Drawing on Cherry/ Walnut

[George F.]

I'm working on a few guns at the same time. The Cherry smoothie is nearing the carving stage, I noticed that a common lead pencil is barely visible. Do you guys/ girls recommend a white pencil for this. I don't remember this being talked about before.  ...Geo.

[Dave B]

I have found that the Dixon film marker 2225 is visible on any wood. If the wood is that dark then you can use one of the colored pencils that have gold or silver in them. I use the Dixon film marker pencile for doing my engraving design layout right on the polished metal. I got mine from a art supply store that ordered up a box of twelve for me. I think it cost me $12. or so ten years ago.

[T*O*F]

George,
I find that a red drawing pencil shows up very well on dark woods.  It's what I've always used.

[B Shipman]

Don't be to anal on this. Pencil shows up well enough on anything. If you find something better , go for it.  THEN AGAIN, I use these magnifying head band things.

[Jim Filipski]

George,
Go to an office supply or Art Supply shop & get yourself some white "Stabilo" pencils Also great for marking metals
Jim

[George F.]

My original question was really based on my cherry stock which was pretty dirty from handling, and a pencil was extremely difficult to see. It does however become very visible after the wood was sanded or scraped. I did try a silver pencil from the art store, but found it was very soft and the line looked like the lines on the highway. I guess I was just to lazy to experiment on my own before asking for recommendations....Thanks anyway..........Geo.

[Acer Saccharum]

I guess I was just to lazy to experiment on my own before asking for recommendations.

Been there, done that. Even when I know it's simple to do a test, a question asked makes me feel stupid and I actually remember the answer better.

I was gonna say white pencil, but Jim Filipski beat me to it. So I had to say something.

[Evil Monkey]

I guess I was just to lazy to experiment on my own before asking for recommendations....Thanks anyway..........Geo.

While some frown on those that simply ask rather than doing their own research/experimentation, personally, I think asking is the wise route to take. There is always more than one path to reach a particular goal and if you figure it out for yourself, you will likely settle for a lesser path. By asking, not only are you introduced to several options from which to choose, but others, that didn't realise that what they were doing was less than ideal, get introduced to new ideas as well. Even if you HAD done the experimentation and arrived at a solution it would be a good idea to ask IMO just to compare your solution to that of others. Exchanging ideas and helping others be the best they can be is what sites like this are supposed to be all about.

[Pete G.]

Asking first is ALWAYS best. What good does it do to replicate some else's mistake in order to discover that it is a mistake? You can never live long enough to make all the mistakes yourself, so take advantage of collective knowledge. There is great value in knowing what NOT to do.