carving egg shell - any hints?

I am interested in carving (or cutting out) delicate filigree patterns
from whole egg shells (chicken and goose eggs) Does anyone out
there know what tool or tools to use for this purpose?

I have seen a large industrial type machine that will do this; does
this kind of tool exist in a hand-held variety for the home
craftsperson?

Mary Irene
Orcas Island, WA

There are a couple of hand held power carving tools available. One called
the "Power Carver" is really a hand held rotary tool powered by an air
pump. It uses miniature bits for cutting. It costs about $300 US. Do a
search for it or use terms like "egg carving" or "shell carving". I've
wanted to try my hand at egg carving but so far I haven't. I do know that
they also sell transparency film that you can run through a photocopier and
then stick to the surface you want to carve/grind a design into such as an
egg or even glass.

What ever you do, be sure to wear a mask to avoid breathing in the fine dust
and eye protection is always a must using power tools.

Good luck!
"Mary Irene" wrote in message
om...
I am interested in carving (or cutting out) delicate filigree patterns
from whole egg shells (chicken and goose eggs) Does anyone out
there know what tool or tools to use for this purpose?

I have seen a large industrial type machine that will do this; does
this kind of tool exist in a hand-held variety for the home
craftsperson?

Mary Irene
Orcas Island, WA

if anyone has this info or has actually done it, please post it
for the whole group.
I am going to try it but I bought 4 ostrich eggs in AZ last winter
and they have a lot thicker shell which might be a plus to begin with
and if you break it the individual pieces can the be formed into other
pieces of art and jewelry. I am thinking of also scrimshawing on one
instead of ivory
I like Orcas island by the way, nice place but PDX gets a little
less rain and a little warmer in the summer.

Thinking back on hand tools, it seems like they make a diamond
coated wire for jewelers saws that is really fine. Might check with
some jewelers supplies.


On 15 Aug 2004 13:48:21 -0700, (Mary Irene)
wrote:

I am interested in carving (or cutting out) delicate filigree patterns
from whole egg shells (chicken and goose eggs) Does anyone out
there know what tool or tools to use for this purpose?

I have seen a large industrial type machine that will do this; does
this kind of tool exist in a hand-held variety for the home
craftsperson?

Mary Irene
Orcas Island, WA

"Mary Irene" wrote in message
om...
I am interested in carving (or cutting out) delicate filigree patterns
from whole egg shells (chicken and goose eggs)

Since you mentioned chicken and goose eggs, thought you might want to see
some nice examples of Ukrainian Pysanka eggs (chicken and goose). The
artisans actually were able to put colored strings right through the eggs.

http://www.FreeSpiritGallery.ca

Go to the Other Art section in the Gallery to see the eggs.

Clint

Try these links. They all provide air powered high speed (400,000 rpm)
carving pens of similar design and the related carving supplies and they all
provide extensive info on egg shell carving.

www.profitablehobbies.com formerly www.paragrave.com
www.scmartwork.com
www.powercrafter.biz

I have had the Paragrave carver for about 9 years now and am very happy with
it. Lew Jensen, the founder of Paragrave, seems to have been the originator
of this hobby. He is a dentist who began using his dental drills to do hobby
carving.

I haven't tried egg shell carving myself as I do mostly wood carving.

If you get into carving egg shells or bone you should be aware of the health
hazards involved in breathing the dust and fumes (much worse than wood
dust). Make sure that you provide yourself with good safety equipment and
dust/fume exhaust capability to protect yourself from these hazards.

Please e-mail me directly if you wish any additional help as I don't follow
this newsgroup very closely.
--
Charley

All outgoing e-mail is scanned for
viruses by Norton Anti Virus 2004


"Mary Irene" wrote in message
om...
I am interested in carving (or cutting out) delicate filigree patterns
from whole egg shells (chicken and goose eggs) Does anyone out
there know what tool or tools to use for this purpose?

I have seen a large industrial type machine that will do this; does
this kind of tool exist in a hand-held variety for the home
craftsperson?

Mary Irene
Orcas Island, WA

I am new to this newsgroup. I live in Escondido, CA. I am a beginning
carver, interested in low relief on various found objects such as rocks,
bark, old bottles, leftover bones from the rib joint...
I engraved several river rocks with a Dremel engraver.
(OK, it's only a $20 tool but it works very nicely on granite!) and liked
the results, although it would take FOREVER to get the engraving as deep as
I would like. I did some research on other systems and found
http:www.turbocarver.com. The price seems to be the most reasonable as well.
The Turbo Carver is also a very high speed rotary tool. It has an optional
water mist system to reduce dust aand fumes. It does not require oil and
operates with an air compressor or a CO2 tank. Their site says they use
plastic instead of metal, therefore the water does not damage the tool. I am
ordering one for myself this week so I will let you know how well it works
for me.
I think the water mist system is really a strong feature if you will be
working with eggshells, bone or gourds, especially. The price is about the
same as the Power Carver. The prices do NOT include the cost of the air
compressor or the CO2 tank. The Turbo carver price does include the
regulator.
I will be using mine to carve rocks and woodblock prints. It's a big
investment for my budget but there are so many possibilities.
I hope this helps you.
Sincerely,
Bridget Becker

Welcome to the group. I too am new to it (two weeks or so). It does not
appear to be too active. I think yours is maybe the 4th post I've seen in
that time. Hopefully, things will pick up.

I can see the merits of water in cutting down dust but I am wondering
whether or not it might also be a drawback when it comes to the actual
carving. Might it wash away or otherwise obscure pattern lines?

I have a Power Carver but still have not used it. Hope to start practicing
today on some engraving that I want to put on a wedding gift I recently
made. Need to practice a lot cause I don't want to damage the gift after
all the hours put into it. I bought it because I wanted to get into egg
shell carving, engraving/etching and maybe some stone carving like you do.

I have a flexible shaft tool that I use for wood and soapstone carving. It
works very well and the assortment of bits/cutters/burrs usable in it is
extensive.

Let us know how you make out.

"David Bennett" wrote in message
news:w7zWc.1728$4o.481@fed1read01...
I am new to this newsgroup. I live in Escondido, CA. I am a beginning
carver, interested in low relief on various found objects such as rocks,
bark, old bottles, leftover bones from the rib joint...
I engraved several river rocks with a Dremel engraver.
(OK, it's only a $20 tool but it works very nicely on granite!) and liked
the results, although it would take FOREVER to get the engraving as deep
as
I would like. I did some research on other systems and found
http:www.turbocarver.com. The price seems to be the most reasonable as
well.
The Turbo Carver is also a very high speed rotary tool. It has an optional
water mist system to reduce dust aand fumes. It does not require oil and
operates with an air compressor or a CO2 tank. Their site says they use
plastic instead of metal, therefore the water does not damage the tool. I
am
ordering one for myself this week so I will let you know how well it works
for me.
I think the water mist system is really a strong feature if you will be
working with eggshells, bone or gourds, especially. The price is about the
same as the Power Carver. The prices do NOT include the cost of the air
compressor or the CO2 tank. The Turbo carver price does include the
regulator.
I will be using mine to carve rocks and woodblock prints. It's a big
investment for my budget but there are so many possibilities.
I hope this helps you.
Sincerely,
Bridget Becker

Try this URL. We are in the process of purchasing this and are looking
forward to carving eggs, gun stocks, etc.

AJ

Clint wrote:
"Mary Irene" wrote in message
om...

I am interested in carving (or cutting out) delicate filigree patterns
from whole egg shells (chicken and goose eggs)


Since you mentioned chicken and goose eggs, thought you might want to see
some nice examples of Ukrainian Pysanka eggs (chicken and goose). The
artisans actually were able to put colored strings right through the eggs.

http://www.FreeSpiritGallery.ca

Go to the Other Art section in the Gallery to see the eggs.

Clint

I just joined and see you most likely have you Turbocarver by now. I am
interested to know how you like it. Is it working well for you?