What we (almost) do with free time.
While free time is seldom seen in the land of the white cat, it does occasionally find its way into our schedules. Last week I found myself with several hours and decided that a laptop engraving was in order. Now I know, laptop engraving is nothing new, A quick YouTube or digg search will net you plenty of previous examples. What I was setting out to do, was to somehow integrate cold hard technology (computers, computer controlled lasers) with what we do here at Oslo Press. So I thought, “why not do some good old fashioned wood inlay in a laptop?”
Here is my IBM X30 laptop in the bed of our laser engraver, ready to go under the beam.
Our C02 laser at work engraving the image into the top of the lid. Please excuse the OsloHair(TM) on the cover.
After engraving something like this it is common to have a bit of soot or smoke near where the laser did its work. Here I’m just using a wet paper towel to wipe it right off.
At this point I cut out the corresponding inlay parts from some 1/32″ maple veneer.
Here I am performing a dry fit of the veneer parts.
Here is the completed dry fit of veneer inlay in the top of my laptop.
As you can see from this picture, I ran into a bit of a problem. While we may think of veneer as being extremely thin, nothing seems to compare to the lid of my laptop. After less than 1/64th of depth, the laptop started showing large amounts of deflection when pressure was applied to the graphic. Because I actually need to use my computer, I decided to not continue engraving any deeper. Because of this decision, the veneer protruded from the top. I felt it was too fragile for how laptops are used, and it would chip and break. So I did not glue it in. Now I simply have a relief pattern in my laptop lid as seen in image 3. Not bad, but not nearly as cool as inlay would have been.Maybe next time I will try with a laptop that is not made for lightness and portability like the IBM X-series.
junglegirl said,
September 25, 2007 @ 11:09 am
Very cool. Couldn’t you glue it in then sand or plane it flush?
Glenwood said,
September 25, 2007 @ 12:26 pm
We did consider that possibility at first. However thinkpads have a rubberized coating that, if hit with sandpaper, would start to look ugly very quickly.
redphone said,
September 28, 2007 @ 2:20 pm
I wonder how a chisel would work for those of us without laser engravers…
Fortunately for me, I’ve got old laptops to experiment with! (and my woodcarving skills will hopefully come in handy)
nasty said,
September 28, 2007 @ 3:24 pm
lasers? big deal, anybody can get that done. try some skill and do it by hand. talented people can get the same effects without the robot. death to cnc machining-
Manbeast said,
September 28, 2007 @ 3:49 pm
Great Job! Risky but the end result is sweet.
A.R. said,
September 28, 2007 @ 9:32 pm
Why not sand the wood pieces first — until they are very thin (if you are careful, you can probably get them down to paper-thin), and then, when they are thin enough to be flush with the edges, glue them in?
And maybe stain the wood with a light stain to bring out the wood texture?
FFFish said,
September 29, 2007 @ 12:10 am
Fill with Fimo. Or two-part epoxy. In fact, there is kneadable two-part wood-coloured epoxy. It’d likely bond with the plastic, putting some strength back into the case. If you were quick about it, you could probably combine it with it’s partner product: a white epoxy for marine use. Do it using a damascus steel type of layering and it may come across quite sharp.
Glenwood said,
September 29, 2007 @ 12:11 am
Thanks for the tips FFFish, I’ll give it a try
Izzye said,
September 29, 2007 @ 8:11 pm
Fail.
Gold Leaf FTW!