Suggestions for strengthening my feathers

[Bob De.]

How can I strengthen my (burned) feathers? I don't want to go through a ton of super glue any other suggestions? I am working on some goose feathers, that are going to be inserts for the wings.

Pallin sorry about that. These feathers are for a pair of full body Canadian Geese I am working on. The wings are going to be spread out. These feathers are to scale and will try to post a picture later of a few of them.

[pallin]

It is very difficult to know what you're asking about since your post is in General Wood Carving and there are no photos. Is it a wildlife carving, relief, or caricature?

[chipmunk]

hi, how strong do u want them to be? hair spray will make them a little stronger or spray with clear varnish 4 coats will make them tough [idea] why not use the real feathers for a pattern and carve wooden ones then the goose will be [wood] beware ca may turn them white it may react with the natural feather like it does with skin u can carve wooden 1's. one at a time then add them to the body like u doing the real feathers it's your carvin do what u want BUT me i do carved wooden feathers but that's just me!
hope this helps with the real feathers i've made indinia stuff over the yrs i was using colored feathers but they get to nasty looking so i carved some from wood and wood flakes and painted them and they still look good 10yrs later[painted-cleared.]

[Bob De.]

Here is a picture of a few feathers leaning against one of the bodies. Ya Chipmunk, the feathers are wood. They are thin and burned in on both sides. The sealer alone helps to harden them up but I was hoping to strengthen them a little more without loosing to much detail. Tips and advise are also welcomed.

[ka0fan]

Would they be stronger if made out of a "hardwood" such as walnut, ash, or maple? I have seen some that were walnut and inserted they seemed pretty sturdy and good detail.
Best of Luck
Have A Great Day
Terry

[Paul_Guraedy]

I use tupelo for all of my feather inserts. It bends a lot more than basswood before breaking. I have made some full size, golden eagle, great horned owl and red tail hawk feathers. I have thought about chemical strengthening but have not tried it.

[Bob De.]

Thanks, you guys make a great point. I have been to focussed on burning in my feathers I did not check their strength. Up until now I have always used Basswood for my carvings in-which the feathers were very fragile, they would burn and look great but would break easy. A friend who passed left me a nice piece of rough timber that carves great. I'm not sure what kind of wood but it maybe tupelo. I used this timber for the feathers and they are stronger but I'm sure they will be touched more because they will be up and away from the body. So I wanted to add as much strength as possible. The next Time I carve feathers I will try different types of wood and see what works the best. Thanks again for your advice.