61 articles match · page 2 of 6
In depthOctober 2, 2024
What are the dangers of wood carving for beginners?
Forty years at the bench, and the injuries are always the same few. The off hand first, then sharpening, then a piece that moves. Ranked by how often they really happen, with the wood species that bite skin and lungs.
In depthOctober 2, 2024
What Is the First Step in Wood Carving?
The first step in wood carving is a proven sharp edge on one gouge, not a wood order. Here is the ordered first hour at my bench, why the skipped step decides the result, and the seven moves that end with a real carved shape.
In depthSeptember 30, 2024
What to look for in a wood carving tool set before you buy
How to judge a boxed set of carving tools before money changes hands. What the hardness stamp really proves, how to read a sweep number, which shapes a set of twelve hides, and the five checks that take ten minutes at the kitchen table.
In depthSeptember 17, 2024
What to know before starting wood carving
Design before carving, sharpening that never ends, a 2x4 that punishes you, and two weeks of sore hands. The expectations I wish somebody had set for me at the beginning.
In depthSeptember 15, 2024
Why is wood carving difficult, and which skill is the real wall
Beginners think the hard part is the hand holding the gouge. It is the edge, then the grain, then the depth you cannot put back. Named in order, with honest timings.
In depthSeptember 9, 2024
What is needed to carve wood?
Four gouges, a mallet, one clamp, a strop and a basswood board. A master carver lays out the kit that really carves, and names the item beginners always skip.
Everything above is free and stays free. The courses are where I put your hands on the gouge and watch what they do.
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In depthSeptember 9, 2024
How To Carve Wood?
How to carve wood in six moves. Sharpen, clamp it down, draw, read the grain, go straight down, take the waste out last.
In depthSeptember 9, 2024
How do you handle different grain directions in wood carving?
On a leaf or a volute the fibers reverse while your gouge is still moving. Here is how I find that spot, mark it, and work outward from it.
In depthSeptember 7, 2024
What is the best wood for carving in Botswana for a beginner?
Mopane and leadwood are among the heaviest woods ever measured, and both will destroy a beginner's edge. Here are the Botswana species by botanical name and verified hardness, the three a learner can practise on, and the one to refuse outright.
In depthSeptember 6, 2024
The best wood for carving in Ireland when you are starting out
Lime, the wood every carving book names first, is not an Irish tree. Sycamore, alder, willow, birch, ash and Scots pine are what you will really find, and each one behaves differently under a gouge. Janka numbers, the ash dieback problem, the bog oak trap, and where an Irish beginner actually buys a board.
In depthSeptember 6, 2024
How can I improve my wood carving technique?
My teacher gave me paper before he gave me a gouge, and he had one answer for every complaint about wood. Here is his order, and the one thing about basswood I still cannot explain.
In depthSeptember 5, 2024
What are the best materials for beginners in wood carving?
One knife, a basswood board, a strop, and a way to hold the work. The best materials for beginners in wood carving.