# Need some help making a blank



## Alan Sweet (Nov 4, 2019)

I want to make a segmented blank and include the following cube in the blank. 

I wanted originally to strat with 3 x 3 x 3 cube and cut the individual lines One at a time and glue 1/16" veneer like thins in each cut. So far my experiments have been less than satisfactory. 

Has anyone got a nice process for creating such a block?

I am not doing this so that it looks like the drawing and need voice of experience.


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## Karl_TN (Nov 4, 2019)

Is the problem matching the veneer thickness with blade kerf which could throws things off with so many cuts? You might have better success if you make your own veneer in order to adjust thickness (i.e. band saw with a veneer cutting blade). Just a thought..


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## Alan Sweet (Nov 4, 2019)

I Think that the veneer thickness is part of the issue. I'm trying to work with 1/16" thick sheets, The kerf is 1/10". 

Also, I think there are operator problems. After the first couple runs measurements start changing . I was wondering about just cutting the wedge piece for uniformity and then gluing them.

I'm also considering a specialty sled, I have a 45 degree sled I made which works fine for boxes and major 45 cut but does not seem to work well for this.


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## trc65 (Nov 4, 2019)

When I made some Celtic knots in peppermills (similar, but less complicated), I found two things to be important. First, thickness of veneer must match the saw kerf. Second, when glueing up, you have to maintain square in all dimensions.

To size veneer, I used hand planes to sneak up on correct thickness. To help keep everything square, I wouldn't make through cuts in the blank, but rather lower the saw blade about 1/8" and leave just a little bit of the wood intact. This greatly helped in keeping everything aligned during glue up. The other thing that helped was using cauls during clamping/glueing to keep everything aligned.


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## ripjack13 (Nov 4, 2019)

Here's a good tutorial on the celtic knot, this info can be useful here too...

https://woodbarter.com/threads/wanna-turn-a-celtic-knot.32814/

Reactions: Like 1


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## tocws2002 (Nov 7, 2019)

Do your cuts need to go all the way through the block? If not, I would consider using a 1/16" router bit (same width as veneer) and sled/jig on a router table. You should only need 3 setups/adjustments to be able to cut all the slots for the veneer. One setup for the edges, one for the vertical and horizontal lines, and one setup for the diagonal lines.

-jason


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## Alan Sweet (Nov 7, 2019)

tocws2002 said:


> Do your cuts need to go all the way through the block? If not, I would consider using a 1/16" router bit (same width as veneer) and sled/jig on a router table. You should only need 3 setups/adjustments to be able to cut all the slots for the veneer. One setup for the edges, one for the vertical and horizontal lines, and one setup for the diagonal lines.



TY... Now that is definitely a try...


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