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

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

"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

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

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

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?