Need some rough out help

[Graywolf71]

Just bought me a bandsaw, and got the scrolling blade with it, so i can do rough outs...BUT...I'm have trouble cutting the them out. If i cut the side view first i can't seem to get the front proportions right, like the nose area is too low or too high for e.g.
I believe that practice makes perfect but if thier are any pointers out there i could sure use them.

Michael Gray

[Mark N. Akers]

Micheal:
I alway cut the front view first and then either on each side start at the bottom and top and meet leaving about 1/16th of a inch holding them togather or use scotch tape to stick the sides back on,you must put back on what you cut off to get a good pattern for the side view cut.

[Thomp]

grey wolf,
mark gave you good information on how to cut out a pre-made pattern,

but if your making your own pattern you need to draw, both side and front view on the same piece of paper, using elevation lines, maybe even graph paper... might help here

OK, the elevation lines will set items identifiable in both views to the same elevation on the characature.

When sawing don't remove to the line keep a little bigger, saw blade kerf or more 1/32 to 1/8th" even though the blade is at 90* it sometimes bends/curves inside the block when making corners or sweeping curves.

make sure your table is level on the saw where the blade cuts at 90*

the way i do it is with my scrollsaw, but the methods should be the same.

• put the pattern on a squared block, tape it on with packaging tape. or transfer the pattern directly onto the block. with pencil tracing or carbon paper
• then cut out one view,
• collect all the scraps, and remake the block and tape it all back together with packaging tape. clamp if necessary
• then cut out the other side.

when your cutting through the tape on the second side the tape may turn loose, so you may need a clamp to hold it all together again, but the tighter you keep the bundle the more true to the lines on the pattern you can cut.

things like tilted cowboy hats are best left in a block as you cant cut the tilt without much difficulty...

i leave hands in a block, as it allows me to change the way i might want to change the position at wrist rotation of the carving.

then after you have the bandsaw rough out it might still take some interpretation of how the pattern is inside the block...i keep my pattern with my rough out so i can map out the block many times while carving and redraw features after i carve off the scrap...

hope this helps a little..
Thomas

[Mitchell]

Previous discussions (somewhat related):

http://woodcarvingillustrated.com/fo...t=bandsaw+tips

http://woodcarvingillustrated.com/fo...t=bandsaw+tips

As mentioned in some of the posts linked above, the more common terminology is "Bandsaw(n) blank". A "Rough out" is generally a carving that has been duplicated in to a rough stage.

Also - Please consider safety first! Keep your blank flat on the the table when using a band saw...this is especially true when cutting both sides as you are describing. That's one of the reasons that the posts mention taping or glueing back the previous cut off pieces.

My 2 cents:

Make sure that the pattern is drawn correctly on both sides with key points used as matching reference points aligned correctly. For instance a nose and/or hand location. I make sure that the front and side patterns have these components match when put onto the blank by using a reference line drawn around the blank.

I cut out the "easy" side first and then the "hard" (more detailed) second. When cutting the "easy" side, I don't ususally tape my pieces back on, instead I cut leaving just enough wood so the waste piece doesn't fall off. It's a bit difficult because you have to back the blade back out. I leave a "tab" at the top and bottom for support. I don't know how to describe this, so I will try to post a picture later....

Another KEY tip - make sure the pattern that you draw on each side matches front-back and side-side. In other words, don't flip the front view when transfering to the wood. This could cause "mirror image" type problems.

This subject might be a good tutorial for someone to put up on the board....someone more talented than myself.

[santagibbs]

and I thought ..MAYBE someday I would learn how to do this but I might as well forget it!!!! Is there anyway you could do this with a projector? No? I didn't think so .. Curtis bought this little projector but never used it and he mentioned making a pattern with it..Head Bange Charlotte

[Claude]

Originally Posted by Mitchell

...
When cutting the "easy" side, I don't ususally tape my pieces back on, instead I cut leaving just enough wood so the waste piece doesn't fall off. It's a bit difficult because you have to back the blade back out.

For your safety and the continued health and well-being of your band saw blade, turn off the bandsaw before you try backing it out. When your bandsaw is turned off and unplugged push on the back of the blade and watch how easily it pops out of the blade guides. If this happens while it's moving, the blade is likely to come off the wheels and damage itself and/or the saw structure. Now, having said that, you can back out of a relatively short straight cut without too many problems, but not out of a very complex tight curve. You can probably figure out how I know this...

Claude

[Claude]

Originally Posted by santagibbs

and I thought ..MAYBE someday I would learn how to do this but I might as well forget it!!!! Is there anyway you could do this with a projector? No? I didn't think so .. Curtis bought this little projector but never used it and he mentioned making a pattern with it..Head Bange Charlotte

Yes, you can!! WCI had an article several issues back about a guy carving a life-size nude. He projected pictures on the wall and drew his outlines from that. I remember the article because that blasted fox Talking was drawn on the carving he was doing...

Claude

[Thomp]

Charlotte,
just don't over think it making good bandsaw or scrollsaw blanks is not hard,

the mis conception is that you will have a near finished carving when your done,
but your closer to a carving because you remove a bulk of the scraps..

actually you will have at least 9 pieces of wood left when you cut the pattern out of the block.

sometimes when I'm making a lot of blanks i keep the 8 outer peaces and leave the pattern on them and glue or tape all 7 of the 8 back together to make a container for the blank to keep it safe and organized till i get the time to carve it.

attached is a very small pattern (due to board-fourm constraints) for a banjo ukulele just something i found on a hillbilly search on Google.
i took the image removed the background and just tossed together, the side view..

if enlarged to a usable size & printed then folded over a block edge and taped down, the front view of the pattern could be cut out then the loose pieces be taped back in place and then cut out the side view...
now on a bandsaw i would cut the red lines,
on a scrollsaw i would cut the black lines
because you can control a scrollsaw better. on most cuts.

comments and suggestions welcomed

[Mitchell]

Claude is correct - be very careful when backing out. I ususally cut so that the "waste" is loose, but not free - and then the kerf can be opened a bit to allow the blade to back out easier.

Thomas has a good diagram showing the reference lines and how to transfer from the front to the side.

I forgot to come up with a little instructional pictorial to go along with my previous ramble - sorry. Hopefully I can get it done in a couple of days.

[Graywolf71]

boy do i have alot to think over now!
Thanks for the insites and info, ya'll got some very unique ways of getting the job done. As soon as i can i've got to try these ideas out.

Michael Gray