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#1
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Chisels for a beginner
I've never done any wood carving before, but I'd like to give it a go. I've
had a couple of lumps of wood lying in my garage for nearly a year, and I'm now thinking about getting a set of chisels with which to turn said wood into piles of chips. I know I should probably spend a small fortune on good quality chisels, but I'm not inclined to do that until I've wasted a set of cheapies - I need to find out if the whole thing is something I want to pursue before considering a greater spend. To this end, I've been looking at the deals in eBay (UK), where there seem to be plenty of offerings of cheapie 6pc and 12pc sets. All have 'heat treated' blades, which I take to mean that they are some sort of carbon steel - ie, nothing fancy like HSS (or whatever the 'pro' chisels are made of). There seem to be several handle shapes - some have a cylindrical wooden handle with a ring at the mallet end to prevent splitting, some are cylindrical with a metal end cap, and others have a 'mushroom' type end of varying size. Would I be right in thinking that the plain wood mushroom-shaped ones are not for mallet use, but to provide a wider area to push on with one's palm? If so, of the mallet types, which is the better end - ring or end cap? And which set - 6pc or 12pc? It would seem, to this newbie, that a 12pc set would be a better starting point, since it gives me more shapes to experiment with. Or are the 6pc sets sufficiently comprehensive to be getting on with? I have no idea what I plan to carve, but it will be 3D shapes, rather than relief-type stuff. Oh, what sort of mallet? I have one of those oblong carpenter ones that looks to be made of beech - would that do to get me started, or is there something special about the round ones made of stuff like lignum vitae that precludes the use of anything else? Thanks in advance. :-) -- Wally www.artbywally.com/FiatPandaRally/index.htm www.wally.myby.co.uk |
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#2
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My opinion:
Don't buy a set! Instead buy a book that interests you. The several books by Chris Pye are really great in my opinion. When you decide what you would like to do, buy the best tools you can afford and give it a try. Also, don't forget sharpening; it is like learning to play scales, necessary but not really a lot of fun. Here again, read what the big boys say and make a commitment. For a while, you will have more invested in sharpening gear than in carving tools! Good luck. Bye the way, Chris Pye has a FREE web newsletter with lots of great information. I am sure you can find it with Google. Dave "Wally" wrote in message . uk... I've never done any wood carving before, but I'd like to give it a go. I've had a couple of lumps of wood lying in my garage for nearly a year, and I'm now thinking about getting a set of chisels with which to turn said wood into piles of chips. I know I should probably spend a small fortune on good quality chisels, but I'm not inclined to do that until I've wasted a set of cheapies - I need to find out if the whole thing is something I want to pursue before considering a greater spend. To this end, I've been looking at the deals in eBay (UK), where there seem to be plenty of offerings of cheapie 6pc and 12pc sets. All have 'heat treated' blades, which I take to mean that they are some sort of carbon steel - ie, nothing fancy like HSS (or whatever the 'pro' chisels are made of). There seem to be several handle shapes - some have a cylindrical wooden handle with a ring at the mallet end to prevent splitting, some are cylindrical with a metal end cap, and others have a 'mushroom' type end of varying size. Would I be right in thinking that the plain wood mushroom-shaped ones are not for mallet use, but to provide a wider area to push on with one's palm? If so, of the mallet types, which is the better end - ring or end cap? And which set - 6pc or 12pc? It would seem, to this newbie, that a 12pc set would be a better starting point, since it gives me more shapes to experiment with. Or are the 6pc sets sufficiently comprehensive to be getting on with? I have no idea what I plan to carve, but it will be 3D shapes, rather than relief-type stuff. Oh, what sort of mallet? I have one of those oblong carpenter ones that looks to be made of beech - would that do to get me started, or is there something special about the round ones made of stuff like lignum vitae that precludes the use of anything else? Thanks in advance. :-) -- Wally www.artbywally.com/FiatPandaRally/index.htm www.wally.myby.co.uk |
#3
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"Dave W" wrote in message ... My opinion: Don't buy a set! Instead buy a book that interests you. The several books by Chris Pye are really great in my opinion. When you decide what you would like to do, buy the best tools you can afford and give it a try. Also, don't forget sharpening; it is like learning to play scales, necessary but not really a lot of fun. Here again, read what the big boys say and make a commitment. For a while, you will have more invested in sharpening gear than in carving tools! Good luck. Bye the way, Chris Pye has a FREE web newsletter with lots of great information. I am sure you can find it with Google. Dave [I'm with Dave on this one - spend your money on one good tool instead of 6 crappy ones. Start out with one good gouge and one good chisel, plus a mallet, and (of course) sharpening equipment. Add more tools as you perceive a need for them. You'll need slips for the gouge and flat stones for the chisel. Americans tend to go for Arkansas stones and oil, but the Japanese make some nice stones that work with water that seem quicker. I like diamond stones too, at least for initial grinding. A sharp tool is a whole different animal from a dull one, but if you get the "cheapies" you'll never find out, because they can't hold an edge.] Andrew Werby www.unitedartworks.com "Wally" wrote in message . uk... I've never done any wood carving before, but I'd like to give it a go. I've had a couple of lumps of wood lying in my garage for nearly a year, and I'm now thinking about getting a set of chisels with which to turn said wood into piles of chips. I know I should probably spend a small fortune on good quality chisels, but I'm not inclined to do that until I've wasted a set of cheapies - I need to find out if the whole thing is something I want to pursue before considering a greater spend. To this end, I've been looking at the deals in eBay (UK), where there seem to be plenty of offerings of cheapie 6pc and 12pc sets. All have 'heat treated' blades, which I take to mean that they are some sort of carbon steel - ie, nothing fancy like HSS (or whatever the 'pro' chisels are made of). There seem to be several handle shapes - some have a cylindrical wooden handle with a ring at the mallet end to prevent splitting, some are cylindrical with a metal end cap, and others have a 'mushroom' type end of varying size. Would I be right in thinking that the plain wood mushroom-shaped ones are not for mallet use, but to provide a wider area to push on with one's palm? If so, of the mallet types, which is the better end - ring or end cap? And which set - 6pc or 12pc? It would seem, to this newbie, that a 12pc set would be a better starting point, since it gives me more shapes to experiment with. Or are the 6pc sets sufficiently comprehensive to be getting on with? I have no idea what I plan to carve, but it will be 3D shapes, rather than relief-type stuff. Oh, what sort of mallet? I have one of those oblong carpenter ones that looks to be made of beech - would that do to get me started, or is there something special about the round ones made of stuff like lignum vitae that precludes the use of anything else? Thanks in advance. :-) -- Wally www.artbywally.com/FiatPandaRally/index.htm www.wally.myby.co.uk |
#4
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Andrew Werby wrote:
"Dave W" wrote in message ... My opinion: Don't buy a set! Instead buy a book that interests you. The several books by Chris Pye are really great in my opinion. When you decide what you would like to do, buy the best tools you can afford and give it a try. Also, don't forget sharpening; it is like learning to play scales, necessary but not really a lot of fun. Here again, read what the big boys say and make a commitment. For a while, you will have more invested in sharpening gear than in carving tools! Good luck. Bye the way, Chris Pye has a FREE web newsletter with lots of great information. I am sure you can find it with Google. Dave [I'm with Dave on this one - spend your money on one good tool instead of 6 crappy ones. Start out with one good gouge and one good chisel, plus a mallet, and (of course) sharpening equipment. Add more tools as you perceive a need for them. You'll need slips for the gouge and flat stones for the chisel. Americans tend to go for Arkansas stones and oil, but the Japanese make some nice stones that work with water that seem quicker. I like diamond stones too, at least for initial grinding. A sharp tool is a whole different animal from a dull one, but if you get the "cheapies" you'll never find out, because they can't hold an edge.] Andrew Werby www.unitedartworks.com "Wally" wrote in message o.uk... I've never done any wood carving before, but I'd like to give it a go. I've had a couple of lumps of wood lying in my garage for nearly a year, and I'm now thinking about getting a set of chisels with which to turn said wood into piles of chips. I know I should probably spend a small fortune on good quality chisels, but I'm not inclined to do that until I've wasted a set of cheapies - I need to find out if the whole thing is something I want to pursue before considering a greater spend. To this end, I've been looking at the deals in eBay (UK), where there seem to be plenty of offerings of cheapie 6pc and 12pc sets. All have 'heat treated' blades, which I take to mean that they are some sort of carbon steel - ie, nothing fancy like HSS (or whatever the 'pro' chisels are made of). There seem to be several handle shapes - some have a cylindrical wooden handle with a ring at the mallet end to prevent splitting, some are cylindrical with a metal end cap, and others have a 'mushroom' type end of varying size. Would I be right in thinking that the plain wood mushroom-shaped ones are not for mallet use, but to provide a wider area to push on with one's palm? If so, of the mallet types, which is the better end - ring or end cap? And which set - 6pc or 12pc? It would seem, to this newbie, that a 12pc set would be a better starting point, since it gives me more shapes to experiment with. Or are the 6pc sets sufficiently comprehensive to be getting on with? I have no idea what I plan to carve, but it will be 3D shapes, rather than relief-type stuff. Oh, what sort of mallet? I have one of those oblong carpenter ones that looks to be made of beech - would that do to get me started, or is there something special about the round ones made of stuff like lignum vitae that precludes the use of anything else? Thanks in advance. :-) -- Wally www.artbywally.com/FiatPandaRally/index.htm www.wally.myby.co.uk I'll add a hearty 'me too'! One good way to start is to pick a project from one of the books that interests you and only purchase the tools you need for that project. The other point is stropping your tools. IMHO, the key to successful carving is to not just get your tools sharp but to keep them sharp by constant stropping. Make yourself a strop out of leather glued to a piece of wood and charge it with a stropping compound. As you work stop every couple of minutes and strop your tools. As for mallets: You may not need one at all if you're doing small work in woods like basswood, tupelo, mahogany, jetalong or sugar pine. Unless you want to do big work, I'd start without one. --RC |
#5
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Dave W wrote:
My opinion: Don't buy a set! Instead buy a book that interests you. The several books by Chris Pye are really great in my opinion. When you decide what you would like to do, buy the best tools you can afford and give it a try. Also, don't forget sharpening; it is like learning to play scales, necessary but not really a lot of fun. Here again, read what the big boys say and make a commitment. For a while, you will have more invested in sharpening gear than in carving tools! Good luck. Bye the way, Chris Pye has a FREE web newsletter with lots of great information. I am sure you can find it with Google. What are good makes of chisels (available in the UK), and what sort of metal are the good ones made of? -- Wally www.artbywally.com/FiatPandaRally/index.htm www.wally.myby.co.uk |
#6
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Hi Wally; in the UK.. Henry Taylor, Henry Taylor and Henry Taylor.(G)
There are others of course but for my money with Henry Taylors you can't go wrong. I wouldn't start worrying about "what metals" they are made of when starting out, check out Henry Taylor's web site for info on what they are made of and how thney are made; http://www.henrytaylortools.co.uk/ If you really want to do yourself a favour, buy Chris Pye's books(s) WoodCarving, Tools Equipment and Materials, first version was one book second version is two books. With this book(s) you will never have to ask another question of anyone about woodcarving tools.(G) Wannabe "Wally" wrote in m: Dave W wrote: My opinion: Don't buy a set! Instead buy a book that interests you. The several books by Chris Pye are really great in my opinion. When you decide what you would like to do, buy the best tools you can afford and give it a try. Also, don't forget sharpening; it is like learning to play scales, necessary but not really a lot of fun. Here again, read what the big boys say and make a commitment. For a while, you will have more invested in sharpening gear than in carving tools! Good luck. Bye the way, Chris Pye has a FREE web newsletter with lots of great information. I am sure you can find it with Google. What are good makes of chisels (available in the UK), and what sort of metal are the good ones made of? |
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