"Drinks Like A Fish"

[mpounders]

Thanks all! I knew that it wouldn't hold just cutting the dowels at an angle and butting it together. I thought about bending a nail, but that would be difficult to align. So I just cut a slot down the middle of each dowel with the band saw and then I sliced a piece of basswood to fit straight thru...

[mpounders]

That's an an old phrase you don't hear much anymore, but it did apply to a few people I have known! So it seemed appropriate that I make this thirsty little fish into a bottle-stopper. A dowel was the right size for the straw, but I had to figure out a way to make a spline joint to make it strong enough...

[mpounders]

You probably can, but they would work better for detail/finishing work. Typically larger cutters and burs are used for carving, but sanding drums or any abrasive can cut wood as well as metal. It may have a tendency to clog quicker with wood. You can find carving burrs of steel or carbide and stones...

[mpounders]

I was playing around with some Sculpey clay a few weeks ago and came up with a funny looking fish that I liked. After I carved him, I got to thinking about what to do with him and came up with this little scene. It was fun thinking of what an "old school" fish might look like and I am already...

[mpounders]

I may try to visit the Mountain Home show, but my grandson has a t-ball game on Saturday. I'm not sure I'll go to Eureka Springs, unless it is to buy some blanks from Vic Hood or some rough outs. I am scheduled later in that month for a class with Janet and Adina and I don't think I can get away with...

[mpounders]

I

I think it was about two months total time, but that includes a lot of looking and thinking! Probably about 40 hours or less actual carving time....

[mpounders]

Pinewood Forge makes great knives for spoon carving, but you will have to wait a few months (usually) for them to make it. A Helvie rough out knife is sharper than any of the knives on the list you have and would work fine for spoons, but a hook knife makes the bowls a lot easier. Most bush craft knives...

[mpounders]

This cowboy is one of my original designs and I enjoyed all the little details in the carving. He has a really sneaky look on his face that warns you not to trust him when he surrenders! I wanted to put a lot of details in the guns and the hands and use them to tell his story. Thanks for looking!

[mpounders]

I use a wood burning pen on all my carvings specifically to deepen cuts and prevent paint from bleeding. But I keep it turned low so that it doesn't char the wood. I don't want it to have thick burn lines and prefer it to look like it wasn't burned. I scrape or cut off any charred sections. Paint can...

[mpounders]

Here's a few examples of carvings and eyes that I have did. The shadowing created by carving out the iris or the pupil add to the realism. I used a different technique on the sailor and used a wood burning pen to darken behind the iris. I have also used different shades of brown to create similar effects...

[mpounders]

One thing that looks a little odd is that your carving doesn't appear to have eye brows? I have sometimes used an embossing tool with a ball end to make them rather than carving them. It is a fine line between making them visible and making them too heavy on a female face. My female faces improved after...

[mpounders]

I don't do many canes any more, but I started using larger hardwood dowels rather than all-thread. Carving a tenon on the end of the shaft is OK, but my thought was that a hardwood dowel might be even sturdier than the wood of the shaft/tenon? And usually the glue joint itself is stronger than the wood....

[mpounders]

??????????????

[mpounders]

You might try cleaning up the edges with non-power tools? like a v gouge or a skew, maybe. I have also seen attachments for a Dremel, that turn it into a mini-router with two handles to hold on; not a lot of power, but a lot of control. You might also try clamping down the work piece and use two hands...

[mpounders]

As you can see, you get varying opinions on whether you need it or not! I have been carving about ten years and haven't ever tried it on my gouges. I primarily carve basswood , but sometimes harder woods, both palm tools and mallet tools for realistic and caricature carvings. It may be of more use in...