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Lee, LOL - it's all about the proper shading!
I have never done pique assinette, and only used plates in one of the opus sectile pieces I've done, it was for an up-cycle piece depicting a bird of paradise flower - & I needed COLORS - so cut into plates
ADD: Image for "Keu palekaiko (Excess of paradise)- Subspecies of Manu palekaiko":
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/q9upva5xzopui...ekaiko.JPG
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Carey: Earlier in the thread you were saying you can only cut straight lines with the wet saw, so how are you doing the curves? You said something about 'approximating curves' and calculus, but somehow I can't picture the process. My wife was thinking an angle grinder might be able to do it.
Me ka ha`aha`a,
Mike
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I draw out the design on paper that I have marked for the grid of the background tiles, making sure that there are no "impossible cuts" on either. Then I cut the pattern & trace it on to both the background and pattern tiles. For curves, I try to cut out as much of the non-pattern sections as possible (I use triangulation a lot for this) then I cut many straight cuts comb-tooth like (the calculus part - the area under a curve approx. rectangles:
http://www.vias.org/calculus/04_integration_01_02.html ) into the curves & tap out the comb teeth. Trial & error to know how deep for each type of tile, and knowing your saw! BTW, I use a very cheapy tile saw, some of the better saws for cutting repetitive straight cuts are actually worse for this type work) cleaning up the cuts is done with "edging" the cut line against the saw blade.
Even angle grinders have a straight cutting edge that you have to still consider (of course, a wet band or ring saw virtually eliminates the "straight cutting edge, and the guys who do opus sectile with water jets....but all of these cutting tools are way above my level of tile work (as I really have only done this for a very few years & a very few pieces per year...the wet saw is the most cost effective for my low level of craft)
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Carey
Was visiting our friends that own Big Island Coffee Roasters last week and saw the pig you made for them... Beautiful.
Ed
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Ed, thanks! Their exquisite coffee & logo inspired the Puna piggy! I was looking at the logo while placing an order, & thought "wonder if I could cut that?"
The coffee lei is an example of taking an impossible cut with my basic saw & making it possible....
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Carey: thanks so much for the clarification on your technique. My wife has one of the 'basic' wet saws and I think the smaller blade size is probably what allows them to do the more difficult cuts you are talking about. We rent the big saws when doing tile floors because they are so fast by comparison. Thanks again for the tips!
Me ka ha`aha`a,
Mike
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I have only used 7" wet saws, but the cheapy one has a table with smooth surface & no sliding table...the smooth table allows the tile to go anywhere (bad for repetitive straight cuts, good for the stuff I want it to do)
The background grid tile cuts I needed the lei for are almost not noticed, the neck would have needed a slight reverse cut ... the other thing is that the Puna pig tiles were not large large enough for the boar, so the lei also hides a neck cut that would have had to have been made. Image:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/bnci12fswm3ny5...feeLei.JPG
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Beautiful work Carey! Do you use a Dremel Tool or a "Wizzer" glass cutting machine for your curved cuts? ( just curious. If it's a "trade" secret, I understand!)
Community begins with Aloha
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Nope, just a cheapie HD wet saw...
Secret to curves, get as much tile weight out (cutting out wedges, then straight cuts in like a comb, cutting close to the drawn curve line, then ping the comb teeth. clean up the curve with the wet saw blade...
The more expensive wet saws are WONDERFUL for maintaining a straight cut, but suck at curves... the saw I use has a smooth stainless table that the tiles float on (crappy for straight cuts, but really assist the curves!)
By this last floor I have an assortment of tile saws... but still use the first cheapie one most of the time!
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