Is it me or the knife?

[therenow]

OK I have been here before posting on getting a sharp tool (knifes and gouges, for Caricature carving....(ahem an insult to the art, I am sure)

I buy my bassswood from Heineke and have been really pleased with the quality and the price. Then I bought a Razor sharp wheels set, in addition to that I have Japaness water stones, Arkansas hard and soft, Ceramics (for chip carving...seems to work OK) wet sandpaer 400 to 800 grit, then, I bought a magnifying lamp so I could look deeply into the heart of my....rebellious knives and gauges. I have shaped, sharpened, stropped and prayed over these stinking tools. So..and here is the good part..I carve my way through a cowboy head..yippy and yapping like.."this is gonna be good".....then..the deatils....the nose and ears....so I grab my newly sharpened 3 MM gouge to cut a teeny bit out of the ear so it looks like a ear....then the curses begin..the wood chips away..the ear is gone.....the nose is flat.....and I am left to wonder...is there a curse on me? this happens so often ...even with my knives or any other tool I use.....is it me? the wood? my tools ...or should I just get a welding set and see what I can bend into a shape.


ED

[BobT]

Hi, from your description it sounds like that gouge is still not sharp enough. On a scrap piece of wood, plow out a cut with the tool. If it is truly sharp enough you should have a polished surface in the cut. If it is rough, chips, or looks like it has scratches in it, back to the sharpening.

It would help if you could possibly post a photo of the errant cut. To discount one other possibility, you are not cutting deep enough to get close to the corners of the gouge, right?

If I can answer any other questions, fire away. I don't know where you live. Are you close to any other carvers that could look at the tool(s)?
BobT

[therenow]

the problem is really frustrating....could it be the wood? I live in Arizona and if there is anyone nearby that can get me over this hump..I woulld be eternally grateful

Ed

[Riverman]

Ed when I sharpen my v and u gouges I take a piece of basswood and try a cut across and with the grain. I will turn the tool left and right and if the cut is not clean I go back to the razor wheel and work on the tool. Just take your time and it will come to you and you will have those chips in the air!
Bob

[carver33]

Ed,

I agree with Bob's method of testing the edge - if a gouge or knife can make a smooth cut across the grain, it's sharp enough. I have a power strop for finishing the edges and really love it.

If you want a good comparison of sharpness, pick up a scalpel and some no. 11 blades off of the internet and try it out - that's sharp. They're also great for doing fine detail in most wood (I'm using one for detailing in cherry).

As far as the wood goes, if you're ordering wood from Heineke, you're getting some of the best.

Bill (Aiken, SC)

[therenow]

Thanks to all...Rick from little shavers has ben in contact and I likely will send the pesky gouges to hi, for fianl sharpening. I d however use the "cross grain test" for sharpness and the cuts show smoothness. Maybe it is all in "the hand that guides the blade"......shakey

Ed

[woodcollector Ralph]

Some of your problem could be your wood. If it gets to dry some wood will splinter and chip. Bass wood is bad about this. Try moisturizing it. Either store it in an air tight container such as a cooler with an open container of water in it for a while, or mix some wood alcohol with water, about 1/2 & 1/2 and spray the wood as you are carving.

[Dan C]

To me, it seems like the problem could very well be with "the hand that guides the blade" as you say. As you gain carving experience, you will develop a sense for several things. I'll try to describe some of them. These pointers are particularly important on small, delicate parts like the ear or nose.

As you gain experience, you will find that you know immediately when your gouge or knife needs stropping or something is wrong. After you've carved into the wood about 1mm, you will encounter more resistance than you should or a split will start to develop. STOP immediately! Don't keep pushing the gouge! Something is wrong. Strop the tool and then try the cut from the opposite direction. It may be that you are going the wrong way with respect to the grain or the gouge may not be sharp.

If possible, carve across the grain instead of with it. It's very easy to split off a piece if you are cutting with the grain. You want to cut the fibers instead of forcing your gouge between them and lifting them up to create a split.

On small delicate areas, try not to cut from the inside to the outside of the carving edge, but from the outside toward the inside. The wood you are cutting is supported by wood behind it that way so it won't break off.

On small delicate areas, be very very gentle. Apply very very little pressure. Instead of taking off 1 slice of wood, take off 5 or 6 very thin, small slices using the most gentle pressure.

Particularly on small delicate areas, SLICE instead of PUSH your knife or gouge through the wood. This can't be emphasized enough. You are creating MUCH less stress on the wood if you are slicing with your knife to get a shaving off than if you are trying to force the cutting edge through the wood. Practice this on a scrap of wood and see what I mean.

Good luck and I hope there is something in all that that will help you!

Dan C.

[therenow]

Thanks Dan

I beleive you have determined my problem. As for the sharpening "thing" the peril of us all.I recently bought a razor sharp wheels. They work well but at the speed of my motor..3450 rpm, one of my older, experimental gouges passed the "smoke test' in flying colors. So now, while I have gotten failry good at stone, ceramic and wet sandpaper sharpening But patience is a problem. Hence the Razor wheels. And now I am between a 1" belt with the sandpaper belt and a leather strop belt or the MYCHIPCARVING machine. I looked at building my own sharpening machine with the shaft, 4 wheels, arbors, berings and mandrell. Perish the thought. I also looked at the $400 sharpeners and conclude that is is overkill for a guy with just knives and palm chisels. So has anyone had the experience with the belt sander and strop? I ahve even considered a 1725 RPM grinder but that is about equal to the costs of the alternatives.

Ed

[Claude]

I can think of two principal reasons you're cutting off the detail:
1) take smaller chips/shavings - don't try to do it all at once.
2) Take a look at the bevel angle on your tools. If you're doing mostly basswood, the angle should be a little smaller; if you're doing mostly walnut, the angle should be a little larger. How much is little? Well, little can vary from 15 to 20 degrees, and larger can vary from 20 to 30 degrees. A thicker bevel angle is supposed to be better for harder woods...but I think it mainly depends on the carver and how much wood you're trying to remove in one cut (see 1 above).

If you send the stuff to Rick, and tell him what you're carving and what woods you use, he'll send it back properly tuned...

Claude