My first whittling projects

[mwinfrance]

"Femoral artery is very near the surface and a cut to it is pretty much always terminal"
Leather apron...and to be really sure , a chain mail apron under that ..and metal thumb guards or butchers chain mail gloves..Fore arm leather protection is also a good idea..at least 3mm thick, like the apron..If using Dremel type tools for scuplture, remember, they can bite into your hand and run up your arm to get to your throat. been there ..scary ..:-o

 

[stuckinthemud]

Alternatively, self preservation is the root of good technique. In all the classes I taught there was only 1 cut that needed a plaster and that was when one of my senior students reached past his knife to pick up his coffee mug. Top marks for keeping a good edge on his knife though. Some students wore cotton carpenter’s aprons to keep the chips off their clothes, gloves were not encouraged as they weaken the quality of the grip on the workpiece and knife handle, dremel type tools were not banned officially but loud complaints about noise and dust from other students effectively stopped anyone bringing them to clasx

 

[mwinfrance]

Everyone has a plan ..'til the dog, cat,small child etc tries to jump into your lap, or jogs your arm etc..and then there is working in public, exhibitions, fairs etc.

Not to mention, from what I hear of current life "outre manche", if you cut yourself, it could be a very long wait for an ambulance, or to see a doctor or nurse in casualty.

 

[stuckinthemud]

Whatever works for you works . We all have our own method and every carver works differently from every other carver. I have taught carving and whittling to many, including sessions in primary schools, “have a go “ sessions in fetes and open days in colleges and museums and I offer my opinion as just that, an opinion. The OP can listen to all of us and choose what works for him but my best advice is this, join a club. Google is your friend, find a club and learn five years worth of self-teaching in a month. Use other people’s knives, vices, gouges. Get supervised by people with decades of experience and just have a good time. Join a club

 

[stuckinthemud]

Quick search finds Enfield woodcarving club. Dunno if that’s too far away but they may know a club nearer you?

 

[rob1693]

The swedish knife grip sessions with jogge sundqvist are a useful reference on safe cuts and technique. Made by morakniv 15 episodes available on youtube ,I found them very informative

 

[nuts]

Whatever works for you works . We all have our own method and every carver works differently from every other carver. I have taught carving and whittling to many, including sessions in primary schools, “have a go “ sessions in fetes and open days in colleges and museums and I offer my opinion as just that, an opinion. The OP can listen to all of us and choose what works for him but my best advice is this, join a club. Google is your friend, find a club and learn five years worth of self-teaching in a month. Use other people’s knives, vices, gouges. Get supervised by people with decades of experience and just have a good time. Join a club

Join a club - that's a great idea. I had no idea that whittling/carving clubs even exist. I'll have a search thanks.

 

[nuts]

Since the start of this thread, I have had another go at sharpening my knife. I think I got it a lot better this time. Using this sharper blade, I've been back over the few models I started with, and they feel better now. So I'm going to go ahead and get something to finish them with.

From the research I've done, I think it'll be either boiled linseed oil or some kind of sanding sealer. Then paint for some of them (definitely the seahorse scene), and then some polyurethane finish.

 

[Jacob]

...

Not to mention, from what I hear of current life "outre manche", if you cut yourself, it could be a very long wait for an ambulance, or to see a doctor or nurse in casualty.

It's OK over here we have these things called "plasters".
3m Micropore is handy - it stays stuck on and you just leave it until it drops off. The plaster that is, not your finger whatever.

 

[Lons]

Carving is chisels, gouges etc. Whittling uses a knife.

It's perfectly ok to use knives for carving as well as gouges and not call it whittling. As I do quite regularly.

Be mindful how much pressure you're putting into your cuts . I applied too much, slipped, cut through the cut resistant gloves (not that cut resistant) cue a trip to minor injuries clinic a few days later as it was deep and not healing.

The sharper the tool the less pressure you need to apply and the less likely to cut yourself, blunt tools are dangerous otherwise just commonsense as with any tool.

 

[Lons]

Finished this little carving a couple of weeks ago, a present for my 10 year old granddaughter. The problem with carving is that I'm never happy so keep putting them aside, going back, cutting a bit more, over and over again but you have to stop somewhere and there's a very happy little girl at the end of it which is all that matters.
Foal is walnut with a slice of burr elm for the base, one coat of acrylic sealer sanded out and finished with a coat of microcrystalline wax.

 

[Lons]

And another couple of recent ones. The old codger was mainly a knife.

 

[xy mosian]

Crikey, you certainly have a good eye Lons. Smashing work.
The Wabbit? A lump of dry Lime stopped me in my tracks. That and the need (?) for a good mount to use when carving.
geoff

 

[paulrbarnard]

Wow very rapid improvement. You will ge at Michelangelo levels in a month or two