Carving a Viking Bottle Stopper

[Claude]

I began by sketching the Viking on front and side of the block of wood. I forgot to take the photo before I began sawing out the outline on my bandsaw...

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Next I drilled the holes for the cork. The small center hole is for a 3/8" dowel, and the larger one is a 1.25 inch hole one inch deep to provide a recess for the cork, so it can be set on a shelf, or it can be used on a bottle.

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Here is the piece with two of the sawed off waste pieces.

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Now I'm cutting off the waste and rounding the corners to turn it from a cutout to a rough out.

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The basic shape is carved.

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Detailing is now done.

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This shows the cork stopper glued in.

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The finished bottle stopper

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If you want to carve one of these for yourself, let me know and I'll send you front and side views that can be used as a pattern.

Claude

[joepaulbutler]

More arrows for the quiver, thanks Claude, great carving, by the way, what do Vikings drink?

[PittsburghTim]

More arrows for the quiver, thanks Claude, great carving, by the way, what do Vikings drink?

Mead! Fermented honey and water.

[Claude]

And aquavit...

[Eddy-Smiles]

Nice tutorial Claude! Duh! I always wondered how folks carved the horns on a caricature. The few times that I've tried I ended up breaking them off. Now I see that it's all in the prelim and is accomplish with a saw. So yes, I would like the pattern. Not sure that I'll be making a bottle stopper but the creative juices are already flowing on alternative ways to use it.

[woodburner807]

Nice work and detail, Claude. Basswood?

[Claude]

Yes, basswood.

[Claude]

Eddy-Smiles Here are a front and side view. It's symmetrical.

Claude

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This view was not quite at 90° so Just use the near-side horn for the pattern. If you do a bottle stopper with a recessed cork, position the holes toward the back of the carving, as the front slopes toward the back, which is almost vertical.

[Eddy-Smiles]

Thanks Claude!

[Glenn Jennings]

NICE JOB Claude !! He looks very much the viking!!!!

[JerseyGirl]

Great carving, Claude! Did you give him a name?