How to remove larger pieces with Dremel?

[Combo]

Hi, I recently purchased a Dremel 300 and a box of basswood pieces and just started carving yesterday. I have a lot to learn but it's been fun so far and I'm looking forward to improving. The first thing I tried to do was carve a mouse, but I'm totally lost when it comes to removing larger pieces of wood. I tried a Dremel 9903 cutter but it was pretty small and didn't seem right for the task of removing large pieces. I also tried a disc cutter and though it did cut pretty well, it would only cut up to the radius of the disk in thickness (around 0.5"), which isn't enough.

Could anybody take a look at this picture (you can see where I tried the Dremel cutting disc on it), and kindly suggest ways I could remove larger chunks? Preferably with the Dremel, though if you recommend it I can consider other approaches too.

Thanks

[Kitbass]

I also have a dremel and I am a beginner as well so I dont know if I am doing it right but I tend to use a coping saw to take off larger bits and then use the dremel to sand off the edges so that they are as I want them. The coping saw was very cheap to buy but I have found it great for the larger bits.

Hope this helps

Keith

[Robson Valley]

I'd suggest that you use a saw of some sort to hog off the bigger pieces of waste.
I'm not embarrassed to admit that I use all of these:
Power: miter box/chop saw, band saw, scroll saw, saber saw. Look at those.
Hand saws: Bow saw, short crosscut saw, flush-cutting dowel saw, coping saw.

For small jobs, short chunks, rocking the cut around a curve, the coping saw is economical and peacefully quiet. Blades are reversible, end-to-end, to cut with the pull or push stroke. Different numbers of teeth per inch are available, you can feed the blade through a 1/4" hole and reassemble the saw for blind cutouts. I have two coping saws hanging on a nail, right in front of where I like to carve.

Some Dremels and clones have a spiral bit like a RotoZip tool. I have a base which turns the Dremel into a mini-router. They work OK but for cutoffs, the coping saw works well.

[Donsexton]

You could cut chunks with a dremel by gouging with an aggressive burr, but why? For what you are carving based on the photo I would agree that a coping saw is what you need. Those RotoZip cut out routers have their uses, but cutting chunks from small pieces of hard wood ant one of them.

[susieq]

Hi Combo,
Welcome to the forum. The first thing you need to know is that the bits that come with the Dremel kits are worthless. You will never use most of them.
Go to an online carving supplier like Wood Carving Tools - Wood Carving Supplies - Wood Carving Equipment - WoodCarversSupply.com or any other good site and order yourself some aggressive bits for hogging with.

The Dremel won't take anything larger than a 1/8 bit so be careful what size you order. Kutzal and Typhoon bits come in 1/4 inch too and that's too large to fit into your machine.....not putting Dremels down here. I have 3 in operation at my carving station. Dremel runs a lot faster rmps than the Foredom shaft tool so a 1/8 kutzal bit going 30,000 rpms is going to be a lot more aggressive than the same bit going 18,000. I love those little machines and they are the perfect size for what you are doing right now.

The most popular shapes of kutzal bits are the cylinder and the tapered bit. They run about $15. ea depending on where you purchase them.

Kutzals are for removing wood fast....don't bury the bit in the wood or it will kick like a mule. Take shavings off...believe me, the wood will fly. But these roughout bits leave deep grooves so as soon as you get close to the shape you want, switch to a ruby bit to go down more and carve off all those grooves, then finally a diamond bit or sanding bit....and please, wear a good dust mask. Continual breathing of wood dust will make you ver sick and could kill you. Some woods are more toxic....tropical woods are the worst...but all wood dust is BAD for you to breath. Safety first. Happy carving.

[Steve Reed]

My recommendation is to use a coarse sanding drum. This will give you a lot of control over your removal and will go fairly quickly. Used to use them a lot on birds and ducks.

[Robson Valley]

". . . . and just started carving yesterday."
Carving is like shaking hands with an octopus: one at a time. Cheapest shop tool for what Combo needs to do is a coping saw. If he's (?) got a Dremel sanding drum, try it of course. He can vacuum up the dust for the next 6 weeks.