Crushed inlay on a ukulele

rinny11 · Mar 12, 2013

I looked back about 10 pages and didn't find much about this subject. Forgive me if its been answered before!

I want to do some inlay of crushed shell on my Kala KA-CE ukulele. I would like to do inlay of her name, "Charmaine," on the top of it.

I know the top is very thin, but I've had a lot of practice with wood carving (I make woodblock prints), and I'm confident I won't carve through the top. I'll probably use CA glue.

How do I prevent the glue from staining the mahogany? I have paraffin wax, would a coating of that work? After I finish, how do I clean up the top and refinish the uke?

Anyone who's done something like this, I'd love some guidance. If things go well I'll post pictures of it during and after

Thank you!

BlackBearUkes · Mar 12, 2013

rinny11 said:
I looked back about 10 pages and didn't find much about this subject. Forgive me if its been answered before!

I want to do some inlay of crushed shell on my Kala KA-CE ukulele. I would like to do inlay of her name, "Charmaine," on the top of it.

I know the top is very thin, but I've had a lot of practice with wood carving (I make woodblock prints), and I'm confident I won't carve through the top. I'll probably use CA glue.

How do I prevent the glue from staining the mahogany? I have paraffin wax, would a coating of that work? After I finish, how do I clean up the top and refinish the uke?

Anyone who's done something like this, I'd love some guidance. If things go well I'll post pictures of it during and after

Thank you!

First of all, you should know that crushed shell inlay will not look like solid inlaid MOP or Abalone shell. Do a sample before you begin on another piece of wood. If the uke already has finish on it, you don't have to worry much about CA glue staining. To finish over your finished work, you have to know what the original finish is before you can match it, and if it is a poly finish, putting any finish over that won't stick for long anyway. Just do a neat job with the CA and inlay material and you shouldn't have to worry too much about finish over it. Good luck.

rinny11 · Mar 12, 2013

Thank you! I know the crushed shell won't look like MoP or abalone, it's just plain white shell. This is more for practice and fun... I work neatly, but when I will have to sand down the crushed inlay I'm worried it'll sand the top of the uke around the script, so I'd have to sand the whole top to get it even looking, then refinish. So in that case I'm wondering what to finish it with.

Thank you for the advice!

BlackBearUkes · Mar 12, 2013

rinny11 said:
Thank you! I know the crushed shell won't look like MoP or abalone, it's just plain white shell. This is more for practice and fun... I work neatly, but when I will have to sand down the crushed inlay I'm worried it'll sand the top of the uke around the script, so I'd have to sand the whole top to get it even looking, then refinish. So in that case I'm wondering what to finish it with.

Thank you for the advice!

You can sand the top finish, but unless you take it down to the wood, any finish you put on top of the Poly finish (since this is an import Kala, it is going to be some kind of plastic finish) the new finish won't adhere for long. Also, when sanding on a poly finish, the scratches are hard to get rid of. This whole thing might seem like an easy task, but it is a can of worms if you are not use to working with this kind of thing. If you should sand it to the wood, adding a finish that will look like the rest of the uke requires tools and skill. The easiest new finish would be an oil finish like Tru oil, the kind of thing people use on gun stocks. It is easy to apply and you can build it to a high gloss, plus you can re-apply the oil anytime. I would strongly advise that you practice on something first to get a feel for the materials if you should proceed.

rinny11 · Mar 12, 2013

So, even if I use an oil-based finish it won't adhere because of the original plastic finish? How deep do you reckon the original finish goes- the top is a little over 1/16" thick (maybe 1/8"). I don't have a problem sanding and refinishing the whole instrument.

Even though I've never worked on an instrument, I've done a fair bit of practice on various types of wood.

Do you think just painting on top of the uke soundboard is a better idea? Would acrylic be okay, or should I use oil based paint (or even latex)?

I've been researching a lot before I start, but I just have a ton of questions.

Thanks again!

BlackBearUkes · Mar 12, 2013

rinny11 said:
So, even if I use an oil-based finish it won't adhere because of the original plastic finish? How deep do you reckon the original finish goes- the top is a little over 1/16" thick (maybe 1/8"). I don't have a problem sanding and refinishing the whole instrument.

Even though I've never worked on an instrument, I've done a fair bit of practice on various types of wood.

Do you think just painting on top of the uke soundboard is a better idea? Would acrylic be okay, or should I use oil based paint (or even latex)?

Well, painting on the top will be far less problematic. If you paint directly on the top, I would use acrylics, not oils. Remember, painting on top of plastic will last just so long, but you might wear it off before it falls off. Just do it, you can always touch it up down the road if you have too

Pukulele Pete · Mar 12, 2013

I bought a uke with a crushed top that had a poly finish . I fixed the top and sprayed it with black and then clear lacquer. It has been a couple years and the finish is still fine.
I sprayed over the poly, I did not sand the top down to bare wood.

jcalkin · Mar 14, 2013

You might try Inlace to fill the voids you carve, rather than crushed shell. Comes in colors, adheres well, stays soft enough to scrape back to the top finish. Without some sanding it'll be uneven, but if you scratch the poly it'll be hard to clean up, as Duane indicated. You can buff the Inlace directly without having to top coat over it. Using a CA or epoxy filler with crushed shell will be much harder to deal with. By the time you sand it level you'll probably have such a mes that you'll have to refinish the whole top. I don't know anything about commercial ukes. Is yours solid wood or laminated? You surely don't want to sand through a top laminate.

Crushed inlay on a ukulele

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