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Hey guys,

Thanks for all the comments on the "Donk" Tiki. I had a lot of fun carving that one. It has been a big hit here.

I didn't carve today, but I did go and do a tree service side-job. I took down a big 30" diameter 45' tree, and had hoped to come home with some CHOICE logs for tiki carving. The job took a long time as the tree was over a structure and I had to free-climb and take it down in sections. I was real bummed to see that termites and ants had caused damage to all the best pieces. I left it all. What a heartbreaker.

I hurt everywhere, and plan on relaxing by the pool the rest of the day. I've attached an old pic of my carving partner Earnie and me, and another more recent pic of a tiki I carved a few weeks ago. I keep that tiki out back so I can see it from my living room. Hope you all had a great weekend.

-Gman

http://www.oceanandislandarts.blogspot.com/

[ Edited by: GMAN 2008-06-12 19:45 ]

You are one crazy Booger!

G-Man

Great stuff! You are very talented. And I thought you were kidding about the giant wood dong on the phone the other day. Make one like that in an aroused state and I'll buy it for a hat rack. Mini season is almost upon us so I spent some time today preparing for my lobster diet binge. Man the weekend goes so fast!

Hammerhead

Hammerhead,

Thanks for the props. Nice to see you found the forum. There are some amazing artists out here showing some awesome pieces. I will look for the "right" piece of wood to work on a "happier" dong tiki for you, if you are serious. I'll set you up nice.

I hear you about the weekends. I spent yesterday doing a tree topping side job and them spent all day today at a hunting expo. It's back to the grind tomorrow. I'm telling you, the G is killing me!

I'll likely be carving this week, so check back to see if I have started your tiki. Good luck if you get out fishing.

-Gman

looking good, lots of carvings, busting those guys out fast. THe shark looks great, your first carving and the walking stick are very cool.

Gman
Your artwork is incredible. Is this a full time job for you? Do you have a store or website?
Beautiful work you have made!!
Wolfgang

Fine work, GMAN. Another fine carver at TC!

Wolfgang,

No, I don't do carvings full-time, I'm a full-time marine biologist for NOAA and I work writing management plans for tunas, swordfish, sharks, and billfish. I just come home and take my frustrations out on innocent logs with my chainsaw! I'm glad you like my carvings. I've put a lot of heart and time into them for many years.

If you look at my profile, you can find my website. I have lots of art for sale there.

For all you log nutz out there.....I was out this evening until 10:30 pm working on two 48" diameter red cedar trees. I thought I was going to have some serious carving wood and get the monster truck loaded down, but as with my last tree job, both had bad termite damage. Dang nabbit!

I better find a good log soon.....

-Gman

The Shark is very Kool man the grain on the wood looks great .

-Gman

http://www.oceanandislandarts.blogspot.com/

[ Edited by: GMAN 2008-06-12 19:47 ]

goodday gman. great work keep em coming.

Cool club g-man

Wow! another fine artist I just found here on Tiki Central. Your work is absolutely beautiful!
Thank you Gman

On 2005-07-31 12:46, GMAN wrote:
Hey guys,

I was not able to find any good logs this week - bummer. I sharpened the saw today and worked with a piece of scrap wood I left in the side yard. I started to make a wooden striker to use with my chisels, but after a few cuts I decided to make an Angry Tiki War Club-like thing. I know it is lame, but hey, it's all about working with what you have - right?

-Gman

I like it. It has character!

Hey guys,

Thanks for the feedback.

I'm still logless :( Does anyone in the Tampa area want to offer up a log to the saw gods?????

-Gman

Hey Gman

What kind of wood am I looking for exactly? I'm sure I can round some up. I have some friends who own a tree service. Let me know. Call me when you get the chance.

Captain Ed

Freakie T,

Thanks for the offer, but a friend showed up at work today with two 4' palm logs and asked if I wanted them. Go figure. My dad always said "you might not get what you want, but you'll likely get what you need". Oh man did I need these logs. Thanks Dan!

It's time for a hot rod tiki.......

-Gman

"The saw is family"

[ Edited by: gman 2005-08-11 14:58 ]

-Gman

http://www.oceanandislandarts.blogspot.com/

[ Edited by: GMAN 2008-06-12 19:48 ]

SOLD!
Greg let me know when I can pick it up. You might want to do the other tiki we talked about before I drive up to get this one. I can send you the payment for this one as soon as you want though.

[email protected]

Hammerhead,

It would be best to get it soon (translation = I need the cash). I'm heading to Okeechobee to hunt next weekend, can we meet you somewhere just off 75 on my way out Friday night? It would have to be a quick drop as I'll have two hunters with me who will be anxious to get over there. Or could you meet me in St Pete tomorrow? I have to go into work for a little bit and could bring it with me. If you want to come up, email me at the sahmaysan address and I'll give you my cell #.

Check the HMS webpage, the draft FMP EIS is public. The draft rule will publish Friday the 19th.

-Gman

I sounded in the previous post that your dad Might be Mick Jagger or else he wrotesome of the Stones Songs.

"You might not get what you want, but you'll likely get what you need" quote by Dad

"You can't always get what you want
But if you try sometimes, well you might find
You get what you need" The Stones.

ya ya ya ...Just an observation.

Hmmm, I never made that connection. Dang, I hate the Stones! Dad was a smart man (Dean at Cornell Med), full of good advice - even if he did steal from the Stones. In addition to being the smartest person I have ever met, he could sling a 36" bar saw with the best of them! His values, work ethic, and advice got me this far.....

-Gman

G-Man, I think this one is the Nicest one I have seen from you. Very nice.

Ben,

Thanks. It is a very basic but clean design and they usually come out looking pretty neat. I had just sharpened my chain and the saw made real nice clean cuts. I was satisfied with it the way it was and left all the husk on. I thought the light and dark made for good contrast.

I hope Freekie Tiki enjoys it.

-Gman

Love the nice clean lines on this one. The contrast of colors is great.

Very tight for a chainsaw. Nice. I personally dont go for the two tone, but thats just me. Bring on the hot rod tiki!

We definately need to move to Florida and hire Gman to teach me his awesome talent. Your very talented.
Thank you!
Wesley
I don't want to leave out all of the other fine, fine artist in Florida.

[ Edited by: Moondance 2005-08-14 20:53 ]

Man, it was hot this weekend. I traveled all week for work and then hunted all Saturday. I planned on carving today, but decided to sit this one out. I'm dead tired. Hope you all had productive carving sessions.

-Gman

let me sit this one out gman. and you start carving. excellent work.

[ Edited by: tiki beat by marcus thorn 2005-08-22 22:05 ]

All,

In the last few weeks work has taken me to Miami, St. Croix, Puerto Rico, and Washington DC. I was supposed to go and give a presentation in New Orleans on Thursday - Ack! - but I canceled. Overall, I've had precious little time for carving. I was, however, able to get out this morning and get a little saw time in. I worked on a palm log I've been saving. When the saw dust settled, it looked like this....(my wife was kind enough to take progress pics to post here)

-Gman

http://www.oceanandislandarts.blogspot.com/

[ Edited by: GMAN 2008-06-12 19:49 ]

Sweet! Hey.....Where's yer flip flops man?

Mahaloz

wow....great work in a short time Gman...i like this
one the best of the ones you've posted...nice job with
the head-dress....holidays are great for carving tiki
gods...i've been working all day too....working on a tiki
that is!

Excellent work for only chainsaw. Hats off to your wife for the excellent progress shots. You Gotta get more time in for carving, you need it and so do We...
Thanks for posting.

Mctiki - no flips dude, steel toes! The saw does bad things to unprotected feet.

Conga - Where's the pics of your work today????

Ben - I hear ya. I wish I could get more time to carve. I paint and carve so that I can make money while I'm not at my real job....

-Gman

Cool carving dude. Out of all of ya stuff so far, this is my fave. Must be the head rest. Nice. Yep, them steel capped boots a good idea I imagine.

Hewey,

Yep, steel toed boots are a must. I won't start a saw without my boots on. I've seen too many bad tree work accidents.

I haven't done many tikis with head dresses lately. I've been stuck in a rut and only doing what I know will sell. I have been feeling unsatisfied with my carving as of late and need something to shake it up. Maybe it's just the heat, I dunno. Any of you ever had that feeling?

-Gman

Another great job by GMAN. I can't wait to get our own.
Thanks
Annie/Wes

I suffered a bad case of creative burnout a few years ago, so I can relate. For me, getting away from the computer is what it took (I'm a graphic designer and most of my day is spent on the computer). Maybe what you need is to change up your tools. Your tikis are great, but maybe try using chisels, dremel, or a grinder. Or go small and do some pendants or masks - no steel-toed boots required. Good luck. I have to get back to designing marketing crap and dream of carving.

Nice one, GMAN... my next palm carving will have a headdress.... another rite of passage for tiki carving...

Cool piece, GMAN.... That little bit of 2-tone in the first pic was kind of nice too!

Loving it Gmam. keep up the good work.

Hey brother this is another great carving! I really like the way this one turned out. I'm a few steps closer to trying this myself. I have a chainsaw, 20 hours of experience with it and plenty of desire to cut the wood up. I think for some people once they get a chainsaw in their hands it's hard to put down. I'm one of them. No tree is safe, lol ; ) Luckily I'm not on land all that much and when I am I have to take care of my beaver before i can go chainsawing, ; ). Talk with you soon.

The Captain AKA HammerHead

Thanks everyone, I appreciate all the feedback.

-Gman

"The saw is family"

[ Edited by: GMAN 2005-09-09 17:53 ]

[ Edited by: GMAN 2005-09-09 17:54 ]

[ Edited by: GMAN 2008-06-12 19:50 ]

Another fine piece of art by Gman. The dog looks whipped!

Moondance,

I just sent you a PM.

Yeah, Earnie is part lounge-hound. All he does is sleep. Although, he does walk over and give me kisses when I refuel the saw.....

-G

G, Very cool Tiki. I sure wish I could work that fast. If you want to get logs from the Pinellas dump just tell the guy at the gate you need firewood. They have a small pile of firewood about 100 feet from the BIG LOGS. They don't check to see where you're from.

PHT,

I have to be so exact in everything that I do at work so it is totally therapeutic to be able to come home and just hack at something and not try to be surgically precise. I like to work fast when making tikis (my body hurts too much to stand over something for days on end), that's probably why I prefer a chainsaw. If you keep your chain good and sharp, you can remove an amazing amount of wood quickly. I have a good selection of chisels, a dremel with all the goodies, and tons of other tools, but when it comes down to starting a carving, all I want to do is use the chainsaw. And I don't want to use dime-tip carving bars and special carving chains. I use the same bar and pitch chain that I use to cut trees and brush on my hunting land. Go figure. I know, I'm weird....but hey, I have a blast!

-Gman

Aloha, GMAN. Your tikis are great, keep up the excellent work. For the eye inlays you might try some porcelain tile. I've used this material in the past and was pretty happy with how it worked out. If you want something really bright go to a pool tile supplier. Or for a more muted or earthtone color just look around for whatever looks good. Peronally I like to use tile with blotchy or variegated colors, because it seems to blend better. You can get a cheap tile saw, or just go to Lowes & get them to cut it for $0.25 per cut, which is not bad if you're going to go with a triangular shape. The cut edges will be white, but you can paint them, and then inset the tile so the cut edges don't show much.

You can also go with some type of natural stone tile. I'm going to use some tumbled travertine inset eyes for my current tiki as soon as I get around to that part.

Good luck, PM me if you have questions - but it's pretty straightforward.

Aaron