pine wood

Hi evryone

I'm new to the forum and to carving in general. I am a animator/graphic designer/cartoonist but have been getting allot of inspiration through tiki's lately.

I recently moved to the Bahamas and there is tons of pine laying arround.. is it any good for carving tiki's though? especially as a beginner. Of course there are palms here to but i dont want to cut one down.

Chicop,

Sure, pine works fine. It may not be the greatest wood, but if it's what you can get, have at it man! I use it when it's available and have not had any serious problems aside form cracking. Chop a few out and post some pics. I would love to see what you come up with. If not, wait for the next big storm...there will be plenty of palms down and available then :)

-Gman

It cuts butter smooth lines. I carved my first one in June. The only complaint I had was the worm holes that weren't seen from the surface, and appeared in critical areas deeper into the wood. Good luck and take it slow.

hey could someone do a list of the best wood from like a top to bottom of best.

Thanx guys..wil definatly post some pics when i get one done.

It depends on what kind of pine it is. Most of the bahamas is covered with Austrailian pine but i think that Andros island has our traditional Slash type pine which is easy carving. The Aussie pine is very hard and splits unless cured fully which makes it all the harder. It has Reddish to pink coloring to it. Good luck.

thanx... i think its all australian pine. very red en light red is the theme here it seems. i'm in Grand Bahama , Freeport.

Sorry to hear that the Australian Casuarina Pine is harder to carve - Because Biologists and Botanists would be happy to have you cut all you want.

Because it's hardy, prolific, and a non-native species the Casuarina takes over space previously used by native plants. Furthermore, it prefers to grow in the same sandy soil that native species of rock iguanas need for nesting sites. In my work with endangered rock iguanas throughout the Caribbean, I've cut down and dug up several Casuarina pines that had taken hold in iguana nesting sites. If I had been a carver, I might have left lizard-faced tikis in their place as sacred protectors of the iguana eggs.

Sabu

Sabu,

Buy me a ticket from Florida and some pre-mix for my saw and I'll carve you a forest of iguana protecting tikis! I need a vacation anyway...

-Gman

Dont forget to post pics. Welcome. You will know you are crazy when you try to carve by flashlight