Has anyone used Obsidian for inlay work?

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THarvey

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Oct 4, 2007
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Anniston, AL, USA
I have not found any references to obsidian being used for inlay in turned pieces. From the descriptions I can find online, I am wondering if it could be crushed and used similar to turquoise.

The only concern I have is obsidian is basically a non-silica glass. The shards could be extremely sharp.

Anyone have any expereince with it? With its rich color, I think crushed obsidian would look sharp (pun, noted) as an inlay/filler for cholla.

Thanks in advance for your input.
 
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Fibonacci

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It is very hard and brittle. If you pulverized it and used it with resin (think trustone), it might work, but if you tried to use chunks of it as inlay, I would expect it to shatter.

When you work Obsidian, you generally nap it, rather than grinding due to how brittle it is.

That said, it would look really great if you could figure out how to do it. I have some pieces about the right size that I could send you to try.

PM me if you are interested.
 

phillywood

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Tim, I am thinking form what I googled that the colorfulness of it is due to the minerals contained in it and if you find a way to pulverize it, would it still retain the color, otherwise the other way around would be too dangerous to work with. I may be wrong.
 

hdtran

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May 17, 2006
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Albuquerque, NM, USA.
I have not found any references to obsidian being used for inlay in turned pieces. From the descriptions I can find online, I am wondering if it could be crushed and used similar to turquoise.

The only concern I have is obsidian is basically a non-silica glass. The shards could be extremely sharp.

Anyone have any expereince with it? With its rich color, I think crushed obsidian would look sharp (pun, noted) as an inlay/filler for cholla.

Thanks in advance for your input.

Obsidian is a silica glass mineral. Shards and debris will be very sharp. Obsidian, along with flint, chert, and petrified wood, were used by stone-age people to make tools.

I have very limited experience with mineral inlays (two pens!), but I think you need to bury the inlay in the hole so that you're not turning the mineral, but the resin on top.
 

Chasper

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Mar 22, 2007
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Indiana
I've knapped quite a few points and blades out of obsidian and I have a collection of more than 30 types of obsidian. I see no reason why you couldn't crush it and use for inlays. The solid colors in obsidian like black and pumpkin should look nice, but I don't think you will be able to see the multi-colors in rainbow, peacock, or even snowflake; they will probably just look black.

Caution: Powdered obsidian can be extremly harmful to your lungs and it can happen with only a few inhalations. Crushing it should be done outside on a breezy day with the wind at your back and wearing a respirator.

Powdered jet is black and it is easy to use for inlays, you can buy it already powdered
 
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