What Should I buy next? Newbie welcomes suggestions.

[rjw@watson-law.com]

I have just attended my first New England Woodcarver's meeting, where I guess I became the newest member. I bought a box of old woodcarving magazines (I kind of suspect that the ideas / concepts and patterns don't have a "shelf life," so they should still be great for me.) I also bought a couple of large blocks of wood that they said was bass wood, so now I should have enough wood so that I won't feel too bad when (note, I did not say if) I mess it up or break it.

I have a "starter" set that I bought a few months ago at my first wood carving class. It consists of a nice (comfortable wooden handle) straight edge blade, and I also got a bunch of gouges: #11/1 - 11/3 - 9 - 7 - 5. I also bought a "V" gouge and a piece of leather on a wooden handle to keep everything sharp. I have a glove for one hand and a couple of thumb protectors on the other. I have a compass and a ruler. I have done (partially done) 4 pieces at the classes: An elf, another "face," a bear and I am working on a cowboy. (The instructor was kind enough to allow me to take his piece home with me, so using his piece as a guide I am slowly, VERY SLOWLY working on adding more details. I have found a couple of web sites that have Boy Scout neckerchief slides and I am thinking of trying to next carve a large tooth / molar. (It looked fairly easy!)

When I first joined this forum, I stated that my primary interest / goal was in carving neckerchief slides. I am an Assistant Scout master for one of our local troops, and I was looking for something to do on camping trips. I still want to do that. I tried one ball and chain neckerchief slide, but I cut myself twice and it broke! However, now that I have more wood, I will try again. I still want to do neckerchief slides, and I think I would like to do caricature carvings. I have several "pocket" knives that I want to try carving with, because as much as I enjoy working with all of the gouges, I still like the "simplicity" of just "whittling" a figure with a pocket knife.

So, here is the question. What should I be looking to buy? What should I be thinking about having in my "basic kit / shop?" I am getting tired of carrying everything around in the original paper bag, so I have been cruising the posts to see how some of you folks "ride." Some of you folks are really cool. I love the travel boxes with the Plexiglas fronts, but I would be embarrassed to walk into a class (or experienced carvers) with such a fancy toy.

Should I get a band saw to cut out blocks? I just bought a couple of books on carving caricatures, and it seems like I need a band saw. (I suppose I could make all of the cuts by hand, but then I would probably mess up the cuts.)

Anything else? I am going to get some "flip up" magnifying glasses, and I guess I need something to put on the leather strop. Oil of some sort? They sell a yellow "chalk" at the woodcraft store. Should I get it? I am still looking for a tool roll for my gouges & I am going back to my shop to see if I have any old "fishing" boxes that I could use as carriers.

All suggestions are welcomed and appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Roy

OBTW - I will also add some band aides.

[jmischel]

For carrying tools, just about anything will do. I like to keep it simple. I do almost all of my carving with two knives. I have a little fanny pack that holds those knives, pencil, glove, thumb guard, and a couple of small blocks of wood to carve on. If I'll be out and about for a longer time, I'll fill up my little fishing tackle box with a bit more: another knife, v-tool, gouge, and a few more blocks. Oh, and my strop. My advice: find something small, simple, and inexpensive. You can always get something larger if you find you need it.

A band saw is nice to have if you want to cut blanks. A coping saw works, though, and is a lot less expensive. It depends on how much you'll use the saw. I'd suggest looking on craigslist in your area for a used bandsaw. You can usually pick up a good tool for under $100, and it'll serve you better than the low-end saws you can get at the big box stores for $100 to $150.

Definitely get something to put on the leather strop. You don't want oil. That yellow "chalk" is probably Flexcut Gold--a stropping compound. It's a light abrasive. There are lots of opinions about what kind of stropping compound you should use. I use the Flexcut Gold, simply because that's what I started with. There are lots of different kinds.

As far as anything else goes, I would suggest that instead of looking for something to buy, work with what you currently have and when you think, "Wouldn't it be nice if I had a tool that would . . .?" ... Then go research what kind of tool will fill that need. Otherwise you're going to become a tool collector and you'll end up with a whole lot of stuff that you'll never use.

[ragiarn]

It would seem to me that you have all the tools that you will need to get you started. Learn to use the ones you have before even considering buying any more.
Learn how to sharpen your tools and keep them as sharp as possible using that piece of wood with the leather on it (strop).
Once you have learned to use the knife and gouges that you have, you may find that you really do not need many more tools.

I would recommend that you read the following post by Mr. Yundy ( a professional carver) concerning tools.

When I started carving I made the mistake of trying to buy too many tools. Most of them I rarely if ever use. I find myself using a few tools 90% of the time.

The most important skill I learned was how to keep my tools sharp all the time.
Good luck-

Doc

[Claude]

You definitely need to smear some of the stropping compound on the strop - Flexcut gold is just as good as any other. I use it on one strop and a green compound on another. You don't have to completely cover the strop either; just rub the stick back and forth on the leather a few times. Don't panic when the compound on the strop turns black - it's supposed to, as that means it's doing its job. The black is because of the microscopic particles of metal removed from you knives/gouges.

If you really want to buy something, by all means get a bandsaw. You can get a new 9 inch one at the home improvement stores for $100-$150 or so that will cut wood up to about 3.5 inches thick. Get a two wheel saw, not a three wheel saw. If all your caricatures are made from blocks of wood that are 3 inch by 3 inch by 12 inch, then this band saw will be just fine. If you have the money, a 14 inch bandsaw would be much better, as you can cut much thicker wood. These cost from $500 to $1000 or so. I still use my little 9 inch Craftsman and it works fine for me. Once you get a saw, go to Suffolk Machinery Corp. - Timber Wolf Band Saw Blades and buy a Timberwolf blade for it. I recommend a 4 TPI Positive Claw in either a 3/16" or 1/4" for the 9 inch bandsaw. The 3/16" blade will cut smaller curves, but it's a more delicate blade also. I've used my 3/16" blade to cut 3.5 inch oak, but I just need to cut a little slower than I do with the basswood.

When you need some more wood, check the prices at Heinecke Wood Products and compare with what you just bought. Heinecke has premium basswood and fast service.

Doc also makes a good point about trying to carve with what you currently have for tools. About the only other tools I think you might want to consider are a set of the Dockyard Micro gouges - very useful when carving relatively small things (I define relatively small as being less than 8 inches tall - YMMV).

Claude

[rjw@watson-law.com]

Thanks, everyone. Great advice. I spent a long time looking through the other threads at some really incredible tool boxes / shops and as much as I was awed by all of the stuff, I could not get away from thinking that some of these folks may have a few too many tools to even keep track of. I suspect that most people use a couple of "favorite" tools and rarely reach for most of the other things.

I thought of the band saw because I saw it being used in a couple of books that I bought, but for the amount of "blank" cutting that I am likely to do for a while, I think I may just invest in a better quality coping saw for now.

Next time I am at the woodcraft store I will pick up some of the Flexcut gold. They also sell a "block of wood" with half circle humps covered with what looks like leather that is designed to match the curve of the gouges, but my instructor felt that it was not that useful, as it was not long enough. He felt that I could sharpen the gouges on the flat strop. He also said I should never use a power sharpener, unless I had seriously "gouged" the edge, and even then he encouraged me to use a stone and do it by hand so that I don't risk losing temper.

Doc. I am sorry, but I did not see a "link" to any other post. Is Claude the Mr. Yundy (a professional carver) that you were referring to? Is there someplace else I should be looking to find the post? Thanks.

Roy

[Claude]

I have a Flexcut SlipStrop - a piece of wood with grooves on one side, rounded "humps: on the other and a couple of pieces of leather. It works just fine on my gouges. The flat leather is a little short for my knives, although it works - just takes longer. I use it when traveling. The long strop I use for my knives at home.

Doc was referring to Mark Yundt, a former member of this forum. Mark posted a message about two years or so ago that showed the gouges he most commonly uses - I think there were only about 10 of them or so. If you go to Search bar above, click on advanced, then put in Mark Yundt under the User Name, it will find all of his posts. Be forewarned, he posted a lot! Good luck on your search.

Claude

[ragiarn]

Originally Posted by rjw@watson-law.com

T
Doc. I am sorry, but I did not see a "link" to any other post. Is Claude the Mr. Yundy (a professional carver) that you were referring to? Is there someplace else I should be looking to find the post? Thanks.

Roy

Here is the link:
http://woodcarvingblog.wordpress.com...-live-without/

[Mr. Chips]

Hey Roy,
I would go with what you have now. If you find woodcarving is for you, trust me you will find lots of new toys to spend your money on. I have seen newbies want to buy every tool they see, only to find woodcarving was not what they expected i.e. too much work, quality carving not as easy as expected. The key is surrounding yourself with experienced carvers (which you are doing with the club), taking seminars when available, and practice, practice, practice.

Randy

[SlowMover]

You are off to a good start. In my opinion, since you said you want to include characatures in your repitoir, I suggest your next purchase be two good books....Carving Small Characters by Jack Price, and Carving Characature Heads and Faces by Pete LeClair...these two books changed my carving from a frustrating experience I was going to stop into a delightfull hobby I engage in daily. In my opinion, knowledge is the best tool you can have, tied with experience. Repitition brings skill, and knowledge makes the repitition worthwhile...if you practice doing something poorly or wrong, you only get better at doing poorly. Being a memeber of a club is very good, you will learn things and get support and that is invaluable as well.

The best tool in the world is useless in the hands of someone who doesn't know how to use it, I suggest concentrating on developing your basic skills, what tool to get comes easy..you just go out and buy someting that you have thought, "I wish I had something that would..."
Welcome to the world of carving, enjoy it and sow us some of your work.

[Dull Knife]

Originally Posted by rjw@watson-law.com

Thanks, everyone. Great advice. I spent a long time looking through the other threads at some really incredible tool boxes / shops and as much as I was awed by all of the stuff, I could not get away from thinking that some of these folks may have a few too many tools to even keep track of. I suspect that most people use a couple of "favorite" tools and rarely reach for most of the other things.

I thought of the band saw because I saw it being used in a couple of books that I bought, but for the amount of "blank" cutting that I am likely to do for a while, I think I may just invest in a better quality coping saw for now.

Next time I am at the woodcraft store I will pick up some of the Flexcut gold. They also sell a "block of wood" with half circle humps covered with what looks like leather that is designed to match the curve of the gouges, but my instructor felt that it was not that useful, as it was not long enough. He felt that I could sharpen the gouges on the flat strop. He also said I should never use a power sharpener, unless I had seriously "gouged" the edge, and even then he encouraged me to use a stone and do it by hand so that I don't risk losing temper.

Doc. I am sorry, but I did not see a "link" to any other post. Is Claude the Mr. Yundy (a professional carver) that you were referring to? Is there someplace else I should be looking to find the post? Thanks.

Roy

When you come to the realization that you are really serious about wood carving, you're going to find out that cutting blanks with a coping saw is a HUGE waste of time.

So save up some bank and get a good band saw. The Timber Wolf blades are the best there are. When you call the folks at Suffolk Machinery, they will ask you what you are carving and then they will recommend the kind of blade that you need.