Learn how to make Solder Metal Inlay for your Woodworking Projects

In just a few easy steps you can create an great looking metal inlay using solder that can be purchased from any hardware store.

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Carve the pattern for your solder inlay.

I used the X Carve CNC from Inventables to carve out a design to about 3mm deep. I carved out Superman's Logo

You can use any sort of carving or boring tool like a Dremel, Drill Press, Router Table, Table Saw, Chisel, Scroll Saw etc.

Even lots of dots from a drill press would look nice on the lid of a jewelry box.

Melt the solder with a blowtorch

I used solid solder that is used in plumbing and using a blowtorch melted it over the carving, I found clumping it together worked better as each drip would merge with the one next to it, keep going until you fill the mould with solder.

Sand the solder inlay flush to the wood.

Using a belt sander to sand down the excess solder it did a pretty good job of quickly removing material, you can finish it off with a random orbit sander and some hand sanding to give it a bit of a polished look.

I did not fill a few spots enough and used a soldering iron and some more solder to fill the gaps.

WARNING: Some Solders contain lead so as with any potential hazardous material like fibreglass, MDF etc you should wear a mask and use dust extraction.

Burn that wood

I used a blowtorch to burn the wood around the Superman logo which looked pretty cool and gave it a nice contrast, you could also stain the wood if needed.

I then used Minwax wipe on poly to finish it off.