posted
I purchased the book, Carving Wood Signs by Stephen P. Baldwin & the DVD, Carving Techniques & Projects with Sam Bush & Mack Headly. I've read the book, not yet watched the DVD.
There are wood carving tool kits available from several companies. Henry Taylor, Woodcraft, King Brand, Preferred Edge, Sculpture house to name a few.
My question is...
Starting out carving pine, redwood & HDU. What professional grade smaller sets would you recommend?
I would like to stay in the $200.00 range for the basic 6-10 or so tools with sharpening stones & mallet included for 2" to 12" V-carved lettering.
I posted this same question before I purchased the book & DVD. I received some great answers with company info & web sites. I'd love to hear what the basic & favorite tools are of the carvers.
Do I need only shorter Palm size tools and/or longer mallet tools?
Thank you!
-------------------- Michael R. Bendel Bendel Sign Co,. Inc. Sauk Rapids, MN Posts: 913 | From: Sauk Rapids, MN | Registered: Jul 2005
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My mind wanders. And that's not a good thing, 'cause it's too small to be out there alone. Posts: 3129 | From: Tooele, UT | Registered: Mar 2005
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posted
Size of gouges will depend on the type and scope of work you intend to do. If letter carving is your focus, then none of the "sets" will have what you need. I would recommend an ala carte approach, and consider the following profiles;
For letters -10mm #13 parting (2" to 6" letters) -25mm #13 parting (12" letters)
General carving -#1 single bevel straight 8 - 10mm -#12 V-parting, 8mm -#5 sweep, 14 - 20mm -#8 sweep, 14 - 20mm -#11 veiner, 7 - 9 mm
Swiss Made are among the finest, but Acorn, Ashley Iles, Frog, Henry Taylor, Two Cherries and Buck Bros are all good tools.
Sculpture House is great if you need really large carving tools.
Don't bother with the palm size chisels.
*Edited to add* A mallet increases carving control and lessens the prospect of carpal tunnel syndrome, which afflicts a good many carvers. Get one.
[ October 17, 2007, 09:19 AM: Message edited by: Steve Purcell ]
-------------------- Steve Purcell Purcell Woodcarving & Signmaking Cape Cod, MA
************************** Intelligent Design Is No Accident Posts: 900 | From: Cape Cod, MA | Registered: Oct 1999
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My set consists of Pfiel's that I bought in Switzerland. My skews are 8mm, 14, 18, 22, 28, and 37mm; 45 degree V's: 6mm, 8 22 and an 8mm Bent V; there is also an 8mm 30 degree. I have a dozen gouges ranging from 6mm to 36mm. I don't have a clue as to what they cost now; I bought them about 15 years ago. I know they were pricey here but I got a lot better deal on them in Switzerland (the ONLY thing that was a good deal, LOL).
I took Dusty Yaxley's carving class before I bought my chisels; actually, I bought about half a dozen before the class to get started with. He uses a very radical sharpening technique which gives your chisels an unbelievable edge. You can cut yourself from just feeling of the edge and you probably won't even feel the cut. That happened to Paul White once when he was inspecting Dusty's chisels. Paul was giving a demo at a meet and telling how you have to inspect the grain and go this way and that way - classic carving techniques. Dusty got up there and made the statement "If your chisels are really sharp, you don't have to worry about which way the grain is going." He then proceeded to demonstrate his point by carving an "O" in two strokes. Paul jumped up and grabbed one of his V chisels and felt of it. He said "These don't feel any sharper than mine" Dusty looked down and Paul was dripping blood on the floor. The point was made. Not taking anything away from Paul or any other traditional carver but Dusty is a forensic engineer. I've been to his office and you can hardly see the walls for all the certificates, honors, degrees, etc. Anyway... you'll need a way to sharpen your chisels and a good place to put them to take care of them; you don't want to drop them in the toolbox with your screwdrivers.
-------------------- Ricky Jackson Signs Now 614 Russell Parkway Warner Robins, GA (478) 923-7722 signpimp50@hotmail.com
"If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants." Sir Issac Newton Posts: 3528 | From: Warner Robins, GA | Registered: Oct 2004
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-------------------- Jonathan Harvey Harvey's Signs and Designs 214 N. Main Newton,KS 67114 316-283-2424 (no telemarketers) Posts: 63 | From: Newton, KS | Registered: May 2006
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yes, Ricky, how did he do it? (sounds like you'd better not take your chisels across the border to Canada, either... )
-------------------- "Stewey" on chat
"...there are no limits when you aim for perfection..." Jonathan Livingston Seagull Posts: 7014 | From: Highgrove via Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia | Registered: Dec 2002
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posted
It's a pretty pricey setup but it's the best. You have to have a slotted grinding wheel from Beaver Engineering; they were $50 when I bought mine. You also have to have a mandrel, another $20. You'll have to chuck it up in your drill press (yeah you gotta have one of those too), add some quick set epoxy and let it run while you balance it and it dries. Next you have to have a big Baldor buffer with 1" shafts; I forget what HP rating mine is but it's a honker. You'll need a 3/4" thick 6" muslin wheel and 3ea 1" wide 6" muslin pads to put side-by-side giving you a 3" wide pad. Last but not least you'll need some rouge to dress your wheels with. The 3/4" wheel is for dressing the inside of your V chisels; the 3" is for pretty much everything else.
If you look at a standard out of the box skew chisel, the grind is about like a plow, rather than a knife, not very efficient for gnawing out wood but it does hold an edge (albeit an inferior one) longer. You have to use the slotted grinding wheel to grind off all that excess - on all your chisels; they are all rejects right out of the box. You'll need a clip on light to put above your drill press so you can see exactly what you're taking off as it comes off. With the slotted wheel you can see every molecule as you remove it. Just be sure you don't get the metal any hotter than you can hold comfortably or you'll take the temper out and it's nothing but a paperweight then. I don't think I have a protractor to measure the angle but it's pretty steep. You will know when you've got a good edge when you grind it and a little wire edge forms on the bottom. After you get the right angle and a good edge, straight and sharp, you'll dress your wheels to deburr the wire edge and polish it. It's really easy at this stage to get it too hot so go easy, do a little on each of your set and don't rush it. Don't quench them in water either; that will just draw out the temper too. You'll use the jewelers rouge to polish the chisel to an almost chrome finish with barely noticable (if any) tooling marks from the slotted grinding wheel.
If you slice the finished chisel thru the air and you hear a squeeking sound, you're splitting atoms. It's expensive and time consuming but it's amazing how sharp you can get them by using this method; the difference is like night and day.
BTW, you'll probably want to keep some bandaids in your chest with your chisels. Ask me how I know!
-------------------- Ricky Jackson Signs Now 614 Russell Parkway Warner Robins, GA (478) 923-7722 signpimp50@hotmail.com
"If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants." Sir Issac Newton Posts: 3528 | From: Warner Robins, GA | Registered: Oct 2004
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-------------------- Ricky Jackson Signs Now 614 Russell Parkway Warner Robins, GA (478) 923-7722 signpimp50@hotmail.com
"If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants." Sir Issac Newton Posts: 3528 | From: Warner Robins, GA | Registered: Oct 2004
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posted
My bad Joe. I'd say you sure know how to sharpen a chisel buddy!! You're right about it too; it's not an easy wood to carve with. I like basswood or most other nut woods as long as they are below 8 on the moh's scale. I like the "sticky pad" too.
-------------------- Ricky Jackson Signs Now 614 Russell Parkway Warner Robins, GA (478) 923-7722 signpimp50@hotmail.com
"If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants." Sir Issac Newton Posts: 3528 | From: Warner Robins, GA | Registered: Oct 2004
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