Post #324037 by Paipo on Wed, Aug 8, 2007 3:47 AM

On 2007-08-04 12:53, Robin wrote:
Some of this carving is pretty deep...I'm not finished noodling with some of the areas yet, but when I get there....what is the best way of getting in these areas to smooth it out some? Tama warned me about this. He said make designs that don't have areas that are difficult to get to...sigh. I don't want to touch some of these areas with burs now as the design is starting to deteriorate....eyebrows...nose...plus, my burs are to big for somethings.

On 2007-08-05 14:48, Robin wrote:
I'm hoping the 'rubbing sticks' will offer some salvation!

I don't know about salvation, but they will help you get a great finish in those difficult areas. They are only useful for removing toolmarks and scratches though - not for correcting errant lines or refining the detail. The carving part is usually complete before they come into play. I will post some pics in the Q+A thread tomorrow - I've been out of my workshop for almost a week or I would have done it sooner...

Noses are definitely one of the trickier areas. I always draw mine up bigger than I want them to be, so I have some room for error (especially on softer stone). Because the plane around the nose is usually the lowest part of the face, inevitably it gets worn away from the sides, even with the utmost care...and always drill the nostrils last when all the other shaping is done!

(actually rereading all this and the thread, I see Ben has pretty much covered all the bases as always...oh well, a concurring opinion never hurts :lol: )