Dolphin from old lumber

[Rontana]

I saw a hunk of 2 x 6, fir lumber lying on the floor of my shop, thought it had an interesting grain, and decided to try it out on another dolphin. Super old and dry, and hard as a rock (I think I sharpened my knives five or six times on this guy) but the grain turned out to look sort of cool.

To keep with the theme . . . I did the base from a piece of old 2 x 4 (much easier . . . mostly band saw, sander, and rotary tool) and stained it for contrast with the fishy.

[woodburner807]

Wow, Ron! Fantastic carving and display with a grain that is amazing. Love these dolphin carvings you are doing because of the "movement" in the pieces.

[Rontana]

Thanks Bill. As mentioned . . . this board was hard as a rock, the remainder of it is sun-weathered and grey . . . almost like barn wood. But, even with all that, the grain stood out so much I just had to give it a shot.

[Randy]

Well done Ron.

[Brian T]

There is carving beyond basswood. You certainly took advantage of the wood character.
That's another excellent example of the capture of a moment in time. My favorite.
I can remember seeing that happen.
I like the contrast in wood color, the wave doesn't distract from the motion.

[joepaulbutler]

A great example of why it is hard to throw any wood cut-offs away. This wood would be a choice for power carving, but you really pulled it off.

[Claude]

Another great piece of art, Ron!

Claude

[Rontana]

Thanks Randy . . . glad you like it

Brian . . . Appreciate the kind words. I think I'll try carving on different pieces I find here on the farm. Lots of trees and lots of species (and countless chunks of lumber). It will be fun (and at the very least will make me hone my knives more frequently than normal).

Joe B: I like my little rotary tool for sanding tight spots, but so far haven't really moved on into getting a few decent burrs. I think I just like the slow pace of knives and gouges. It sends my mind to a good place.

Thanks Claude . . . I'm going to a market fair in late April, so hope to get a few dolphins done that I feel like trying to sell (will likely keep these first two . . . just for sentimental reasons)

[sappy]

Just so neat how you pose them. This would work with seals too.

[BobW]

The end result made the work of carving hard wood worth it. This is great.

[Rontana]

Thanks guys . . . lots of fun with these critters

[Merle Rice]

Hi Ron , Very Nice Piece of Work . Merle