Need help on type of wood for fret project

[Gonzo]

Grampa was so very kind by making this pattern for me.  It's one of the most difficult patterns for me, so far anyways. My question to those of you who do delicate fret work, is what kind of wood should I use. Not sure I want to use Baltic birch. I would like to use 1/4" thick. Pattern is 8 x 11 inches. 

[NC Scroller]

BB might be your best bet.  1/4" solid wood is highly susceptible to warping. No matter which way you go stack cut at least 2 pieces.

[Scrappile]

I would agree with NC Scroller.  If you want 1/4" then I would use BB.  Everything else I have tried, warps.  UNLESS, you use something else but cut it in strips and glue it together alternating the grain direction.  Then, I would is Maple, Cherry, Oak or any other I liked.

[Gonzo]

Thanks NC and Scrappile. NC, I was thinking of stack cutting. What if I went with 3/8 or 1/2"? The reason I'm leary of using BB is all the jagged edges that I'll have to cut (horizontal "gutter").

[teachnlearn]

What do you think of cutting the pattern somewhat thin, then glue on a thick color backing to show through the cut? RJF

Edited March 19, 2019 by teachnlearn
thought change, word change

[fredfret]

A stack of 2 ea 1/4 inch Baltic birch or thicker will give the most stable cutting both during and after. I also use mdf core cabinet grade laminates but the dust can be a concern.  Solid wood would look great but some of those cuts will be fragile and solid wood is far more brittle than any ply.

[lawson56]

I use 1/4 BB all the time,I have cut some pretty thin cuts,it holds up pretty darn well.Then I use 1/4 for the backer.

[MrsN]

I would use BB. I really like 1/8" but 1/4" would be just fine. You mentioned being unsure about BB because of the jagged edge that is the gutter on the building. Spots like that actually make me want to use BB. The cross grain feature of plywood makes those weird bits stronger. Use a nice reverse tooth blade and it will be great!

Edited March 20, 2019 by MrsN

[crupiea]

I pretty much use 1/8" bb for all my fretwork stuff. Its thin enough to easily work with and it holds up well. 

What I would do with this piece is size it up a bit in excel. Print it across 2 pages so it would be say 15" wide or so. Just easier to work with and the tiny areas will be more workable.

What will happen is when you are cutting there will be an unsupported part right where that hole in the saw is. To overcome this I use one of those old casino playing cards with a hole in the middle of it. Tape it to the table with packing tape and now its just a 1/4" hole the blade goes through. Mosre support for the jiggly parts and less breakage.
 

[Chunkthekid]

I will go against the grain on this one. I would use cherry or hard maple. That is what I use 95% of the time on my detailed fret work and I haven't had any problems. For some reason I just never got into using BB for anything but backer boards. I have definitely run into some warping of the wood before the cut but I haven't had any problems after I get the piece finished.

 

[Bill WIlson]

It looks to me like the pattern has several peninsulas that aren't supported by much.  This is where BB ply shines.  You could get away with thinner BB ply than you could using solid hard wood.  Those kinds of places, especially if they are cross grain, are much more prone to breakage in hardwood.  You would need to compensate by going thicker, which to me, detracts from the piece.  I think this kind of scrolling benefits from using thin stock.  1/4" would the thickest I would go, but that's my personal preference.  As for jagged edges, that is as much or more a function of blade choice as it is the material being cut.  Since this pattern employs a lot of straight lines, sharp corners and geometric shapes, it doesn't lend itself as readily to using a spiral blade.  But, that said, a combination of the right spirals and straight blades should make this turn out nicely.

[Rockytime]

My suggestion would also be to enlarge the pattern making it easier to cut. Use double sheets of 1/4" BB. For blades I have been delighted with #1 Pegas MG. The blade has a few reverse teeth at the bottom of the blade which helps with tear-out. Ahh, but then what the heck do I know. 

[Sparkey]

I personally wouldn't go with anything thicker than 1/4". I use 1/4" plywood from Lowes. They have Birch, Oak and Maple. I have not had any problems with it yet. I usually stack cut three. Here is an example of the detail I cut in it with no problems.

[Gonzo]

20 hours ago, Sparkey said:

I personally wouldn't go with anything thicker than 1/4". I use 1/4" plywood from Lowes. They have Birch, Oak and Maple. I have not had any problems with it yet. I usually stack cut three. Here is an example of the detail I cut in it with no problems.

Wow! That is nice  Sparkey,

Thank you all very much for your input and opinions. Very much appreciated. I might have to try to lumber from Lowes, But most likely I'll go with 1/4" BB 

Edited March 20, 2019 by Gonzo