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 Software
Overview - Lamination PRO Version 2.1.0.0
Have
you ever looked at a laminated feature ring of
a segmented bowl wondering how it was done?
Well, wonder no more. The truth is, using laminations
to create feature rings is far easier than the
results would indicate. The process is simply
putting a board on your saw at a predetermined
miter angle, cutting it into strips, flipping
alternate strips left-to-right or top-to-bottom
and gluing the strips back together to make a
laminated board. The first generation (called
either a zig-zag or chevron pattern) is shown
in the body of this vase. If you take a first
generation board and repeat the same process,
you'll get a second generation pattern, as seen
in the neck of the vase.
 But
while the method is simple, creating a lamination
design that will have the desired dimensions and
appearance is far from simple. That's where
Lamination PRO comes in.
The
first thing you need is a laminated board.
The Laminate Wizard helps you design that board
by letting you decide how many strips (up to seven)
will be used to create your laminate. You
pick the width of each strip and the species and
when you click 'Finish', your laminated board
will appear. And here's the best part -
it isn't just a drawing where color has been used
to simulate the color of wood. Actual pictures
of exotic woods are used to create the board,
making it as realistic as possible.
 In
the process of creating your lamination, you can
select whether the board is to be symmetric or
non-symmetric. The lamination used to create
the vase shown above uses non-symmetric laminations.
To be symmetric, both the strip widths and species
must be the same for pairs of strips surrounding
the center strip. In this case, the strip
widths are the same but the species are different.
If you click on the image at the left, you'll
see the laminated board. You'll also see
the width of cut
selected at 1-1/2" and an 'Angle for
1st Generation' of 30 degrees. Because the
'Show saw kerf' button has been pushed, the software
also shows what the strips will look like after
sawing.
 When
you now click the '1st Generation' button you'll
be shown exactly what your board will look like
when you reassemble the strips, flipping alternating
strips left-to-right.
By
adding top and bottom curtains, you can see exactly
what the final pattern will look like:
The
software also shows that the width of a repeating
unit is 3", the height of the pattern as
shown is 1-3/4" and that in order to create
the number of repeating units you have indicated
(in this case, 8) you'll need 33" inches
of lineal laminate.
 To
create the 2nd generation laminate on the vase,
you first create the 1st generation as described
above and then select the miter angle for the
2nd generation. Clicking on the 'Show kerf
lines' button shows how the 1st generation laminate
should be cut into strips for the 2nd generation.
When
you now click the '2nd Generation' button, you'll
see what your board will look like, again flipping
the alternate strips left-to-right. Shown
with curtains, you'll again your second generation
pattern:
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