new looking for tools

[opakitas]

I am new at wood carving. I am very excited to get started. I just bought books and now need to invest in tools but didn't know what I should get. I am interested in carving animals. Wild animals (wolves, rabbits etc) as well as dog breeds, birds etc. I want to start with small figures first and then maybe work up to bigger ones. What tools should I get for a starters kit? I think Micro right but what should it have in the kit.

thanks
Tammy

[pallin]

Do a "Search this thread" from within the category of carving you like - specify "Tools" - You find a lot of recommendations from site members.

[Just Carving]

Welcome Tammy

Your question has been answered many times over.

Click on this:

Wood Carving for Beginners - Woodcarving Illustrated Message Board

Read everything you can on starting out, new tools, starter sets, carving gloves, safety and sharpening.

You do that, and you'll learn an awful lot more about carving then what you'll find in the books.

A simple sentence:

This forum is a book--of everything you want to know about carving and then some!

Finally, ask questions. You might not get the exact answer you're expecting--but the peole here will point you in the right direction so you will enjoy your journey through the carving world.

Have fun,

Bob L

[jmischel]

Yes, definitely read the message board here to see the advice given by others. As a relative newcomer myself (I started almost exactly a year ago), I'll emphasize a few points:

• Most important: be safe. Get a carving glove and thumb guard, and follow safety tips. Injuries mean "no carving" until you heal. Best to be safe and keep carving.
• Second most important: have fun. If you're not having fun, then you're doing something wrong.
• Start out small. I'd recommend getting a bench knife and maybe one or two gouges and v-tools. Learn how to use them well before you start spending a lot of money on tools that you might never use. Remember: the tools don't know how to carve. Or, to borrow a phrase I've used in other venues: "The tools don't make the carver." I've seen some very beautiful and detailed carvings done with "just a knife."
• Shy away from "sets" of tools. Too often you'll by a set of 10 gouges, for example, and end up using only two or three of them. You're better off buying just the tools you need once you determine what they are.
• Practice. Practice. Practice. Especially learn how to sharpen your tools, and practice that a lot. Oh, and you should practice carving, too.
• Push yourself. Try different things. Don't be afraid to make mistakes. Your only risk is that you'll end up with some designer firewood. Every carver here will tell you that it's the only way to learn. I suspect that a lot of carvers here will tell you that they make mistakes on every piece they carve. A lot of carving is learning how to adjust when you do make a mistake.
• Ask questions. No matter how trivial or off the wall you think the question is, ask it if you really want an answer. The members here are incredibly helpful and willing to answer any question. I'm sure I've asked some pretty odd ones in the year I've been on the board.
• Join a local carving club if you can. You'll find that many of the members are more than happy to help you when you get stuck. Plus, you get to see a lot of very good carvings, and you can ask the carver how he did it. Carvers are among the friendliest people I've met. I've never had one say, "it's a secret" when I ask them how they did something.

I'm sure there's more, but that's what comes immediately to mind. Welcome to the message board.