 11) Carefully align the blank with attached wedge against the miter gauge support board so the blade is positioned exactly over one of the marks made on the wedge in step 7 (see Figure 14). 12) Keeping the blank/wedge held securely against the miter gauge support board, push the blank/wedge straight into the blade to cut the wedge all the way up to the cut line drawn in step 8 (see Figure 15). 13) Repeat steps 11 and 12 for the remaining 3 vertical zia lines (see Figure 16). 14) Cut four strips of veneer to be slightly longer than the width of the vertical zia line cuts and slightly wider than the depth of the cuts. The grain of the veneer should run down the length of the strip, not the width. The edge of the veneer should be straight so it will bottom out evenly at the bottom of the cuts. Page 2 of 9
15) Test fit the veneer into the cuts before gluing (see Figure 17). The veneer should be slightly thinner than the width of the cut so it will slide easily into the slot and allow some room for glue. Use two or more pieces of veneer in each slot if the gap is a lot wider than a single piece of veneer. You can sand the veneer down thinner if the veneer is too thick to fit into the slot. It is important to make sure that the veneer protrudes into the hollow at the back of the wedge and that the edge of the veneer bottoms out along the bottoms of the cuts (see Figure 18). 16) Coat both sides of the veneer with glue (if using multiple pieces of veneer in a slot, coat both sides of all pieces of veneer with glue and press them together) AND coat the bottom edge of the veneer with glue. Dab a small amount of glue across the slot and then push the glued veneer into the slot, ensuring that the veneer bottoms out in the cuts. There should be a small amount of glue that squeezes out from the bottom of the slots if you have used a sufficient amount of glue. If there is no squeeze out you may not have used enough glue (which could result in the veneer tearing out of the slot while you re turning it). 17) Repeat step 16 to glue veneer in the remaining 3 slots and clamp the edges of the wedge to help ensure that all gaps are drawn tight while the glue dries (see Figure 19). 18) Using a Q-tip or the edge of a damp rag, clean up ALL glue squeeze out around all veneer pieces on BOTH sides of the wedge (it can be extremely difficult to remove dried glue later from the curved surfaces of the wedge without damaging the surfaces). Laminating In The Horizontal Zia Lines: 19) After the glue has dried, unclamp the wedge and carefully trim away the excess veneer from both sides of the wedge (see Figure 20). You can use a chisel or the band saw to cut away the excess veneer. Be careful to not cut into the wedge (mistakes may be seen on the final piece). 20) Cut a piece of veneer with width the same as the width of the blank and length slightly longer than what is sufficient to wrap along the outer curved edge of the wedge (an inch or so longer is more than enough) The veneer grain should run along the length of the strip. 21) Before gluing the wedge back into the blank, test fit the veneer thickness by wrapping the veneer around the curve of the wedge and pressing it into the blank (the veneer should be sandwiched between wedge and blank). The wedge should be oriented to the blank the same way as it was before it was cut (i.e. don t put the wedge in upside down). With the wedge pressed firmly into the blank, check to see that the wedge edges line up fairly well with the face of the blank. You should sand the veneer down thinner until the edges are roughly flush with the blank face if the edges sit too proud of the blank. If the wedge edges sit well below the face of the blank you may need to use two or more pieces of veneer between the blank and the wedge to bring the wedge edges roughly flush with the blank face. Note that this is not a critical step but will help you determine if you should use multiple pieces of veneer. 22) Coat the curved cut surface in the blank and the outer curved surface of the wedge with glue. Coat both sides of the veneer with glue (if using multiple pieces of veneer, coat both sides of all pieces of veneer with glue) then align the blank, veneer and wedge together and press the wedge into the blank (see Figure 21). Be careful to ensure that the veneer doesn t slide down on one side to leave a gap with no veneer between the wedge and blank. Clamp the wedge firmly into the blank, making sure that the edges of the wedge align correctly with the blank face and isn t sitting in the blank cock-eyed or shifted. 23) When the glue is completely dry, trim off the excess veneer and, using the measurements taken in step 1, mark along the edge of the wedge where the horizontal zia lines should be cut (see Figure 22). Use the zia center line drawn on the blank (in step 3) as the reference for location of the horizontal zia lines. The four lines should be symmetric around the zia center line and should be equidistant from each other. 24) Using the straight board clamped to the band saw miter gauge (see step10), carefully align the blank against the miter gauge support board so the blade is positioned exactly over one of the horizontal zia marks made on the blank in step 23 and, keeping the blank held securely against the miter support board, push the blank straight into the blade to cut all the way up to the sandwiched veneer line (see figure 23). Page 3 of 9
25) Repeat step 24 for the remaining 3 vertical zia lines. Figure 24 shows all cuts for the horizontal zia lines. 26) Cut four strips of veneer to be slightly longer than the width of the horizontal zia line cuts and slightly wider than the depth of the cuts. The grain of the veneer should run down the length of the strip, not the width. The edge of the veneer should be straight so it will bottom out evenly at the bottom of the cuts. 27) Test fit the veneer into the cuts before gluing (see step 15 for test fit considerations). 28) Coat both sides of the veneer with glue (if using multiple pieces of veneer, coat both sides of all pieces of veneer with glue and press them together) AND coat the bottom edge of the veneer with glue. Dab a small amount of glue along the slot and then push the glued veneer into the slot, ensuring that the veneer bottoms out in the cut. There should be a small amount of glue squeeze out around the slot bottom. 29) Repeat step 28 to glue veneer into the remaining 3 slots (see Figure 25) and clamp the edges of the blank to help ensure that all gaps are drawn tight while the glue dries (see Figure 26). The horizontal and vertical veneer lines should form a cross-hatched pattern in the center of the hollow area. 30) Using a Q-tip or the edge of a damp rag, clean up ALL glue squeeze out around all veneer pieces. Finishing Up the Lamination: 31) After the glue has dried, unclamp the blank and carefully trim away the excess veneer from the inside of the hollow using a chisel or the band saw (being careful to not cut into the blank). 32) Cut a piece of veneer with width the same as the width of the blank and length slightly longer than what is sufficient to wrap along the curved edge of the inner circle piece (an inch or so longer is more than enough) The veneer grain should run along the length of the strip. 33) As before, test fit the veneer thickness by wrapping the veneer around the curve of the piece and press it into the blank (the veneer should be sandwiched between piece and blank) and check to see if you need to use more than one piece of veneer (see step 21 for veneer thickness considerations). 34) Coat the curved cut surface of the blank and the inner circle piece with glue. Coat both sides of the veneer with glue (if using multiple pieces of veneer, coat both sides of all pieces of veneer with glue and press them together) then align the blank, veneer and piece together and press the piece into the blank, making sure the veneer is sandwiched correctly between the piece and the blank. Clamp the piece firmly into the blank, making sure the center piece and all edges are all correctly aligned to the blank. This completes the laminating process. When the glue is completely dry the piece is ready to be turned. Figure 27 shows what a completed blank will look like. A Few Final Notes On Turning The Piece: Mount the blank on the lathe between centers, being extremely careful to use the blank end center points made in step 2, and then cut in for your usual mounting technique for the type of piece you are turning. Note that turning the piece off axis will affect the shape and/or symmetry of the zia you ll end up with. The blank can be turned using normal mounting and turning techniques. Be sure to use sharp tools at all times as this will help avoid tearing out pieces of veneer or breaking out chunks of the wood from between the veneer (due to excess stress from a dull tool or if you didn t get enough glue at some spot). You can finish the piece using your normal finishing technique. Note that extremely high heat (e.g. from a friction finish) can adversely affect glue joints especially if a normal duty type of wood glue (e.g. yellow glue) is used I haven t had a problem with glue failure when using TiteBond III. Figure 28 shows two examples of turned cups with a zia laminated into them (one with an oval shape, one circular - explained above in the General Notes section). Note also that using different colored veneers on a piece can enhance the visual effect of the lamination. Enjoy and Happy Laminating and Turning Bill Kloepping, January 2009 Page 4 of 9
Figures and Pictures With Explanations For Laminating A Zia Into A Turning Blank Cir cle Outline Piece Centerline Piece Outline Figure 1 Results of: - a Circular shaped cutout (left and see Figure 2 explanation) - a Quick Corner jig shaped cutout (center) - a Circular shaped cutout with 45 degree tangents (right and see Figure 3 explanation) Figure 2 A circular arc drawn with a compass at the edge of a blank (with circle center at the piece outline) When cut, laminated back into the blank, and turned, this will result in a short looking oval shape on the piece the oval shape will be noticeably wider in the horizontal direction as compared to a good circle (see Figure 1 and Figure 28) Circle Outline with 45 degree tangents Piece Centerline Piece Outline Figure 3 A circular arc drawn with a compass at the edge of a blank with the addition of 45 degree tangent lines from the outline of the circle to edge of the blank. When cut along the tangent lines and across the back (top) of the circle, then laminated back in and turned, this laminated shape will result in a more circular shape on the final piece than what you get with a simple circular cut (see Figure 1 and Figure 2). This lamination shape is roughly equivalent to what you will get with a properly sized and aligned Quick Corner jig. Note however, if the Quick Corner jig is not aligned properly the resulting shape may be more oval/elliptical in the vertical direction (e.g. the top of the shape will be narrower or wider than the bottom) Figure 4 On paper, draw a zia that is sized about the size you want it on the final piece. Measure the radius of the circles and the separation between the lines. Page 5 of 9
Figure 5 - Carefully determine and mark the center of both ends of the blank and mark them with a punch. Figure 6 Draw the vertical centerline, horizontal center of zia line, and piece outline on one face of the blank. Figure 7 Draw arcs to cut for the inner and outer circle of the zia symmetric around horizontal zia center line Figure 8 Following the outlines, carefully saw out the inner circle and then the outer circle with a band saw Figure 9 Mark the horizontal zia center line on the back of the center cut wedge and draw the inner circle of the zia at the exact center of the zia center line you just drew (if not at exact center the zia will not look good) Figure 10 from the zia center point, and along the horizontal centerline just drawn, mark where the vertical zia lines should be located Page 6 of 9
Figure 11 Draw a vertical cut-stop line at what will become the outer edge of the piece (note that the line indicated in this picture was drawn too far from the edge of the blank it should have been closer to the edge) Figure 12 Align the wedge to the bottom edge of the back of the blank and secure it to the blank with tape. This will help keep the wedge vertical and square to the saw table while cutting the vertical zia line slots. Figure 13 Secure the bottom edge of wedge to blank with tape to ensure everything stays in place and level Figure 14 With the band saw, carefully cut straight into the piece at each of the vertical zia line marks Figure 15 Cut each vertical zia line up to the stopline marked at the edge of the wedge (don t cut all the way through the wedge!) Figure 16 This shows the four vertical zia line cuts made up to the marked stop-line Page 7 of 9
Figure 17 Test fit veneer into the slots use two pieces of veneer if cut is a lot wider than a single veneer piece Figure 18 Note that the veneer will protrude into the inner hollow space (important!) Figure 19 Glue veneer into slots and clamp clean up all glue squeeze out with a Q-tip or damp rag. Figure 20 When the glue is dry, carefully trim away excess veneer from wedge using band saw and/or chisel. Figure 21 Glue wedge back into the turning blank with veneer sandwiched between the wedge and the blank. Figure 22 When the glue is dry, trim off excess veneer and mark where the horizontal zia lines should be located Page 8 of 9
Figure 23 With the band saw, carefully cut straight into the blank at each of the 4 horizontal zia line marks, stopping each cut at the veneer line at the back of wedge Figure 24 This shows the four horizontal zia line cuts going all the way up to the glued-in veneer line. Figure 25 Test fit, then glue veneer into the slots. Clean up all glue squeeze out and clamp the ends. Figure 26 Horizontal and vertical veneer lines should form a centered cross-hatch pattern. Figure 27 When the glue is dry, trim excess veneer from inner surface and glue/clamp center piece in with veneer sandwiched between the piece and blank. Done Figure 28 Two turned pieces. The left one was done using circle cutouts and a single layer of veneer, the right was done using a quick corners jig and doubled veneer. Page 9 of 9