In need of Antler material and info

[VaRedDirt]

Hi, I am interested in carving in antler and have no access to any material. I was wondering if anyone here has any spare peices that I could get started with? I have been carving in hiking sticks the past few years and thought I would give antler carving a try. I have searched these boards and found a lot of useful info here, especially about the antlere dust! So if anyone has some antler and/or carving tips, please let me know. I was thinking of carving a little piece to start with and have it looped into the leather at the top of my hiking stick. Glad I found this site, lots of great stuff here.

Thanks

[Claude]

It's not in VA, but here's a site that has a lot of them: Antlers and Horns

Claude

[VaRedDirt]

Thanks... and WoW, that can get expensive! I think I may stick to wood!

[Budatmaint]

What did you learn about the antler dust? I hope it's not harmful. I've been grinding and sanding it for years, making hunting knives. You can buy European Stag for knife handles but it's about $30 for a piece big enough for one handle.

Budatmaint

[VaRedDirt]

From everything I have read, the antler dust contains bacteria that can give you a sevier lung infection! Everyone always recomends wearing a mask.
I may post on craigslist to try to find some local antler or maybe even try the local flea market. I want to try carving in antler, but don't really have the money to sink into it at the prices I have seen.

[mrgrouch]

hello vareddirt, would you have more detailed information about the hazard involved in carving antlers?

last year i got pair of moose antlers with the intention of carving something out of them, so i started to do some research before i messed them up. and although most people agree it's dangerous material to carve, no one seems so sure as of why... i looked it up and i ran into several theories, but could not find any factual information about the scientific behind it. (doesn't mean much... i'm not the best when it comes to researching stuff.)

i haven't done anything to my antlers yet. not that i'm paranoid or anything, it's in part for lock of time and in part because i want to make sure i' have the right protection.

any information will be appreciated.

cheers

[Claude]

Here's one reference: Health Hazards Manual for Artists - Google Books

Another: http://annhyg.oxfordjournals.org/con...1/304.full.pdf

And another: Artist beware: the hazards in ... - Google Books

This was with about 5 minutes search of the internet...I'm sure there are others, as I quit looking half way through the 2nd page of Google's links.
Claude

[VaRedDirt]

Thanks Claude, I was just going by what others had posted here and on other "How to" web sites. I felt that was good enough for me. I know I will be sure to were some type of mask if I ever do antler. I have read some places that it can be extremely dangerous.

Mrgrouch, good luck with the Moose antler, sounds like quite the undertaking.

[mrgrouch]

thanks claude, the links you posted are very interesting, but i don't think they're what I was looking for.

the first site seems to suggest that the problem is not so much the material but what's on it, because it advices to clean the material thoroghly before carving.

the last site rates antler as slightly toxic, but not nearly as scary as the rate they give to wood carving.

the second site although is the one with the most credence, doesn't go as far as investigating the reasons of the respiratory afflictions in the test subjects. i mean, i would have liked to see charts of the chemical and mineral composition of all the materials used by the carvers in the study including sanding and buffing compounds, and a break down by medium. it is well known for example that steatite (soapstone) may be high in asbestos and silica sand is a carcinogen, but even though both steatite and silica are mentioned in the study, their particular characteristics are not. in any case, although the study concludes that all carvers present minor respiratory issues, it doesn't say why. and that's what i want to know.

why does that matter? you may say… well, if the organic dust is the only problem, a good dust mask and dust collection system would be enough protection, but if the hazard is more at the microbial or bacterial level, a dust mask is no protection at all.

cheers

[Bruce Bird]

I use a good dust mask and if Im drum sanding with my Carver I also have a fan that blows the dust out the door away from me.

Bruce