Would love to see some progress photos, David! I'll learn with you 
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What’s on your carving/embellishing bench?
- Thread starter Ted Pelfrey
- Start date
Loving it!
These are fantastic! Great forms!
This was the first process for me. I’ll try to post some progress pictures, if I’m happy with itWould love to see some progress photos, David! I'll learn with you
.Need to clean up the bottom carving, define the flowers more, add a couple more flowers, and figure out what I want to do with the band around the middle. Pyro will take a while to complete.
Estimated completion date summer of ‘26. Still long ways to go. Have not completely decided on the band embellishment and if I will add color to the flowers and bottom half.
. Still long ways to go. Have not completely decided on the band embellishment and if I will add color to the flowers and bottom half.
Really like your idea about “ dishing “ out the petals. Yeah stippling takes forever! Looking great ! An unfinished band is a good option also.Estimated completion date summer of ‘26
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Very nice! Love the form. I'll send you my address for shipping. I'm in no hurry...Estimated completion date summer of ‘26
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I'd think carefully about the colors and the band in the middle. To me, the conundrum would be balancing the elegance of the black stippling/natural wood against what might look a bit too busy.
JKJ
Need to go back over the dishing out a little. Still not decided on the band embellishment, if I do anything to it, it won’t be much.
I thought about dishing out around the petals but now that I’ve done the stippling there is no way I’m going to do that and have to start the stippling over
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That’s what I’m trying to avoid. If I use color it would be very light and the band would also have very little embellishment. Since this is my first attempt at this type of carving and embellishment I want to take my time and make the right decision.
A lot of first with this one and it shows, but I’m getting close to being finished. I need to crisp up a few lines and some touch up. Tried texturing the band to see how it would look, okay I guess for my first attempt. Hand is still vibrating!
After spending most of the day with this I need to release some stress, have to turn a bowl for that!
, but I’m getting close to being finished. I need to crisp up a few lines and some touch up. Tried texturing the band to see how it would look, okay I guess for my first attempt. Hand is still vibrating!After spending most of the day with this I need to release some stress, have to turn a bowl for that
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That’s fantastic! Looking toward to the finish!A lot of first with this one and it shows
After spending most of the day with this I need to release some stress, have to turn a bowl for that
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That’s looking amazing! Can’t wait to see the end.
It's been on the go for quite a while, this one is a slow process.
That's looking great! Very creative.
Do you happen to know the species name of the Japanese Maple you have? I can't find a solid reference to the wood although I found a variety of ornamental cultivars with "Japanese Maple" as part of the name. We've had some at our previous houses and one here at the farm but after 20 years the main "trunk" is still less than 2" in diameter.
The color and the lines between the rings in your photos look much like our Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana), also quite soft but works well, aromatic, one of my favorites to turn. I wonder if it's related somehow. Does your wood have a pleasant aroma?
A ERC log on my sawmill and a turned piece with spray lacquer finish.
A friend gave me a piece of Japanese Cedar - apparently uncommon, came from a tree that had to be taken down at a University of Tennessee Arboretum. It looks and smells much like ERC.
Regardless, I'll be watching for updates on your "open flower" creation.
JKJ
Oops John its cedar not maple, dunno what I as thinking.
Japanese cedar is a woody, needled evergreen tree in the cypress family (Cupressaceae) that is native to central and southern Japan and China.
My apologies folks.
A walnut hollow form I turned a year ago and decided to embelish yesterday. I'd really like a solution to minimize the hand sanding. Even the fine toothed burrs leave a rougher surface than I'd like. Does anybody have a suggestion?
I believe abrasive drums would work for the convex portions of your piece. I'd be tempted to try and match the diameter of your bur or slightly smaller. For the concave portions I think I would try foam backed disks on a mandrel. Good luck!
Donna Banfield
TOTW Team
I bought these a couple years ago. 1" Mandrell and abrasives. They can be used in your micromotor handpiece because they have 1/8" shank. They come with abrasives, but I prefer the 1" blue ceramic discs sold by Vince Welch. Keep your speed down, around 9,000 rpm or lower, and that will keep the disc from flying off the hook and loop mandrel.
Thank you for that info Donna.
If you ever have time it would be great for you and maybe other carvers to share their most used carving tools with links for us beginners
!!
Many thanks Donna, nobody shares more useful information than you do!
Smooth it down with a stump cutter bit . That will get you very smooth. Then go to drum sanding. I would go to hand sanding after the stump cutter. Wrap some sandpaper around a dowel, works wonders. Looking good btw.
In addition to dowels, for some things (of the right size), I also like to wrap sandpaper around a Sharpie pen - the slightly rounded/tapered end is helpful for certain things. For example, the insides of my handbell ornaments:
I find the Sharpie easy to hold by the cap end.
I've also turned sanding sticks to fit.
JKJ
Thanks so much Jim, Donna, David, Ted and John for the advice, I certainly appreciate your willingness to share your skills and knowledge. John, I love those bells! Ted, I'll be ordering some stump cutters for sure. Do you have a preferred source and shapes that you use most often? Thanks again, folks!
I've had good experience with MDI Woodcarvers Supply and Treeline USA. I am also interested in hearing other opinions.
MDI is my go to source for most of my bits. I also use JP Fennells BitsforCarving website. The two I find myself using mostly are the bud and sphere shapes. I consider them, like 80 to 120 grit sandpaper . If the pieces is small and places are hard to reach I’ll use various diamond bits in the same shape. Think 120 to 220 grit . I mostly carve leave pieces so I rarely go past the diamond as I want a little uneven but smooth surface,If that makes sense, as a leaf isn’t perfectly smooth. But in your case you’ll need a very smooth surface which is why I would hand sand. As much as I love for the carver to do most of the sanding there’s no substitute for hand sanding. BTW , a note on diamond carvers, you can get the cheap set to start off and see if you like them but I suggest go straight to the German made brands. Sorry for such a long post! Enjoy, and be sure to post results.
I forgot Ken Rizzo has started a new carving company. Power carving Depot. I’ve used a few of his products so far. I especially recommend his desk top vac system, works great. He also sells tiny sanding mandrills with tiny sandpaper, they are fantastic, can’t recommend them enough. No more punching out my tiny sanding discs!