First post and second carving

[Kuhar]

Hi everyone,

This is my first post on Woodcarving Illustrated; I've been reading posts for a few months now and I've already learned a lot from you all.

I've been carving for about a year, and I getting ready to finish my second project. My first was a fairly basic low relief, so I decided to get a little more ambitious with my second carving. I did a map of Block Island (a small island off the coast of Rhode Island), which includes a carved clock and a compass rose. I dug a hole through the back of the piece to insert a large marble for the center of the rose (I have some pictures below). I carved out the clock face, and dug out another hole in the back for the clock movement piece. I also did letters for the first time. (I think it'll be a while before I do lettering again though; just the cursive words at the bottom must have taken more than 20 hours).

I'm pleased with how its turning out so far, and I'm getting close to finishing up here, but I'm having trouble getting into some of the tight spots to get my sanding done. I've been using a dremel to clean up some of the mess between letters, but I want to stain it, and I'm concerned about blotching.

I'm going to use a pre-stain, but I'm still worried. Any tips? Should I try a gel stain? It’s Basswood, so maybe just forget about staining altogether and finish without? Just stain the border and leave the middle alone? Stain the clock, don't stain the clock? Any tips or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

On that note, if anyone has any constructive criticism about the project in general, I'd love to hear it. I have a lot of improving to do; I'm just not entirely sure what I need to work on,

Thanks!

Jonathan

[Donsexton]

That looks great a pro job

[bigEd_H]

That's a real nice relief carving. Very unique. And only your second? Great job.

Ed

[Ron T]

Hello and welcome, Jonathan. It's nice to have you here with us. There is so much to learn here and a lot of great people here to help you. Nice carvings.

[carver33]

Jonathan,

Welcome to the forums. That's a unique (and ambitious) second carving. It's looking good so far.

I don't think I'd stain it - with all of the intricate cuts, stain might come out somewhat blotchy. I'd just clear coat it with a satin finish - that should bring out the grain and make it look nicer that stain. I prefer the hand rubbed look of oil finishes, but you might prefer satin poly.

To really bring out the detail, you could wax it with the medium brown Briwax, but only after it's well clear coated. The wax will leave a bit of darker wax in the nooks and crannies to really make the getail stand out. A word of caution though - work with a practice piece first.

As for sanding: If you're using a Dremel. you can pick up sets of 1/8" shaft, 400 grit burrs on e-bay for about ten bucks. With a light touch, these will come pretty darn close to finishing those tight spots.

[JSimpson]

Jonathan, I agree with carver 33. I would clear coat it and then wax it. 20 hrs. on the lettering, you got way more patience than I. The carving looks very good.

John

[markken5889]

great carving, and great job on the lettering, Jonathan! I'm liking Bill's advice on how to best finish the piece.

I'm a huge RI fan (will be there this weekend) and have been to Block Island several times. What a great place!

Mark

[chuckbolton]

im jealous of your ability to carve letters so small- im sure id have made some serious errors

[Kuhar]

Thanks for the advice everyone, I think I'm going to finish it unstained, and use the minwax like Bill suggested. I'm also leaning toward lightly staining the border so the piece is framed a little better, but I'll have to play around on scrap wood to see how the minwax turns out.

Its such a relief to not have to worry about staining! Sanding will be a much more enjoyable process now. I'll have to find somewhere in my apartment that has just the right lighting to bring out the shadows. I'll post another pic and let you all know how it turns out!

Jonathan

[Howard Lobb]

Great start Jonathan That is an ambitious carving and the lettering is very well done the different fonts is truely great. I like the marble idea it works very well. I do hope you share the finished pic's.... and Welcome to the form.