Dremel?

[Tazehale]

I recently bought a really nice (and expensive!) dremel for building my girlfriend and myself computer cases generally out of acrylic and such and I was wondering if it was wood carving taboo to use it to help with the more fine details, it comes with a lot of really nice sanding and smoothing tools etc :-D

If it's shuned I'll definately stay away and be more traditional!

Thanks,
Sean

[Rwenzoski]

Hi Sean, I used to be a purist with chisel & mallet but learned real quickly this is only a personal thing. I now use any tool that takes me from point A to point B the easiest or fastest I can as then I get to enjoy the amount of carvings I can achieve also. Anyone that asks about dremmels or any other rotary power carvers I highly recommend spending the money to by the Wecheer power carver as the price is sometimes even cheaper & with this unit you have a much more powerfull unit, reversible, variable speed & the ability to run 5/32", 1/8" & 1/4" tools. I have had this idea of carving custom wood PC covers & rolled is around for a while but haven't had the time to try one out. Would love to to see some pics if possible of what you are doing?
Thanks, Robbin
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[ragiarn]

There is nothing wrong with using power tools if that serves your purpose. Unless you are selling an item as "hand carved" and wish to be a purist (see long discussion -"Does "hand carved" imply hand tools?"). The most important aspect of carving is the end product and whether it suits your purpose and pleases you. How you get there doesn't matter.

Doc

[mateo]

There are no taboos in wood carving. I would just say that there are no rotary burs smaller than the edge of a chisel or knife blade and therefor details made with rotary tools do not seem as fine, to me at least. Also the sanding tools you mention are great for some materials but seem to leave unpleasant marks on wood. I do not mean to sound like a downer, the Dremel is a very nice tool.
Practice with it and you will learn its strengths and weaknesses.
Matt

[Ron T]

Sean,

it's definitely taboo. Anyone here will tell you, "Don't do it." But I don't care so I'll help you out and buy it from you. LOL. I use all the power assitance I can get even though I love to carve with hand tools. The final finishing usually has to be done by hand but you can get pretty close w/ the Dremel.

Go for it.

[Ed Redwine]

My little battery powered Dremel is an important part of my tool collection. Carving techinques vary all over the block so it's what you get used to. Good Luck.

[Paul_Guraedy]

Sean, I've been carving a long time and the one thing I have learned is that someone will almost always object to anything that is said to be an "only" in woodcarving. As they should! Unless you are simply carving to make a pointy stick (as is done almost everyday on the town square near us), you are attempting to create something. This makes the final product at least as important as the methodology and to me exceeds it.

I don't think I have ever carved a piece exclusively with power, or without power, and without sanding. I consider my carvings as handcarved. I have told many non-carvers how I "handcarve". I have never been challenged on this definition by a non-carver. My carvings are hand painted; but, if I can ever figure out how to use that da.....danged airbrush properly - I will do it. I will also consider the carving as handpainted.

The thread "Does 'hand carved' imply hand tools?" has been mentioned. This is a poll of woodcarvers. Take a look at the results posted. Not the comments...those are not results. If there is no concensus among us practitioners...

Use you dremel and work to achieve results that are satisfactory to you. Don't let someone else's opinion influence your artistry.

[Sharon of the Dell]

It's totally OKAY to use a dremel or other electrical carving tool. Using nonelectrial hand tools or power tools, you still have to learn how to use them.Be safe first in whatever you do, and just have fun learning and creating.

[Hisart]

Well, to add to the confusion ...

Technically, wood-carving is an art form that is done with chisel, gouge, and mallet. A knife is used to shape and for fine detail.

Whittling is done with a knife only and is not considered art because of this.

That is the response a "High-end" gallery or museum will tell you. These are they same people that tell you that if you swallow paint and then vomit it up on a canvas ... it's art!

[susieq]

I can promise you that if the great woodcarvers of the past, such as Grindling Gibbons, had access to Dremels and Foredoms, they would have used them.

It is probably a good thing to be up front about your methods of creation if you are selling your work. But a rotary tool in your hand is still hand carving to many of us who do it. It takes me a minimum of 8 hours hard work to carve one of my tiny Christmas ornaments...even the simplest of them. Weeks to finish one of the more complicated standing figures. Power doesn't make it go faster, it just allows someone to do much finer detail work.