BENZART's Carvings Second original thread

Ben, the carving is looking so cool!

Thanks Spermy, I hear you are one of my biggest suporters, I appreciate that!

Hey there "Other Ben", Or I guess I'M the Other Ben.Ha. That "Pitcher" you see is just a large plastic glass filled with Ruby Red Grapefruit Crystal Lite juice. I wish it had rum in it but I don't do that stuff enny more. Thanks BooBen, great hearin' from 'ya.

Tikigap, yes, hardee harhar, how I wish it were rum in tharr.

Tfisherart, thanks, I use a big Magnifier so I can see, and then when I take the Macro pic's, I REALLY See what I missed and what I need to finish. The Macro is a tough judge, dosen't let Nothin go by. Thanks again.

Gman,yes silly you! I have to use the hook on this. The Recip would almost work, but even the 30 degree vee leaves too wide of a trail on this. It's just too small. However, I Did use the #50 for roughing it out And hollowing out most of the back. I have it down really thin. Thanks.

Loki, thanks, same answer, however on your BIg Guy, the Recip carver will be and Has been Great. It will plow right through Most of the Moko. I can't Wait to get it started. Wait till you see what I have planned for him!!

Bette thanks for your continued support, you keep me propped up man, thanks.

Went to the Stuart art show today and saw PalmcityTiki and MooneysTiki stuff. Both have great looking tikis and were each on corner spots next to each other.

Aloha again!
Ben, Ben Ben....! Im so completely blown away by your carvings! Remember when we talk story? Whats this pupule talk about talent? Shootz Ben, This carving has me mesmerized..The detail and expression shows years of experience and TALENT! The physical qualities and facial structure shows so much skill, you fo'shua you never studied sculpture brah?! Absolutely amazing. Ive got a Pa Kahawai lure for you too bruddah Ben, so like you said: Maori Lure for Maori chief, yeah?

Let me know bruddah! Again, always amazed by your work Ben its truely "maika'i Loa"!

Thanks Kaha, The words you use to describe how you see my work are ultra beautiful. Even though I don't understand the words, I DO understand the feeling, Mahalo
Yes you will get a nice Maori pendant for one of your unbelievable fish hooks.
Thanks big time.

Cold weather and my old hands don't go together well so I have small updateson the pendant only today.
Its amazing how much garbage shows up in these macro shote that is invisible to the naked eye.

That's some crazy stuff Ben! I can't get over how small it is and the detail you were able to get on it. Just amazing. Was he a biter too? He looks like a biter....

-Gman

"The saw is family"

[ Edited by: GMAN 2006-02-13 16:36 ]

Garbage? What garbage? It looks terrific, I am always afraid to see how my stuff looks on the camera, but yours looks wonderful--- always! Thanks for posting lots of photos.

PS Sorry to send you some of our cold weather. You will see warmth long before we will.
JP

He's looking fantastic Ben!
Definitely my favorite Maori pendant so far.

Thanks for posting all the great pictures of your work!

Ben, cool forehead design, cool teeth, cool eyes and nice nose on that one, it really has character, way awesome.

For some reason, this particular one speaks to me.

I wouldn't doubt for a minute that he can actually speak. That guy gives me Chicken Skin, or for you in the cold Chicken Soup.

Yo, GMAN, this one is actually larger than how I used to carve these guys, so I Really have more room. No he is not a biter yet, but you are right, he looks like he can put a serious bite on you. IF he were a tool, he would be the chainsaw disk. Thanks

Garbage, you know, the stuf that needs to be done that you thought was already complete. You're welcome .
So,,, it's YOU who has been sending this cold weather , hmmmm. Thankss

Thanks TW. Your kind words really keep me going . You're welcome, I love posting pic's of my work. Don't you just Love it when a little piece of wood carving starts talking to you, they can really be demanding sometimes.I guess he likes you

Thanks Bette, my #1 Fan

Thanks Hellotiki, yes this guy is getting a boistrous reputation, glad he likes you too.

Aloha ben!!!!!!!!

I'm sorry i havent posted lately but im finally back at work.
That carving is killer my friend !!!!!Some lucky person is gonna get that bugger.Thanks for stopping by on saturday that was my highlight seeing friends after taking the whip at the show.Thanks brother it ment alot, and thanks for stoking us all with those Great Carvings,Aloha your frieng , Mooney

Ha, ha, yep, that's me, I'm definitely a big fan.

Thanks Mooney, appreciate the comps. Sorry to hear about the show getting "Rained out". 'Bout time you went back to work, don't think you have beenthere for a week. Must be nice. Thanks again.

Thanks Bette, "Mr Always first here" I appreciate the props.

Heres the update for today. I worked on the Big Maori and he really kicked my butt, but it was worth it.

Ben, the Hei tiki is a wonderful surprise. We are in awe of this fellow coming to life. Sorry he kicked your butt, but he is a Maori afterall and a tough guy at that.

Thanks a million.

Benz,

Nice work man. He is looking sweet! I love watching your stuff come to form. Easy does it though...remember what you told me "quit bustin' your ass, don't you know it's already got a crack in it."

-Gman

Ben...how did I miss the earlier posts on the big Maori....I musta had my head in the wrong
place....this is another great one...really like the pendant he's wearing....wonnerful wonnerful...

I love it when tikis wear jewelry!!

Ben, that is so cool! WOW, it is looking way different than I was imagining it would, amazing carving. How cool that he's wearing that cool pendant too, it rocks! Bet that pendant will be really detailed and cool when it's done, I can tell you're having fun with this one. Hey, did you completely finish the little pendant you were working on? If so, I gotta say that head looked like it could come to life AND THOSE EYES, WOW!

Sweet! It is amazing how easy you make it look to do that.
JP

AHHH Ben!
Youre busting my huahua's bruddah! Absolutely gorgeous work and I love the Hei Tiki pendant he's wearing!!! Great stuff as usual from the true TC "kahuna"!

OH, and by the way brah...Let me know when youre ready for da kine Ben! Ive got a nice little package here ready to ship you!!!

Great work again...Hana Hou!

BenZart is a cyborg! You produce so much nice work it's unbelievable. No food for you only drink and wood chips topped with sawdust. LOL Keep going CYBORG! Your an inspiration to us all.

Alldo

Ben,

I shipped a box of pig tails over there for you - well done, hold the squeals - just how you like them. I hope you got them and that you were feeling well enough to work a bit today.

-Gman

I guess it wasnt enough for you to create amazing carvings and pendants , now you have to go and carve pendants for your tiki's!!

Amazing work Ben.

Awesome work Ben! The maori looks so sweet - great execution of a really cool design. The eyes just finish it off. The large maori with the hei tiki pendant is gonna be a killer too. Oh, and that scroll work is great as well! Phew, its making me feel tired just lookin at it all...

As of me writing this , Ben you have started 33 threads in creating wich have gotten 2284 responses and have been viewed 71330 times

Mahalo for all your wisdom. Hope your feeling well.

Thanks Loki, I figured thebHei Tiki would totally catch you off guard. Yeah he Kicked my butt Even after I gave him a valuable Hei tiki like that and he Still kicked my Butt. I think he did it just to show me he can and to let me know he doesn't like that "Back Burner " stuff dammit. He wants to be up front and NOW. It's OK though cause I'm all rested up now and I'm gonna gick his but, I'll show him. Loki, obviously you are getting a spirited Warrior chief here but I will have him tamed by the time you get him. He knows he's going to a "Special Place" so play along with him for awhile and then you can let the hammer down and he'll be Happy.

GMAN, Thanks for the props, you don't believe everything I tell you do you?? Come down and work one day or better yet we need another So FLO Tiki jam again..

Conga, thats what happens when you don't come 'round often enough Bro, you Miss teese tings

Moki, thanks I think I may have to accessorizsmore of these guys, and BelieVE Me, They Like it a LOT. I guess I'm in trouble now..

Bete. here you are sayin' all those kind words again,. No I didn't finish the little guy yet, This guy Kicked my butt and made me put the little guy on the back burner till I'm done with him, but we'll see! Thanks Bete.

Thanks JPIt is amazing and id IS EASY and he will be done before you know it.Thanks JP.

Kaha, I'm So Glad you like this Small Pendant guy. He is by Far the best of those I have done yut, but he is not Nearly as good as I will be doing in a few more tries when I'll let you sail that package this way my friend.Thanks for your continued support.
Tomorrow I will have another good update on him, IF I don't get my butt kicked again.Ha ha ha

Alldo. I LOVE that wood chips and sawdust with milk and glue for breakfast. It really sticks to your ribs man you should try it.
I guess inspiring you to work gives me inspiration to work more too, so How do I get off this merry-go-round...??

GMAN. I Cant wait I LOVE Those piggly wigglies for breakfast, gimmegimmegimme.
Thanks big time

Rodeotiki, yes I Had to give this guy the hei tiki or he was gonna kick my but, Read up about 27 lines. Nutthin but the best for My boys. Thanks bro.

Hewey, It's making me tired just Doing it all. They get arguing and they all want something different and I gotta put up with this All Day Long, so I'm tired. Thanks for the props. I needed that..
Rodeo, Where do you Find stuff like that, make it UP?I don't think I could Ever do that, there must be someone impersonating me here cuz I don't have any helperz..Verri Intrrrezting. Thanqs again. I have to rest tonite so I can work hard tomorrow.
Goodnigh all and MAhalos to youz all

Ha, I just looked and I see this will be my 200th post, so I am dedicating my 200th post to raising Ben's thread to the top here. Ben, you are way too cool and such a nice guy, you are a great artist. Keep up the great work, you inspire so many people, and in a world that is as cold as ours can be, we need more people like you.
Peace my Friend!

Thanks for your 200th post and for all the props. My #1 fan, thanks.
Here are a few pix of the Big Maori update. Carving is done except the moko. Just some sanding then That is next. Getting CLOSER

:) :) :) !!!!

Why do you hollow them out on the backside? Is that to keep them from checking?
JP

Thanks for the smiles GMAN.

JohnnyP. I hollow these out for a few reasons, one to lighten it up for shipping and for hanging on the wall. Also it helps dry the tiki out so the poly sticks better and it weighs less too. Most of the inside meat is wet, stringy pulp that can rot quickly and cause the form meat to rot also which would NOT be a good thing. Hollowing them out does slow down any checking too, so there are many benefits to the hollowing out process. Thanks..

Wow Ben, looks like you finally showed him who really is the boss. We cant wait for him to become part of our family and have already found his spot in the house. Nobody will mess with this warrior. We have enjoyed seeing him come to life and especially enjoyed seeing your one of a kind style come through in him. Stay well and get ready for another South Florida Tiki Jam in late April.

Wow, that was fast, looks so good.

[ Edited by: Bete 2006-02-21 07:40 ]

On 2006-02-21 05:16, Loki wrote:
Wow Ben, looks like you finally showed him who really is the boss. We cant wait for him to become part of our family and have already found his spot in the house. Nobody will mess with this warrior. We have enjoyed seeing him come to life and especially enjoyed seeing your one of a kind style come through in him. Stay well and get ready for another South Florida Tiki Jam in late April.

Congratulations Loki, so this one must be yours, very cool.

Well, Here is a bit of an update on the Big maori, He is beginning to breathe a little and is becoming very demanding again. I Threatened him with Fedex and he shut right up,Hahaha. I guess it is not really funny, but it just slipped right out.
Sorry about the lousy pic's tonight.

Ben, the detail carving work is looking great, and so glad you located #5 today, so now just take a few deep breathes, as everything's fine now, awesome. So nice to know that #5, #6, #7 and #8 are all accounted for, huh?

Yo Benz - you got the karma man. I'm actually quite relieved that the package showed up. That's excellent feng shui.

By the way, I got to see my first original Benzart pendant tonight, in person. Ikitnrev was wearing it when we went out drinkin. I was totally blown away. Please please put me on your list for something like that. It would be a treasure, for sure.

Nice :)
JP

Hey Benz,

I'm your 1,000th reply on his thread! How cool. Anyway, I'm just back from my trip to DC and wanted to let you know how much I like the moko you are putting on this piece. I spent a bunch of time on the plane drawing moko designs and can't wait to get back on the little guy.

Thanks so much for posting these. He looks so great. I hope all is well.

-Gman

"The saw is family"

[ Edited by: GMAN 2006-02-24 10:31 ]

GMAN, Thanks for spending your 1000th post in my thread, much appreciated.
Thanks for All the king words from everyone too.
I was going to post some updated pic's but I figured I would hold off until it is done so that Loki and StumpGrinder will have a few surprises. All I can say is it is Really lookin GOOD. I wish you all could see it. This guy must have died getting all these tats carved in. I put a coat of Stain on today so you must know the carving is COmplete. Can't wait to show you ,,,but I'm gonna....

Just tell Loki and Stumpgrinder not to look. We all want to see!
JP

Yes, right OK. Loki and Stumpgrinder don't look at this update for a couple weeks. He still needs some stain touch-up and about 6 coats of Polyurethane. He still needs his plywood suppore to be built and stained. About one more week and he will be done.

Ben, that's the kind of update my dreams are made of!!! This Maori is awesome! The tats are amazing and I love the carved pendant he's wearing - that's a very cool idea.

You are one VERY talented man, can't wait to see more!

that feller is AWESOME! the attention to detail as well as the overall craftsmanship is simply amazing!

Wow man - very cool. Damn tiki has a cooler hei tiki pendant than I do - bastard!

Another amazing piece from the master.

In awe. Yet again.

Holy mackerel!