Hello Gary,
I have never used custom scrapers, but I have heard that other carvers use these for simpler carvings. The challenge is getting to all the surfaces. With the Concave Newport Shell, the rays taper, so that will need to be taken into consideration. Such things as cleaning the background of a cabriole leg with an acanthus leaf on the knee would work well with a scraper, but sometimes it is difficult to get to the edge of the carving. So you may need to use a combination of sanding and scraping, but the surface texture of the wood ends up being completely different for each process of smoothing. When removing tool marks is necessary, I have just resorted to using 320 grit sandpaper and higher (but still prefer not to).
Mary,
I loved carving this convex scallop shell and your patient instruction made it so easy for this newbie to step up to the labor with confidence. Thank you!
My question is with regard to grain and layout. On my first version I was careful to align the grain on the blank with the template as you did. In my eagerness to start a second shell I inadvertently cut the template 90 degrees to the grain (lesson learned). In general, how does one decide the best layout of a pattern on a given piece of stock?
Thanks,
Hardin
Hello Hardin,
A difficult question to answer, and it could depend on several things. Is this going to be attached to a piece of furniture? If so, the grain direction should to be the same as the wood it is being attached to, or as it ages they may not move together and can potentially crack the carving. I also consider whether there are any extra fragile parts of the design, such as stems on a flower, etc. It would be ideal to have this part of the design running along the grain, and not across it. But ultimately, grain challenges will occur no matter what position it is in. The challenges just become different for each.
You demonstrated two ways to lower the background- 1) cutting in vertically first with the gouge and then horizontally vs. 2) doing the horizontal first followed by the vertical. You said this second method helps protect the vertical edge from being damaged during the horizontal cut. Should we be aiming for doing the first method though? Is that the goal? Or do you use the second method regularly in any case, even once you have experience?
Also, can clear-grained, knot-free pine be used to practice?
Hello Ed,
Usually I tell beginning students to try both ways and see what works best. Depending on whether you are a methodical, delicate carver, or carve with brute force and just hog the wood away. If I want to remove wood quickly, I use the method shown where I don't define the edge until after the background is lowered. This allows for faster wood removal, without worrying so much about delicate, clean edges - until later. If I have more time to spend on the carving, and can take a slower approach of gently removing the wood, the I would define the edge of the design before lowering the background.
Yes, pine can certainly work. Sometimes it gets a bit spongy and if there is grain, there can be very soft grain right next to very hard grain - which often creates "waves" in the carving as it hit soft the hard then soft. So it can be challenging, but can definitely work for practice.
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From Hardin Byars on Carving a Convex Scallop Shell
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From Mary May on Carving a Convex Scallop Shell
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From Hardin Byars on Carving a Convex Scallop Shell
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From Mary May on Carving a Convex Scallop Shell
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From Ed Frank on Carving a Donut - Beginner Lesson #6
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From Mary May on Carving a Donut - Beginner Lesson #6
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