woodshop

[Turtle]

Originally Posted by orbsycli

did you make the Head?

the head is now roughed in. i'll add details later. children recognize it immediately as a turtle already. i have progressed a lot from the video so i'll make another little video clip today; the last took 7 hours before it was available at u-tube so remain patient.

i haven't carved in a long time & i'm likin' it. i love the sound of mallet on chisel on wood. i can tell by the sound as much as sight how the cut is working. tap tap tap tap....

[orbsycli]

What about the face in your avatar? Did you make that too?

[Turtle]

Originally Posted by orbsycli

What about the face in your avatar? Did you make that too?

no; i found it online.

here's a still of stool. off i go to get the vid uploaded.

[orbsycli]

what kind of crazy design are you going to paint on its back?

[Turtle]

Originally Posted by orbsycli

what kind of crazy design are you going to paint on its back?

i'm thinking to only carve shallow grooves to outline an authentic carapice and plastron structure and have the grain itself as the crazy pattern. as it is child's furniture i don't want to use any hazardous finishes and i may color it with green food color and then finish with mineral oil.

i have 2 new videos uploaded and as soon as they process i'll put up the links. one of the 2 is me chiseling with my primary tool on this project. can ya hear it? crazy beat man.
the primary tool is a 1/2" flat chisel that i have reground with a crowned head. this takes off the 'ears' of a standard flat chisel that would otherwise gouge down into the wood. my mallet is an apple branch that i carved some relief into for a handle.

orby, ya got me thinking to maybe carve a mask from the flat i sawed off the log when i started.

[Turtle]

breaking news!!! Scientists Confirm Turtles Smile All The Way Down

knock and a door may open.

YouTube - tortuga

YouTube - chiseling

[Turtle]

Originally Posted by orbsycli

what kind of crazy design are you going to paint on its back?

hey orby! how's about i amp up the stool's mojo with this?

>>

Originally Posted by orbsycli

Check this out

http://www.tortuga.com/eng/get_start..._Now_Timer.pdf

the tzolkin was modeled after the turtle shell, and the 13 revolutions the moon makes around the Earth in a year.

This calender is archetypal as the Egyptions and other cultures around the world used it, and not just the Mayan.

[orbsycli]

you read my mind

[Turtle]

Originally Posted by orbsycli

you read my mind

good vibrations

Originally Posted by Turtle

...
the primary tool is a 1/2" flat chisel that i have reground with a crowned head. ...

there is more mojo in this project than you can shake a stick at. in this regard, i gave the chisel short shrift. the thing is, it was bought new in the 20's or 30's and antiquey-tooly types will now be appalled that i reground it. nonetheless, i didn't get it to gather dust but to cut wood.

the chisel is made by the Peck, Stow, & Wilcox company and marked PEXTO on the shank. the shank is of the socket type, with the tapered wooden handle driven in the socket and topped with a series of leather rings set around a turned pin. (i have a set of them, but someone used a metal hammer on all but the 1/2' and broke the handles . if i have a lathe again someday i'll make new. meantime, i keep them all hidden now. )

seems the chisel and the wood are about the same age.

Originally Posted by roseantiquetools.com

The Peck, Stow & Wilcox Company was out of Southington CT from 1870-1950 and they manufactured and sold bits, braces, chisels, dividers, draw knives, hammers, household tools, machinist tools, screwdrivers, tinsmith tools and wrenches.
Rose Antique Tools old tools and history

[Turtle]

No work on the stool for almost a month due to slipped disk. Starting to get it back in shape by making some poles for my wagon-pulling harness.

An old Norse trick for making ski poles out of slender branches without having them split as they dry after harvesting is to stand the poles vertically and upside down as they dry. I followed this procedure with the Western Red Cedar I'm using for the poles; I gathered it when a windstorm broke the top 12 feet out of a 50 foot tree a year or so ago. The wood is now dry, crack free, and ready to work.