My new t-shirt says "I watched all 15 Dragon episodes!" ... without dozing off.
The best parts were recovering from "redesign opportunities." (Hey Mic, why does David's left foot have only 4 toes?) One of the small boat building masters I learned from seemed to have taught as much about recovering from problems as regular building techniques. That's one of the most valuable aspects of learning.
There will certainly be a dragon carving (of some sort) in my future. My wife loves dragons, especially black ones on Chinese Red backgrounds.
Great idea about the t-shirt! There should be something at the end of the journey...
The nice thing about this carving is you can put your own touch on - it doesn't have to be exactly as I carved it. As you saw in the video, there is no real right or wrong twist to any leaf.
Hello
The comments on work holding have been interesting
However I have been working from a leather apron on my lap. I am disabled with Parkinson's . I have managed quite well so far having purchased a motorised carving tool.
Can you see what limitations my methods to date will impose on me
Hi Steve,
Ultimately, however you can get the shape out of the wood, then that is the best way to do it. If you do work with gouges, you might want to have a lap-top bench made that simply sets over your lap - a simple flat board with legs going down each outer side of your leg. This way you can have a surface to place the wood on and lean into it. I have seen this used by people who are in a wheelchair. If you are using a grinder or dremel type tool (I am assuming this is what you meant by a motorised carving tool), make sure you wear a dust mask. It may not seem like a lot of dust, but it can get your sinuses irritated after a while.
The whole point of carving is to have fun - so I'd say use whatever technique you enjoy!
Hello
The comments on work holding have been interesting
However I have been working from a leather apron on my lap. I am disabled with Parkinson's . I have managed quite well so far having purchased a motorised carving tool.
Can you see what limitations my methods to date will impose on me
Hi Steve,
Ultimately, however you can get the shape out of the wood, then that is the best way to do it. If you do work with gouges, you might want to have a lap-top bench made that simply sets over your lap - a simple flat board with legs going down each outer side of your leg. This way you can have a surface to place the wood on and lean into it. I have seen this used by people who are in a wheelchair. If you are using a grinder or dremel type tool (I am assuming this is what you meant by a motorised carving tool), make sure you wear a dust mask. It may not seem like a lot of dust, but it can get your sinuses irritated after a while.
The whole point of carving is to have fun - so I'd say use whatever technique you enjoy!
Mary shows how to make a mold of the completed work. You might not want to duplicate a lot of dragons, but how about making multiples of carvings that are models for simple (and cost-sensitive) architectural embellishments.
And when you do, how about showing us the product you use for the mold. There are probably many silicone mold products, but if we've never used one, it would be good to know what actually works. Not an endorsement, but a suggestion.
Hi Bob,
The company I purchase this from is Smooth-on. I will discuss this in more detail in the "mold making" video. The mold material is Mold Max 30 Silicone Rubber. The resin is still an ongoing journey of discovery. I have used several (which all get quite expensive - sometimes up to $80 to $100/gallon) and am still sort of experimenting. Some have a working time of about 3 minutes, which is a little nerve-wracking. 10 minutes is ideal to be able to mix, pour and do any adjustments - without wearing it all :). Smoothe-on has a great web site - https://www.smooth-on.com
Mary,Have you or would you consider a video on the carving done on old flintlock rifles from colonioal times.This is quite abit smaller carving than what I;ve seen but thought I'd throw it out there for consideration.Thanks,Paul
Hi Paul,
I have not carved any of these, but certainly would consider doing a video on this - if I had a gunstock I could carve on. There are some fabulous web sites about gun stock carving where you can get some beautiful acanthus scroll designs. The main difficulty is carving in such a small scale. You will need little micro tools and very steady hands. What I would suggest if you were going to do this is to carve whatever design you ar wanting in 3 times the size so you can get a better idea of how the shapes work. Then carve it in the gunstock in reduced size. At that point it's just figuring out how to get the itty bitty tools to make the cuts.
Thanks for the advise Maryu. On top of all that it would be in tiger striped .curly Maple.hah Better have sharp tools right?
Maybe just a video on the C scroll design layout and how to put them all together.thanks again.
From Bob Easton on Carving a Dragon & Acanthus Leaf Design - Episode 1
Go to comment2013/09/27 at 8:41 am
From Mary May on Carving a Dragon & Acanthus Leaf Design - Episode 1
Go to comment2013/09/27 at 9:10 am
From steve ridgeon on Starting to Carve
Go to comment2013/09/26 at 5:37 pm
From Mary May on Starting to Carve
Go to comment2013/09/27 at 12:20 am
From steve ridgeon on Starting to Carve - Beginner Lesson #2
Go to comment2013/09/26 at 5:37 pm
From Mary May on Starting to Carve - Beginner Lesson #2
Go to comment2013/09/27 at 12:20 am
From Bob Easton on Carving a Dragon & Acanthus Leaf Design - Episode 1
Go to comment2013/09/26 at 10:43 am
From Mary May on Carving a Dragon & Acanthus Leaf Design - Episode 1
Go to comment2013/09/27 at 12:21 am
From Bob Easton on Carving a Dragon & Acanthus Leaf Design - Episode 1
Go to comment2013/09/27 at 8:17 am
From Mary May on Carving a Dragon & Acanthus Leaf Design - Episode 1
Go to comment2013/09/27 at 9:05 am
From Paul Ebert on What videos would you like to see?
Go to comment2013/09/20 at 12:07 pm
From Mary May on What videos would you like to see?
Go to comment2013/09/23 at 1:35 pm
From Paul Ebert on What videos would you like to see?
Go to comment2013/09/23 at 4:38 pm