woodshop

[DougF]

I carved this Face out of a Cypress Tree root I found this piece a wood on one of my Surveying jobs when I was taking a break, I thought it looked like a face as soon as I saw it although no one could see it but me at the time this did not denture me in my endeavorer being a smaller piece of wood I carried it with me all the time and carved on it every during all my free time, it stands 2 1/2 in tall and I have two weeks of work in it so far (still need to put some sandpaper to it)

Tools used pocket knife 4 in blade (Very Sharp)


This Ball and Chain I carved out of a 3 in X 3 in X 12 in Yellow Pine post,
this was my First and so far only attempt at carving a chain I found that the hardest part of this project was trying to keep the links of the chain all the same size the first link is the most important I thought I had the size of the links well in hand but as you might be able to tell from the last pitcher the links turn out small, large, small, the ball part being the last part to be carved.

as a foot note when I started this project I didn't know what it was going to turn into I just started to remove wood and a Ball and Chain is what was left, the next one I do I'll sketch the chain on all for sides of the block be for I start carving to insure even link size.

Tools used pocket knife 4 in blade and a Hobie knife (small razor knife) for inside links.

it took 6 months to carve this working 3 to 4 hr a day.

If I forgot any info on Ball and Chain or the the head that you would like to know about let me know and I'll be more then happy to answer you.

Turtle put on a pot o' java I need one more cup.

[Turtle]

Originally Posted by DougF

Turtle put on a pot o' java I need one more cup.

Roger Wilco I tried the chain carving once with an 8 foot 4x4 of Doug Fir. I layed it out first and chisled all to rough form. Dragged it around with just one link free for years, and the ring split as it was and I had to glue it. cut it up for firewood a few years back.

I worked on the stool a bit this week; now using my 'moto-tool' with either an 1/8" ball cutter or the 1/2" sanding drum.

[DougF]

Turtle
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.

I tried this procedure two years ago on a eight foot long four inch diameter Cypress log (that I had to cut doing a Survey job) being it was GREEN I thought I would Waite 6 to 8 months before carving on it.
when I pulled the log out of storage it had a split down the whole
length.
Any idea what I did wrong? was it to big a piece of wood? maybe I just wasn't holding my mouth right. ( Old Joke)

[Turtle]

Originally Posted by DougF

I tried this procedure two years ago on a eight foot long four inch diameter Cypress log (that I had to cut doing a Survey job) being it was GREEN I thought I would Waite 6 to 8 months before carving on it.
when I pulled the log out of storage it had a split down the whole
length.
Any idea what I did wrong? was it to big a piece of wood? maybe I just wasn't holding my mouth right. ( Old Joke)

Your stick may have been too big and/or too old for the upside down trick to work. From the show I saw I got the impression it was best applied to saplings.

To keep larger pieces of green wood from cracking and checking, submerge them in a pond for a year and then bring out and air dry. I used to do this with burls. The water keeps the cell walls from collapsing as they cure, i.e. become rigid. It is cell walls collapsing that cause the cracking. There is also a chemical treatment some woodworkers use to stabalize green wood; they immerse the wood in PEG (Polyethylene Glycol)

[Turtle]

take it from a deaf one eyed carpenter...wear eye & ear protection when using woodworking tools that produce flying bits and high decibel sounds.

even with my earplugs i heard the distinctinve 'flapp-flappa-flupp' of a seam separation on a sanding drum just before it flew apart and hit me in the face. in fact, of the five, 1/2" sanding drums i purchased at sears for my high-speed tool, three have flown apart before the grit wore away.

alright; break's over.

[DougF]

I have two belt and four Orbital (Two are nematic) sanders, and I have had pretty good luck with my pads as long as I stay away from sharp objects,
But I aways wear eye & ear protection when doing woodworking or metallurgy.
Good Coffee Turtle.
I'll have to start another pot I've emptied this one.

[Turtle]

i may have mentioned that my primary carving chisels began as flat chisels and that i reground them in a broad arc to remove the flat chisels 'ears'. having recently watched an agonizing number of Youtube videos showing chisel sharpening techniques & equipment, i saw not a one demonstrating or appropriate without special jigs to sharpen my crowned chisels.

there's as many ways to sharpen tools as there are carvers of bung holes to use them. for honing i use an old double sided stone with oil and finger-feel set. i never circle or draw the blade back as it leaves a burr; always & only i push the edge into the stone. when i can shave the back of my hand i'm ready to cut wood.

[DougF]

Turtle
i never circle or draw the blade back as it leaves a burr; always & only i push the edge into the stone. when i can shave the back of my hand I'm ready to cut wood.

One of the first rules I learned was never ever back drag file or stone as its damage the file and tool.

[Turtle]

Originally Posted by DougF

One of the first rules I learned was never ever back drag file or stone as its damage the file and tool.

a key difference 'twixt file and stone is the file cuts only on the push and the stone cuts no matter the direction. even used 'properly' a file dulls and there is no retooling it so you buy a new file. the stone on the other hand exposes new cutting surface as it wears. after 80 years of use, my stone is showing only a slight sweep from end to end.

i never heard or considered back-dragging a file damaged it; i just figured it wasn't cutting and so wasted energy. clearly it at the least dulls the tool you're trying to sharpen if you back drag the file.

well, i told you as many ways.

[DougF]

Turtle
a key difference 'twixt file and stone is the file cuts only on the push and the stone cuts no matter the direction. even used 'properly' a file dulls and there is no retooling it so you buy a new file. the stone on the other hand exposes new cutting surface as it wears. after 80 years of use, my stone is showing only a slight sweep from end to end.

i never heard or considered back-dragging a file damaged it; i just figured it wasn't cutting and so wasted energy. clearly it at the least dulls the tool you're trying to sharpen if you back drag the file.

well, i told you as many ways.

I seen a couple of people back drag a file when sharping a machete witch flattens the cutting edge of the file and as to the stone I don't like to back drag as it creates a role of metal on the cutting edge of the blade in the same way that sharping one side of the blade would do, I guess it's a personal preference just the way I was taught.

More Coffee, Need More Coffee.

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