Cleaning you Project

[One Thumb Carver]

When the carving is completed what is the best way to clean the wood before you paint project?

[Claude]

I use a bar of white hand soap and an old toothbrush. Wet the carving under the faucet, scrub with the soap, rinse under the tap, then dry with a hair drier. It'll feel rough because of raised wood fibers, but a few passes with some 400 grit sandpaper, or a wadded up brown paper bag, will make it feel smooth again.

Claude

[Lynn O. Doughty]

I stay away from trying to "wash" a carving as you will never be able to get rid of all the cleaning solution no matter how much you might rinse it. The best thing to keep a carving from needing a trip to the sink is to just wash your hands occasionally and make sure your carving glove is clean. Stay away from those rubber nibbed gloves as the rubber breaks down over time and creates a real mess on your piece. I use a Sand'O'Flex wheel to lightly sand my pieces when their finished and this removes any dirt collected on a raised surface.

[Gulf Coast Handyman]

I don't wash my carvings at all, I use the 3M discs in my Dremel and go over the whole carving! I will try to find you a link to the discs.

Dave

[Gulf Coast Handyman]

Here they are, 3/4" and 1" Bristle Discs by 3M

Dave

[One Thumb Carver]

Thanks Claude, Lynn O Doughty and Gulf Coast Handyman for taking time to respond to my question.

[scooter]

Ditto with Lynn's statement re: keeping your hands clean.

Me, I keep the pencil marks to a minimum, which helps keeping the carving clean (But that's not why I don't use a pencil - it's because I work so fast that pencil lines never last long enough to convey any meaning. But that's another subject). Oftentimes I'll use a V-tool to 'sketch' in lines, in lieu of a pencil.


S~

[One Thumb Carver]

Scooter, I have heard about you working very fast and also that sometimes you have to slow down so the V tool will not burn you wood. Thanks for you in put have a good day