Post #490271 by Tamapoutini on Mon, Oct 26, 2009 4:04 PM

On 2009-10-12 11:19, djwirk wrote:
Just wanted to share, took me two days and I'm really not super happy with it, thought I might get some advice though!

Been carving bone for a few years, wanted to step up to stone, it's a lot more rewarding, but WOW so much harder to get nice smooth angles!

Most the work was done with 150 - 600 grit diamond burrs wet, did notice it was easier to see the bumps and facets when working dry though so did a bit of finish work that way. Still has a few ugly spots and machine marks from the 150.

Any tips on finishing it out? I've been able to clean up a lot of the exterior with 360 grit silicon carbide paper, but it's slow going and near impossible to reach the really ugly parts! Anyone have any tips for carving stone they want to share with a newbie?

Plan on putting some inserts in the eyes when I get some paua shell, ordered some this morning. Also got some zinc oxide powder, was hoping to make some mud with that and buff it to a cleaner polish (It's oiled right now, is about 85% polished w/out the oil, but wanted to see what it would look like as-is finished).

[ Edited by: djwirk 2009-10-12 11:20 ]

Kia ora. Sorry for slow responce, you may have finished this already..?

*The toolmarks left from the 150grit diamond tools can only really be removed by your finer burrs or with diamond 'cloth', before moving onto silicone carbide or carborundum papers. If the stone has soft patches it isnt advisable to sand for too long or with blunt paper, as these can overwork the soft bits and cause a rippled surface.

Not bad at all for a 1st attempt and your bone carving has given you a good grounding in polishing theory etc. The biggest difference youll probably find is the inconsistancies of stone when compared to bone; you need to work 'with' the stone and read its structure carefully to avoid disappointment.

Best of luck with it. Looking forward to seeing finished piece.