[susieq]

Hello Major,
I knew others would respond to you before too long. Everyone on this site seem to be very friendly and eager to help other carvers.

You mentioned special saftey equipment for glass work. I sincerely hope you plan on wearing eye protection and a good quality dust mask no matter what you are power carving, glass, wood, granite or what ever...... Protect your lungs at all cost. This is not to be taken lightly. I wear a mask and have a dust collection unit. I think I still get a small amount of dust from time to time..... you cannot be too careful there.

As for the bits that came with your Dremel kit, they are probably worthless to you as a carver. One bit that I can safely suggest you get is the small, cutzall shaped like an evergreen tree, sort of a fat cone that is rounded on the end instead of coming to a point. That is a very useful bit for rough or removing a lot of wood. It is a 1/8 shaft. It runs around $12. Depending on what you want to carve, the other bits you will choose may vary. I do a lot of real tiny work so I use various small diamond points and I would be lost without the ruby flame bits. These run between $7. and $10. and can go higher for larger bits. There are so many choices though and that is why you need to sit with a power carver and either work together or watch him/her work so you can see what the different bits do. One thing about Frank's books, he does discuss (with pictures included) different bits and how he uses them.

I will give you one more safety tip, one I learned the hard way.
When using a big roughing bit, such as a cutzall or a typhoon bit, you usually draw the bit towards you. Hold the wood behind the area you are working in and stay away from the far end. If the bit should GRAB the far end of the wood, the rotation will cause it to run backwards, right over your fingers and that is not fun. Zip, right to the bone in the blink of an eye....I have the scar to prove it. When your work requires you to carve the far end of the wood piece, stop, turn the piece around in your hand so that the area you need to work on is closer to you and start carving again.

You asked about people who use both gouge and power on a piece. My brother in law is a carver also. He frequently roughs out a piece with power and then finishes it with gouges. You will probably hear from others on this as well.

I am glad you have some gouges and knives to experiment with. I would also recomend getting a pre cut wood blank to work with. This would be a piece of wood cut to a pattern already for something specific, like a bird, or a dog or a boot or shoe. Something simple for you to work with and get the feel for what you are trying to do. Good luck and keep us all posted on your progress.
susieq

[Ashbys]

Major ,
I think it is all in what your working on. Here is why, If your working a 3x3 10 inches long , I can remove a lot more waste wood with a chisel then you can with a power carver. But you have to have the right chisels and mallet. There are certain things which can be done with a power carver which are impossible to be done with hand tools.
With a power grinder you can work inside a hole and work out. You can not even reach that area with a chisel.

Much of what your asking will come as you advance with experence. But chisels are not cheap. the 12.00 you will spend to get the bit susieq told you of , is about half the cost of a small chisel. And although it seems like the power is a large investment... over time it will be cheaper than hand chisels. But for speed power is much fastrer .

Ash

[Hi_Ho_Sliver]

By the way, how did you create the water effect on the base?

The detail in your duck feathers…MIND BOGGLING…how on EARTH did you ever do that? Is that with power or by hand tools?

Thanks for your kind comments...the water on the base is "envirotex" the base was carved, the bird mounted, the cattails etc mounted, then the envirotex was poured on....as for the duck feathers, they were mostly woodburned. and others were hand carved. I personally don't care for power because of the dust...and I hate to wear a mask anymore than I have too ha ha

[The Major]

Hello Susieq!

You’re right! Everyone seems very kind and eager to help. That’s terrific!

I must admit, I hadn’t thought of wearing a dust mask or safety glasses when powercarving. I do have safety glasses, lots of them from my days in the aviation business.

That being said, what about wearing a dust mask and using one of those shop vacuums? I have a real powerful one that I can hook up to the work area that will suck up the debris from powercarving. I guess I could also hook up a hose from the vacuum exhaust through a hole I can cut in the garage door. Would that suffice?

That does it…I’m definitely asking my personal ‘Santa’ for the Frank Russell books for Xmas!

Thank you for that extra safety tip. I will be extremely careful when it comes to roughing out. I appreciate your advice!

In your response, you mentioned a : “…piece of wood cut to a pattern already for something specific, like a bird, or a dog or a boot or shoe. Something simple for you to work with and get the feel for what you are trying to do.”

Is this something I would buy already ‘roughed-in’ at a carving supplier? I didn't know anything like this existed.

Hello Ashbys!

You’re absolutely correct. Each has their benefits and their capabilities. The tools I’ve bought so far are middle-of-the-road price-wise. I will experiment with them all.

I am concerned about what Susieq mentioned about the dust. On further reflection, I think I’ll either set up a shop vac vented outside or try and do the powercarving outdoors. Or…I could just practice with the chisels, gouges and knives until the weather outside gets warmer then powercarve outdoors!

Hello Hi Ho Silver!

Hmmm…yes, the dust again…I had no idea. I'm not crazy about wearing a mask either. I perspire considerably in those things, but my lungs are more important.

Envirotex…sounds like an environmentally-friendly plastic! What an interesting idea, it really adds realism to your carving.

I’m still in awe of the detail of the duck feathers. And it was your FIRST duck!!!

Something to aspire to, for sure!


As always, thank you all so much for your time, assistance and patience. It is very much appreciated!

I shall keep you informed of my progress…oh yes, one more thing…I guess I should stock up on some bandages…just in case…those knives/gouges/chisels ARE sharp!

Sincerely,

The Major.

[squbrigg]

Well Major, it depends on the results you want. I was a full time knife, gouge and chizel carver until an accident messed me up and my strength and stamina dissappeared. After a while I was recommended and tried power carving, and it really works for me. I hog our with power and usually finish off detail in edged tools. There are times that I will use totally power and sometimes a combination on a piece, finish some in power and other parts will finish in edged tools. It really depends on the finish you want on the piece. Experience will tell you better than I can explain. Try both! Practice both!!! And then choose the effect you want on each piece.

Bob

[The Major]

Hello Squbrigg


Thank you for your comments and advice!

I think this is the right message board for beginners who want to learn how to carve and get advice from the ‘EXPERTS’.

The links the message board members have provided so far are fantastic!

Squbrigg…yours is no exception.

I have just gone on to the link you provided in your message.

Amazing…simply amazing! I thoroughly enjoyed the tour of your craftsmanship! I strongly urge other beginners to take a look at Squbrigg's link!

The work you do is incredible and very inspiring!

If you don’t mind me asking…

How long have you been doing this? How did you get started? Did your father/grandfather get you started? Did you just start carving on your own or did you do woodworking in school?

I must say…the boat carvings (the Cutty Sark, Grasshopper, Britannia) are phenomenal! The schooner and schooner races pieces...beautiful!

I loved Kira’s plate (I have two dogs and would like to do something like that!)

The relief work (Artemis) was very impressive as was the dragon profile (WOW!)

The exquisite toolbox you crafted…magnificent! Absolutely beautiful…

Even the lap-carving tray was very simple in design, yet well crafted; of course, I would want two lap-carving trays. [One for carving during the day and the second for the evening in front of the TV. The compartments filled with the TV remote, potato chips, pretzels, nuts, popcorn and a glass of Guinness! (Hahahaha)]

I am so glad I have found this message board with all the talented and helpful members.

I think I’m really going to enjoy this hobby!

Sincerely,

The Major.