calgarycarvers.com - Tips, Tricks & Links

BEGINNERS CARVING COURSES; TIPS, TRICKS & LINKS

Black Forest Wood on Blackfoot Trail
www.blackforestwood.com

Lee Valley Tools
www.leevalleytools.com

Sanding - tip by Lori F.

Glue fabric sandpaper to tubing (rubber or plastic) to create a flexible round sander. Great for getting into small, hard to get places and it will not create a rigid sandpaper mark or ridge.

Transfering a pattern - tip by Lew C.

This is a method without using carbon paper:

Make reverse pattern (unless both sides are identical)
Make photocpy (inkjet) of the pattern
Place the pattern onto the wood stock (ink side to the wood)
Brush with lacquer thinner (thinner will disolve the ink and leave the impression on the wood)
Let the pattern dry. The thinner should not get onto the wood.

Softening hard wood - tip by Bill R.

When you're working with hard wood and there are areas that are tough to carve, spray a 50/50 solution of water and rubbing alcohol on it and it will go much easier.

Clear plastic pattern overlay - tip by Gordon C.

In order to check that my 'benchmarks' are accurate, I use clear plastic overhead transparencies that I trace a pattern on to. This allows me to look through my pattern and tell if my benchmarks are at all closer to the pattern. The important issue here is to make sure that I am not looking at an angle through the transparency, but maintain a perpendicular relationship through the transparency to the wood. Works great and is a real help.

Cleaning ceramic honing blocks - Tip by Lew C.

Sprinkle COMET CLEANSING powder onto the discoloured surface of the ceramic block. Dampen paper towle with water. Scrub vigorously the black discoloration from the ceramic block. Rince with clean water.

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