depth of chip carving

[therenow]

Finally I am seeing some progress but but like everything else, as we learn a new problem pops up: specifically, I am having questions about how deep should a cut be? It seems like I have to apply more pressure even with a sharpened leather honed knife. The result is I often slice through the adjacent chip cut. Measuring from the tip of the blade, how deep should a chip cut be? I am trying to get a good shadow.

[pallin]

Assuming you are asking bout "Scandinavian-style" (triangular chip) carving, the depth would vary with the size of the chip. Contrary to what you may have been taught, you don't have to remove the chip as one piece. Sometimes you need to make several slicing cuts to get the depth desired. As with most forms of carving, the final shape of the cuts should be what pleases YOUR creative senses, not some arbitrary dimension.

[therenow]

Perhaps I should clarify. I like to carve Rosettes. As one would know, there are several types of chip cuts in that process. My question is not about making several slices to get a deep cut but, when I make a cut, sometimes I feel they are too deep and wanting to obtain a good shadow effect, I have to pull the knife through the cut with more energy and the knife slips and damage the adjacent cut. So, My question again: how deep of a cut at the 65 degree angele is sufficient? Surely there is a recommend somewhere

[pallin]

With a given angle (i.e. 65 deg) the depth is where the cuts meet at the bottom of the "V". You can achieve a desired shadow effect by the way you illuminate the finished piece. If your knife slips due to too much pressure, you should take smaller cuts or resharpen your knife. Chip carving requires more control of each cut than other forms of carving.

[Steve Reed]

I'll add my $.02 here. As Phil says above, if you maintain an angle, the width of the chip determines the depth. For example if you are carving say, a 6" rosette, with a six pointed star, the chips will be bigger, and hence deeper than they would be on a 4" rosette. If you feel a chip is too wide, and ergo, too deep, consider making it into 2 chips instead of one, or three or whatever. If you maintain the angle (65deg), the chip will meet where it meets. A small chip will be less deep than a larger one. Hope this makes some sense. An old woodcarver told me once, always be aware of where your knife tip is. So, if you can visualize where the center of the chip is, visualize where your knife tip will end up. It does take practice, but after a while, you will be able to look at an area and say to yourself, this chip looks too wide. Again, for a given angle, a chip that is 1/4 inch wide will be half as deep as one 1/2 inch wide.
Hope this helps.

[Marin Chip Carving]

I concour with Steve precisely. When you keep your angel at 65 degrees you will find that a larger chip will require a deeper cut than a smaller chip.

Practice, Practice and more Practice is how you will solve your problem. We can only give you our expierences but, you have to put them to use.

[therenow]

Good advice all..as my Grandmother used to say about her bread...2 slices is better than one..which now applies to my chip carving