Need a little help !

[carvedbears61]

Have a Buffalo Rought Out what is the best way
to seprate the back legs. It's Basswood Talking Is That the first place to start.

[susieq]

You can remove some of the wood between the legs with a deep U gouge or grind out a spearation between the legs if you are using power but becareful not to take too much from the inside of each leg until you have the body roughed out. This will allow you to adjust just where the leg should be. If you take too much out before the body is shaped, you might find you don't have enough wood left where you need it to place the leg properly.

One trick I always use on any piece I carve is to draw (in pencil) the center line long ways all the way around the figure. In your case, this would be from the middle of the nose, up the middle of the face, down the middle of the back, tail, between the legs and up the middle of the belly, up the middle of the chest and neck, back to the nose. Maintain this line while carving and it will help you keep things where they are supposed to be. It will show you what is out of balance on one side compared to the other side. But you have to start the piece with it, re draw it when ever you carve part of it away. Once the body is shaped and you start on the legs, placement of the legs will be easier and you should also draw the center line for each leg, down the front, across the bottom of the hoof and up the back of each leg. It is the simplest way I know to keep your piece balanced. I hope I made sense there because I don't always say things well enough to be understood.
susieq

[Donna_T]

The only thing I'd add to Susan's comments is based on experience I've had with animals, especially. Rough out the bulk of the carving before starting on the weakest, thinnest part of it. By keeping the legs intact while carving off the bulk of the wood on it's body and head, you keep support strong. Once you separate the legs, they are weaker (as far as supporting the rest of the body) and as they are thinned and shaped, they are more apt to break if you're careless with prying and holding. Don't ask how I found this out the hard way...Sad

Donna T

[carvedbears61]

Thank You For The 2 Helpful Advice
Reply's. I Hope I Can Put Up Some Pic Soon.

[mdallensr]

I've carved several bears and had the same struggle. I mount my blanks on a square piece of plywood. I outline the animals feet and drill holes through the plywood, then screw the blank to the board, being careful to screw into wood I won't carve away. You can clamp the board to a work bench or table, or just put it on a non-skid pad on a work bench. It's much easier to do the rough-out work with the blank fastened this way. You can do the basic shaping with a deep gouge (#7, 8, or 9) very quickly this way. As you read from the previous posters, do the body shaping first, then use gouges to separate the legs, working down to smaller gouges, even veiners, as you get closer to the body. The tough part of this is you're probably carving into end-grain when you get to the legs, and you need to keep your tools sharp. When you've done most of the rough-out, take the blank off of the plywood and finish the legs from underneath. Wear a good carving glove and enjoy. Good luck. Mike

[Claude]

Originally Posted by mdallensr

... As you read from the previous posters, do the body shaping first, then use gouges to separate the legs, working down to smaller gouges, even veiners, as you get closer to the body. The tough part of this is you're probably carving into end-grain when you get to the legs, and you need to keep your tools sharp... Mike

If you can get access, another way to clear out between the legs of the animal is to use a drill with either a forstner bit or a brad-point bit and just drill out several good sized holes in the area of waste wood. then use the gouges/knives to trim the bits between the drill holes. I did this on a rocking horse I'm working on (5 inches high horse). Or, if you have a strong steady hand, you can use a Monster carbide burr in your rotary tool and "grind" it away. I have trouble with this sometimes grabbing the wood and taking off on it's own, so I prefer to use the drill bits in a drill...

Claude