My first tiki, and I have some doubts.....

I've just started with pine wood. I have all hardware required . But I've noted pine wood chips a lot, so I suppose after carving is finish I have to polish with a electrical polish, that's right???

If you have tips for me, thanks !!!!!!!

electric sander, my new favorite toy is the right angle electric grinder with a sanding disc. this works quick, and it takes time to perfect, it is touchy to control.and i also like my black & decker mouse sander for finishing. good luck, jim.

CS Try aportable electronec Router speed control (Home Depot #39.00 -/+)that way you can slow it down and be more creative instead of defensive

Yep! All the above!
Angle grinder with sanding disk for big areas
Palm sander for large areas (this smooths it out a little)
Dremel for smaller areas and hard to reach cracks and places http://www.dremeleurope.com/Europe.html

and a little sand paper and elbow grease for the rest!

But, pine wood is well for a novice as me?
What another wood you recomend me??
I suppose palm wood is best option, but if I can find it...what must I chose?

but if I CAN'T find it...what must I chose?

Pine is fine for carving
Ash is nice too (good and soft)
as a matter of fact...you can carve anything you can get you hands on.
For your first carvings - you may want to go with softer woods, they're easier on the hands. Just make sure your chisels are sharp - and have fun!
anyone else want to chime in with first time carver wood suggestions?

I believe the pine log you have will work fine. It's fairly soft and easy to carve. Depending on which pine it is, the grain bay be a little difficult but if thats the case, you will learn real fast how to cut with the grain. Go for it. Don't be afraid of making a mistake because with woodcarving, when you make a mistake and then figure out how to fix it, you begin to learn more. So, carve away, mess up and Fix your messups. Most of all,,Have FUN.

well, after all this time messing around with tiki knick-knacks, my friend has stumbled across a pile of very old and very dry sections of palm....they are VERY dry! So, anyhow....I finally dove into full scale chisel and axe tiki carving! That palm is HARD! can anyone (Benzart) upload a pic of your technique at holding your log in place? That would be fantastic! I'll upload my progress as it takes shape!

That palm is HARD! can anyone upload a pic of your technique at holding your log in place?

errr...I think I'll leave that one alone.

Depends on the sive of the log - if it's a small palm log you can get one of those work benches from sears and prop it up on it (I think Gecko and TikItOny use that). I flip one of those 12 dollar saw horses from Home Depot over, flank it with two more and put the palm log on that.

Most of the time, I just leave it on the ground and put a saw horse on the opposite side of the carving to keep it from rolling.

Good luck and post some pics when you're done!

"Hey, at least I'm housebroken."

[ Edited by: Polynesiac on 2004-05-19 13:53 ]

I used to have 2 bug logs about3' high and 2' wide with big V notches cut into the top.If you can see the stump on the right bottom here:

For small carvings I used 1 and for larger carvings 2.
They were from the Lighting poles I got to carve that made me sick. So I got some use out of them anyway and they worked really well.

Yep... the Workmate type bench is what I use...
folds up after for easy storage too...

im hip on that bench too! saves alot of backache from bending over.

thanks for the input! here's a couple shots showing the progress:

the rough hacking of a nice hand axe does the trick!

Moving along......more detail....still rough, but I like where it's going.....this piece of palm actually made a ringing sound when striking it's bark with a machete! It has been curing for decades for all I know!

For your first one? I'd say A+.

Thanks a lot, Unga Bunga! Also, thanks to Benzart, Polynesiac, Lake Surfer, and Chisel Slinger for your advice on how to handle my wood! Since there is no way to say that without sounding "awkward", I'll just roll with it! Haha!
I've learned a great deal on this bugger! It's funny....I was trying all of these different tools and settled on my trusty hand axe to take care of bid-ness! And now on to #2!

Carving this palm is like trying to carve a stale shredded wheat!

[ Edited by: suburbanpagan on 2004-05-20 22:57 ]

Looks like an Excellent start. Very good for your first hack at it. Yes some of the pines can get rock hard if cured properly. You will definately lr=earn how to sharpen your tools..Keep us posted

thanks a lot benzart! That means a lot to me coming from you! I have a question about finishing a palm tiki. There is no way to really sand it smooth is there? I noticed that all of the palm tikis at the Caliente Tropics had a coat of paint to keep them from shredding...is that typical or are there other ways to preserve the palm without having to put a thick coat of paint on it? Thanks!

Well, you can use Thompsons Waterseal, or stuff like that, but I think the guys usually use power sanders and grinders, or Chisels and goughes to get them smoothe before the final finish.
For your first ones I wouldn't worry about any coatings. Aftwer you have done a few and get the tikismoothe enough, then you may want to put a sealer coat of some kind on it.
Paint or Varnish will protect the wood from the elements, but down the road will need to be Re-coated after a tough sanding job.
Usually for Interior pieces you want a smoother finish that is "Splinterless"and probably afinish coat of vernish or such. It gives it more of a Quality look I think.
Now that I've bored you to death, just follow your own instincts and feelings, If you think it would look better varnished, then do it. down the road when you are making these for other peeps, they will tell you what they want.