# First Go At A Basket Weave



## cabomhn (Jan 9, 2014)

This was just something I've been wanting to give a try. I tried this once before using a veneer but cutting it by hand was tedious and it honestly didn't look as good in the end. This time I tried it using ¼" stock which I think makes the top stronger and more versatile. This was just a test piece and I don't think I'll actually end up using it on anything since I didn't have enough matching wood to make it very big. The large blocks are 1" by ½" and then the smaller ones are ¼" squares. The small pieces were cut on a zero clearance table saw jig and the tiny squares were made by taping together multiple smaller pieces to have a larger cutoff size, (less little pieces flying around the shop). I've just began glueing the next one for my project so hopefully it will come out well.

Reactions: Like 14


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## ButchC (Jan 9, 2014)

Looks like a wall hanger to me. Nice job. What's the intended use for your scaled up version?

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## ripjack13 (Jan 10, 2014)

Neeto! Can you use it as a hot plate? Or vase plate? Wall art is good too. Or....the start of a childs rocking chair?

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## barry richardson (Jan 10, 2014)

Cool, really does look like a weave. Do you have a technique for gluing them down? looks tedious to do

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## ripjack13 (Jan 10, 2014)

Can you post a couple more pix of that? I'd like to see the backside, and maybe a close up of the top. 
I'm interested in this....is it also possible to get pix of your process?
Thanx...

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## Dane Fuller (Jan 10, 2014)

That looks awesome. I had to look twice before I noticed I couldn't see your fingers through it. A piece like that would drive me absolutely insane------r

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## ironman123 (Jan 10, 2014)

That is real neat. Looks not to be easy.

Ray


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## cabomhn (Jan 10, 2014)

ButchC said:


> Looks like a wall hanger to me. Nice job. What's the intended use for your scaled up version?



Well the original intent of this one was to be inlaid into the top of a box, but simply ran out of wood. This one that I am working on now will be used for the same purpose!


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## cabomhn (Jan 10, 2014)

barry richardson said:


> Cool, really does look like a weave. Do you have a technique for gluing them down? looks tedious to do



Since I am redoing this I'm still only partly done with the next one so I will definitely get some pics for you guys, unfortunately there is no "easy" way to glue them down, nothing like a cut and rip routine for a cutting board so it really is done almost completely with hand work.


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## cabomhn (Jan 10, 2014)

Alright so a few more pictures...

Here is a side view of the one pictured above. As you can see the pieces are just glued down onto a piece of ¼" oak plywood. The bottom really is nothing special just a substrate for the small wood pieces. Later on the back will be veneered so when it is inlaid into the box lid you will no longer be able to see the plywood. 


 

Here is the best close up I could get with the lens I had on my camera. The key to making the pattern as tight as possible is really just making good quality cuts when you first start the cutting process. The pieces need to be exactly the same size or as close as possible or they really won't line up right. 


 

Ok so basically what I start with is a ton of little pieces. There are all some sort of rosewood and once they were planed down to ¼", I ripped them on the table saw to ½" and then took all of my little wood strips over to me zero clearance 90 degree jig for the table saw and then set up a 1" mark and made them all exactly 1". 


 

Here are my spacers for in between the rosewood. These are maple and they are approximately ¼" squares. In all honesty, it's pretty hard to get them to be perfectly ¼" inch since even really small differences show up but that's what I just cut a ton of them and just keep trying squares until they fit right. 


 

Alright so for the glueing process, this is where I was at on the one I started last night. The following few steps is just something that you repeat all the way until you are done. If your cuts are accurate you do not need to draw lines out or anything like that, the process I'm about to describe will keep everything lined up properly. So in the following picture, I start out by lining the whole first row up without any glue (2-3) to determine where 1 should sit to be centered. This needs to be close not perfect since later on you clean it up with the table saw. So I started by gluing down 1. Then I worked my way out to 2 and the back at 1 again I worked my way to 3. This gives me an entire first row, which is the same pattern as you will see on the far right in this same picture. As you start working in the direction of the arrow. 


 

Alright so this step is pretty easy. I just put down this pieces for picture purposes so the next few steps are not glued into place just resting. The next step is to add all of the little maple squares in. Make sure that the glue is touching all sides of contact, it's easy to forget at first so just be careful and you'll be fine. 


 

Now you need to add in the rosewood piece in between the blocks so it butts up perpendicular to the other rosewood piece it is touching.


 

Now, simply add the pieces of rosewood in between to get the same pattern that you started with. This 3 step pattern can be repeated over and over until the pattern is complete.


 

And that's all there is to it. Yes it is a fairly tedious process but honestly it doesn't take that long. In the three previous pictures the section that I started with only took a total of about 20 minutes to glue on while I was watching a movie at my desk. A little time consuming but you can do other things while you're doing it so it's not too bad. Logically it seems like it would make sense to have the grain in the wood match along a weaved "strip" but it seemed to me that since it matched so well it kind of took away from the 3D effect that it has if the grains are more random as long as the wood grain is somewhat uniform. Let me know if you have any questions!

Reactions: Like 2 | Informative 3


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## Dane Fuller (Jan 10, 2014)

You are a better man that I, Matt.


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## cabomhn (Jan 10, 2014)

Dane Fuller said:


> You are a better man that I, Matt.



I promise it's not that bad, anyone on here could do this if they really wanted to, lol, just have to be a little crazy.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Dane Fuller (Jan 10, 2014)

cabomhn said:


> I promise it's not that bad, anyone on here could do this if they really wanted to, lol, just have to be a little crazy.


I've always been told I was more than a little crazy. I guess that's why I shouldn't try this....LOL

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## ripjack13 (Jan 11, 2014)

Nice!! Thanx for posting up pix! That gives me direction.. Thank you.

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## cabomhn (Jan 11, 2014)

This is what I ended up putting it in. I'll post a finished project pic in a few days!

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## NYWoodturner (Jan 18, 2014)

Matt - Thats mind blowing to me but completely awesome. You always amaze.

Reactions: Like 1 | Informative 1


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## cabomhn (Jan 19, 2014)

NYWoodturner said:


> Matt - Thats mind blowing to me but completely awesome. You always amaze.



Thanks! I'll hopefully be finishing up both of these boxes once the shop opens up this week.


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## Kenbo (Jan 19, 2014)

That.

Is.


AWESOME!!!!!

Reactions: Like 1


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