Why I hate wood

[577SXS]

Don't you just hate it when this happens. Moving along with my latest build. Started carving the tang area and after getting everything stabbed in I was trying to carve my design at breech area and the wood just wouldn't cut in any direction. I fought it for quite a while and decided to just cut out my design and flatten the area. Well the wood just popped out deep and made a mess. Now I'm working on a plug to fill the hole. I lost the chip that popped out so not so simple to fix. I'm luckily had a piece of wood that came off side of blank that matches pretty good.

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

Sharpen your chisels.  That damage was likely caused when you were 'stabbing in' ...wood in the corner was crushed, not cut.

[577SXS]

My chisels are sharp but I do see the rolled edge. Like I said the wood right here would not cut in any direction. It may have been damaged before it was shaped. When I cut the plug out it was falling apart as I cut it with a very sharp tiny chisel. Just a 1/2" away wood is very hard. Could have just been a bad place in the wood. Like my title says "Why I hate wood".

[rich pierce]

I find stabbing to be challenging and to take more care than using a veiner. Stabbing surely has its place; I am not dismissing it at all. When using a parting tool to set up relief carving the base of tge relief carving is uniform and visible. When stabbing this is not the case, and the depth may not be consistent.

[577SXS]

Yes I usually use a razor knife or rounded nose flat chisel to cut in my lines but on this curve I used a chisel.

[Eric Smith]

Watch some of the Mary May carving videos on YouTube. She does not "stab in" to start the carving. Instead, she shows how to relieve the wood around the design before she ever starts on the carving. She does that specifically to not have any "popping out" of delicate corners. She can show you better than I can say it. Mind you, I'm no carver, but I am studying her carving so I can become one.

[Bob McBride]

ugh. Well, Mike Brooks has a few threads about plugging holes in stocks. I think his latest he plugged about 80 and disappeared them all.....

[Clark Badgett]

ugh. Well, Mike Brooks has a few threads about plugging holes in stocks. I think his latest he plugged about 80 and disappeared them all.....

But he knows Voodoo

[Mike Lyons]

ugh. Well, Mike Brooks has a few threads about plugging holes in stocks. I think his latest he plugged about 80 and disappeared them all.....

But he knows Voodoo

And here I thought he had a magic parting tool the whole time. 

[oldtravler61]

  Mike...Mike uses his woozy stick...then he mumbles some magic words...an presto..it's fixed....Oldtravler

[Not English]

577,
I use a paring chisel for something like that. I may have the name wrong, but it is a chisel that comes to maybe a 30* point on one side with a flat bottom and the bevel on the other side. I have what I call a "right" hand and a "left" hand chisel that I made. I don't use them a lot, but they are invaluable for paring a flat surface in a tight spot. They are easy to sharpen and really need to be for slicing thin slivers of wood.

Dave

[577SXS]

Not English, I think you are referring to a skew chisel and yes I use those for most of my carving. I have lefts and rights, big and small plus bent ones. I make most of my chisels because most store bought ones are not what I need. I have a set of Pheil chisels I like but only use the gouges mostly.

[577SXS]

I got the plug done and as much as I tried to match the grain its not quite right. Hopefully when its stained it will blend in. I decided to try a small plug first and if it ends up not looking right I may try again with a larger one.

[Long John]

57,

I always listen and take notes when Taylor speaks.  Scary-sharp chisels are a first priority. 

Then, wax the cutting edge of the chisels and keep them waxed.  Chip-outs are caused by the fact that the chisel edge has a wedge-shaped cross-section and as the chisel is stabbed-in it is pushing the wood laterally.  The wax reduces the frictional coefficient of the chisel and increases the probability that you can remove the stabbed-in tool without pulling the wood apart.  Also, don't stab in too deep.  The deeper you stab in the more likely you will separate the wood fibers from each other as you pull the chisel out, setting-up a chip out.  And make sure you don't allow the chisel to move away from perpendicular to the wood surface! 

If you are going to stab-in do it a little at a time; stabbing in the edge a little, relieving the background wood with a shallow gouge across the grain, and then deepening the stab-in some more.  With gnarly, chippy wood it might take several cycles the get your background down to target depth (about .032" deep).   

As I looked at your carving I wondered why you were stabbing there in the first place.  That part of your carving would have been better started with a veiner/parting tool.  I only stab in where I can't use the V-chisel.

Best Regards,

JMC

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

In your last picture, I can see on the side of your stock that the grain is running up-hill, that is, up going toward the butt.  I you ran a chisel forward toward the muzzle to cut right up to your plunge line, I can see why a chip came out.  To cut along your front line, try cutting across the grain, that is, from the side toward the tang.  Here is where razor sharp and polished chisel edges really pay for themselves.
John, your endorsement is gratifying.

[577SXS]

Thanks guys, yes my chisels are scary sharp. The wax thing I haven't tried but will. I agree I needed to cut toward the butt because of the grain. Like I said in the corner it didn't matter what direction I tried to cut the wood was awful.

[Mike Lyons]

57,

I always listen and take notes when Taylor speaks.

I second that.  There’s a few on here that seriously know what their talking about.  It’s a good thing we have them around.

[BillF/TRF]

I agree that "scary sharp" tools are best and if the final step is taken when sharpening--stropping for a mirror polish (less resistance) on the gouge/chisel edge, the waxing part may not be needed.  In fact, using the wrong kind of "wax", like beeswax could be disastrous as it forms a very sticky coating on metal.

[577SXS]

I hit a few more spots in my stock that were horrible Chewy wood. I took the advice that some of you gave me and I'm having better luck. First I ground the ends of my chisels really thin just behind the cutting edge where it wouldn't have much wedge effect. This helped a lot! I also have a slow grinder that has leather strop wheel and instead of hand stropping I used the wheel. Both top and bottom of my chisel edge are mirror finish and really sharp. So far my edge is holding up pretty good even though its thin.

Another thing I hate with wood is trying to sand all the little details in carvings. I've glued sandpaper to everything trying to get in those hard to reach areas. I saw a couple of products on Ebay I decided to try. They are sanding sticks for models. I ordered two types and the sanding needles I'm not real happy with but the swizzle sticks work great. They have a thin piece of plastic in the middle and a thin foam on each side with sanding paper glue to the foam. They are just stiff enough to put a little pressure on and soft enough to bend down into the relief if carving. You cut cut the end with razor to get into ting spaces. They come with several grits and so far the coarsest grit works and leaves a really good finish. These have also given me an idea of making my own out of plastic or even spring steel to sand the carving details.

[JTR]

My chisels are sharp but I do see the rolled edge.

Not to be disagreeable, but if you see a rolled edge, your tool isn't actually sharp.

[577SXS]

I used a gouge to stab in the curve and the bevel on the edge probably caused the rolled edge. It was sharp but bevel was too steep maybe.

[Daryl]

Sounds a little soft to me. I can't see a steep bevel causing the edge to roll
but a steel bevel would be difficult to get a sharper-then-a-scalpel edge.