Tools of the Trade

Hi there, found this site 2 minutes before I headed out to work, I wanted to post this so I could see if I get any replies when I come back home..I had the idea of carving or attempting to carve a tiki for a while now, but I dont know what should I use, can you guys suggest some tools of the trade? I went on ebay and found wood carving chisels but Im not sure if they are what i want, names with pictures will be great :) Ill be sure to type up an intro when I get back, gotta run to work :D

----Big Pav

[ Edited by: pawel 2008-04-25 03:34 ]

On 2008-04-25 03:33, pawel wrote:
Hi there, found this site 2 minutes before I headed out to work, I wanted to post this so I could see if I get any replies when I come back home..

----Big Pav

Let me be the first..

Kia ora Pawel/Pav - welcome to TC!

At this time of the morning you'll only bump into a few strays on the wrong side of the world or perhaps one of the US ohana stumbling in VERY early/late, but until one of them wakes or sobers enough to help you: you might want to take a tour of the 'Carving' and 'Other Crafts' threads for inspiration. or any of the other catagories for that matter; there is a lot to see..

It sounds as though you're destined to become a woodcarver which unfortunately isnt my field of expertise - but you are in good company & Im sure BenZ or GMan or one of the other wood-meisters (sorry Masters..) can point you in the right direction.

*By the way, we've seen the beginning-est of the beginning-est and always offer encouragement - so no matter how amatuerish or nervous you may feel, suck it up and have a go! No excuses!(you'll probably blow us all away on your first attempt now.. :lol: )
You'll get best support if you attempt the Classics (Lono, Ku, Tangaroa, etc) but creativity and personal flair receive bonus points too!

I guess its up to you now - grab a log and something to attack it with, shut your eyes & listen for the Tiki-beat..

Best of luck!

Tama :)

Welcome mate! Rest assured there is bucket loads of experience and help for ya when you're carving! Just not from me... :lol: It might help if you gave some more information on what kinda carving you were interested in - big ass logs to go in the garden, or small stuff like pendants? And yeh, as Tama siad, go through the creating tiki threads for all kinds of ideas and inspiration :D

replies already :) thanks guys, Ill be see to look around, like I said I found this site this morning when I randomly got the craving to carve or attempt to carve a tiki lol I dont know anything about them just that they are bad ass haha ... but yea I want to give a medium size one a try, maybe 2feet tall? by 1ft wide log? or 3 ft tall by 1ft wide, I dont know how you measure these things but down the road I would also like to do small ones, so Im curious what tools I should get and where I might be able to pick em up, also wood wise, dose it matter what kind of wood it is or not?

Hey Pawel, glad to see another newbee, like myself, getting into carving. I also do the medium to small stuff and I will post my pic's tomorrow of my tools I use. My tools are wood cavring chisels, just ten of them, and I'll get you the sizes and manufacturer. Another wood tool called a drawblade for turning square blocks into round ones plus a wood mallet. A set of medium rasps and my only power tool is a Dremmel 400 SRX(?) with a flex shaft. Allows me to clean out those little nooks and crannies. Sand paper is always a help on anything but palm. I have only carved 6 Tiki's and 1 mask so hopefully we can compare notes as we go along. I did find that carving with the grain is best unless you have a very sharp blade and that bass wood is a nice starter wood. Basswood has a fine graing and is softer and lighter then hard woods. Post tomorrow since it's now 03:30am.
I am sure the other more experienced carvers have more wisdom to share. I pruchased everything of ebay but the dremel. Can't wait to see your first tiki!
Oh, and bandaids.......lots of @#&%#! bandaids.

[ Edited by: Tikilizard 2008-04-26 10:55 ]

please do, Im just curious if I could use the chisels you could buy at lowes / home depo there is 4 for 20$ .. a .quater inch, half inch, 3/4s and a 1" chisel..then I gotta find a log :P

Those flat chisels from those places will work just fine. If you can, get the buck brothers ones like this:

...instead of the other ones they have there with the day glo orange handles. the ones in that picture have a better edge angle for carving than the orange handled ones. I think the orange ones are better suited for cutting corners, hinge recesses and other general carpentry applications, as opposed to carving.

Buzzy Out!

Hey Pawel, I have used a set of carpenters chisels for wood carving but it was rough going in the fine detail department but you can do it. Have a list of tools I use for wood carving and ran me under $80.00 total. They are Henry Taylor Tools: 1/4" #9 gouge, 1/4" skew, 3/8" #3 gouge, 3/8" V-parting tool, 1/2" #5 #7 #9 gouge, 1/2" Straight chisel, 3/4" straight chisel, 1 1/4" #3 gouge. The #tells you how much of a curve is on the chisels blade. The larger the number the more angle. A skew is an angled chisel. The V-parting tool is a V shape for lines etc. Also is a wood mallet, surgical black sharpening stone and a 7" draw knife. Henry Taylor Tools aren't the best, not expensive, but keep the edge. I did have to put each one into service before I could use them and you do have to sharpen them before every carve (or maybe that's just me). A small starter set is all you need to get started. The draw knife is an antique but I put it back into service also. I would suggest staying away from Lowes, Home Depot and art supply for "carving" chisels as they run $$$. Hope this help.
Pic time:

buzzy you also use a chain saw yea? I have this little electric one that plugs in to the outlet but Im scared to use it , just worried that its gonna kick back and slice my face off lol but is it hard to do it with the chain saw? to get the basic carving you need, what cna you tell me about using a chain saw:D

and lizard thanks for posting the list, I plan on buying some tools maybe this friday..after I get paid, like I said I bough these little chisels but they are for small crafts, cost me 6$ for 8..that tells you alot lol. Any ways , I went to art stores and tool stores but couldnt find those wooden "hammers" any idea where I might pick one up, or if someone could post a link to a good chisel set on ebay that comes with everything for not to much money. I dont really want to drop 80$ on 4 chisels.

Thanks :)

Welcome to TC Pawel. You pose a great question that Many of us have asked and Much has been written about.
HERE is a link to an Eaarly thread about tools carvers use. The first few pages will not show pictures because of the Shutterfly changes but from about the 4th page there should be pictures. There is great info here with photos and links to web stores as well as usage tips.
Enjoy

On 2008-04-26 19:50, Tikilizard wrote:
Have a list of tools I use for wood carving and ran me under $80.00 total. Henry Taylor Tools aren't the best, not expensive, but keep the edge.

Lizard, if you got all 10 of those Henry Taylors for under $80. You did damn good. Henry Taylor's are actually one of the best you can buy and they are a lot more expensive than the Home Depo, Lowe's chisels. You should check the "New Prices" of what you have in that picture.

Pawel, Don't go out and spend a bunch of money on expensive chisels, Get some chepo's from HD or Lowes and give it a try. If you don't like what they have look into Flexcut chisels. they are really good also, and not bad on the price for what you get. Also read the thread Ben talked about.

http://www.Woodcraft.com
http://www.Leevalley.com
http://www.traditionalwoodworker.com
http://www.flexcut.com

Tikimecula is very right you can carve alot with the standard carpenders chisels and see if you like it. This is my first tiki I ever carved with that one florescent orange chisel and a reg. hammer, about 3yrs ago, and has been in my front yard in S. Florida ever since. It wasn't tall enough so I carved a base with a no hurricane sign and palm trees on each side. What I was trying to say is start with a few chisels and then work your way up with only the ones you need (my wife gets mad when I buy more tools....lol). I have been carving for about 4yrs. (not all tiki's) and I am just up to 10 semi-nice chisels from ebay. If you do like it then look for a carvers starting set at the places Tikimecula list. Or eBay but you never know just what you will get. There is also a wood carvers magazine with articles on what to start with.... I'll see if I can find it for you. Get your log yet?

no log yet, I hope with time one will find me :P

lol Ill probably end up going in the wood by my house and chopping down a tree, no one will notice. or look for one thats down and cut a chunk off, Just hope its not rotten, If that dosent work out Ill go to the park+rec serves and see if I could get them because trees in the city get cut down all the time to make room for power lines so Im sure they got some Ill be able to take.

Pawel, Finally found the carving article. It's from the Fall 2006, Issue #15 of Caving Magazine, page 12. If you would like the whole article send me your email and I'll scan the rest. Happy carving.

On 2008-05-04 10:48, Tikilizard wrote:
Pawel, Finally found the carving article. It's from the Fall 2006, Issue #15 of Caving Magazine, page 12. If you would like the whole article send me your email and I'll scan the rest. Happy carving.

Fantastic thread! I too am a tikiphile who is contemplating carving on my own. The info on tools is great. Would love to get a copy of that article as well if that's alright. Also, I assumed the majority of tikis are carved from palm but I'm finding that may not be the case. Are there woods that are better for starters? Basswood was mentioned but I'm wondering what other common woods are "kosher" to use for tikis. Also curious as to where some of you carvers are getting your logs from.

Thanks again for all the great questions and info on this site.

Tikitonga, I'll get the full article to you ASAP. As far as carving wood goes, basswood is soft, light, holds detail, and makes a good starter wood. Palm is also soft and easy to carve, makes a great tiki, but you will not get alot of fine detail from the grain. Pine is also a soft wood, easy to carve but has knots which is not a bad thing. Many tiki carvers use the knots in thier designs. In South Florida I only have a choice between pine and palm for gathering so I usually get my wood from online suppliers or ebay. Shipping cost is what really hurts so I keep those under three feet. I am not sure if the type of wood really matters as tiki is more cultural, design and state of mind. Just grab a log and start carving.

[ Edited by: Tikilizard 2008-05-07 09:13 ]

Thanks! Now it's off to price out some carving tools! I spent last night reading through all the carving posts I could and learned more in those hours than I ever thought I could. The talent pool in this place is truly amazing. Mahalo!

The article is on it's way. Happy carving!