Gregg
Posts: 12
Joined: 2006-03-03
Location: chicago
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I need a .010" pourous backer for mother of pearl laminations in order to build up to .020" finish thickness to closely match my wood veneer thicknesses.
I do a lot Boulle marquery projects and have started incorporating Mother of Pearl (MOP) in my designs. You can buy MOP lamination with thicknesses of .030" and sand them down after glueup but since I use alot of the stuff, it becomes very price prohibitive, I have switched to a thinner version of .010 for cost reasons(.030 MOP is $100+ / sf, .010" is $30). So it is worth my time to build up the thin stuff to .020". The cost savings can be well over $1,000 on a typical cabinet.
I have tried epoxying the MOP to .010 scuffed plastic film, which does work, but with a little effort, I can peel the MOP off. I am afraid that a sharp jolt to the project will cause the MOP to pop off the plastic. This did happen once when I dropped a finished door. In that situation it was a poor choice of paint for the back, since the plastic didn't release from from the substrate, but the painted back from the plastic. I have changed to a high quality epoxy primer.
I need these glue ups to stand the test of time. Since a project will have over 1000 small pieces on it, if the MOP starts a poppin', repair is out of the question. It would be easier to start fresh.
I have tried epoxy, Unibond, and cyro's all with same result. Since I can't change the proporties of the MOP, the solution lies in a pourous backer.
I have tried a high quality double sided tape from 3M which sticks great (you couldn't separate the the MOP from the plastic without destroying the MOP) but I could see trapped air bubbles no matter how carefully I applied the tape (J-roller, heat gun, etc). Once again, since the pieces are small (.125 and smaller) and 1/8" air bubble will give very little support. Plus I am concerned how well semiviscous tape will hold 50 years from now compared to a 2 part plastic adhesive. A bit of backround, the MOP is actually thin slices of shell binded in epoxy which makes getting the air out of from the front impossible .
This is my current process. I paint the backs of MOP product (called "thin lam" from Duke of Pearl) with a good quality primer and let it cure. Since the MOP is so thin, it is semitransparent which is why you need to paint the backs. I then scuff both sides of the plastic and the back of MOP. I epoxy the MOP to the plastic. I then treat the MOP lamination just like veneer. Since I cut with a laser, I have been leaving a slight gap of .002" so during the final glue up to the substrate so the Unibond 800 can get into that gap and help secure that top piece of MOP. I then sand VERY carefully since I only have about .003" to play with.
What I am looking for is a semi pourous backer that is .010" thick. I had no luck in contacting NVF about Yorkite or Forbon, but I can't get through their phone system . Someone mentioned gator ply but the thinest they have is .016".
So in conclusion, what I want is:
1) a backer that will accept the first glue up to the MOP (usually epoxy for speed and clarity if I don't have to prime)
2) then have enough pourness left for the second glue up to the substrate which is always Unibond, and
3) have a colored backer as to eliminate the painting of the shell so the glue will bond directly to the shell, not the paint.
Any suggestions?
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