Choice of wood for shadow patterns

[sooty]

What wood do you all use when cutting a shadow pattern do you use a solid wood or do you use ply?
The reason I ask is I have never seen solid wood for sale that is 1/4 thick
whereas most shops sell 1/4 ply
If you use ply can you get a better quality 1/4ply with more than 3 layers and how do you stop 3 ply from de-laminating

Phil

 

[Gill]

Hi Phil

It's very difficult to get decent plywood in the UK. Americans use good quality Baltic Birch plywood which is widely available over there. It has no voids and a smooth finish with no figuring, making it an excellent choice for shadow portraits. Sadly, it's more difficult to get suitable BBP over here and it's expensive. Hobbies of Dereham sell it and there will be other retailers too.

MDF is next to useless for shadow portraits because it loses all cohesion as it is scrolled. The only realistic alternative is to use thin sheets of hardwood edge laminated together, but even here you have to contend with the wood's natural figuring and weakness where the grain doesn't support extended cuts. When I cut shadow portraits, I almost always use hardwood prepared in this way. I cut the laminates myself on a bandsaw, plane the edges, then glue the edges and clamp them together. Finally, I give them good sanding. The laminated board has to be scrolled very soon after the final sanding or there is a good chance it will warp.

It's a lot of palaver and the sanding is hard work. That's why I rarely cut shadow portraits and prefer projects where I can use MDF. Perhaps one day I might experiment by cutting shadow portraits out of coloured acrylic, but only after I've worked through the pile of wood already in my workshop.

Gill