Guidance, grain and me...advice - Tiki Carving

M MonkeyBoy Member The Big Nowhere Joined: Aug 25, 2004 Posts: 17	M MonkeyBoy Posted posted on Thu, Feb 17, 2005 4:40 PM Aloha sprites and nymphs, Having my first project come out gangbusters, without doing any study or research-will post pix later, I am am having a crisis of technique. My current project is a protype of our first (!) house mug. I've got the design sketched, and because it is small, I went and got knives and book and stuff. After reading proper techniques, and spending alot of dough, I'm not happy. Evidently, you can't carve WITH the grain. You carve across the grain. And without my beloved chisels and mallet it is taking FOREVER to get down to work area. And I'm really not digging using the roughout knive at all. I also got a 11 piece FlexAll interchangable chisel set. I'm finding the hand thing isn't working for me, either. This mug is 4" wide and 4.5" tall. I'm working in basswood, while my first project was oak. I've resorted to my mallet to roughout the shape, but am not looking forward to the fine work, because I'm not confortable with the techniques put forth by the FlexAll booklet and How to Carve Wood by Richard Butz. Should I stay with what I'm comfortable with? Should I stick with bigger stuff? Should I quit whining and learn 'the right way?' help me. please. tim nothavingfun

Aloha sprites and nymphs,

Having my first project come out gangbusters, without doing any study or research-will post pix later, I am am having a crisis of technique.

My current project is a protype of our first (!) house mug. I've got the design sketched, and because it is small, I went and got knives and book and stuff. After reading proper techniques, and spending alot of dough, I'm not happy.

Evidently, you can't carve WITH the grain. You carve across the grain. And without my beloved chisels and mallet it is taking FOREVER to get down to work area. And I'm really not digging using the roughout knive at all. I also got a 11 piece FlexAll interchangable chisel set. I'm finding the hand thing isn't working for me, either.

This mug is 4" wide and 4.5" tall. I'm working in basswood, while my first project was oak. I've resorted to my mallet to roughout the shape, but am not looking forward to the fine work, because I'm not confortable with the techniques put forth by the FlexAll booklet and How to Carve Wood by Richard Butz. Should I stay with what I'm comfortable with? Should I stick with bigger stuff? Should I quit whining and learn 'the right way?'

help me. please. tim nothavingfun

Post #141836 by MonkeyBoy on Thu, Feb 17, 2005 4:40 PM