Creative Woodworks & crafts 2002-09, страница 41
used upside down, begin rounding off the corners of the fish's body. and lower that wood about one third the depth of the wood. Leave the wood savod for clamping at full thickness for now. Note: the extended tail, rather than the lower fin, was used to attach the clamp, because the grain goes the length of the wood at the tail, making it stronger. The lower fin, however, would make a weaker bridge because it is mostly cross grain. Step 5. Make stop cuts at the side fin and the gill cover. In this photo the stop cut around the gill cover is being made wilh plunge cuts with a gouge rather than a V fool. When there is a concern with tearing the grain wilh a cross-grain cut with a V tool, use a plunge cut with a gouge. The stop cut at the tail and the cross-grain cut at the side fin were also made with a gouge plunge cut. Cedar is a very grainy wood, arc cross-grain cuts with a V tool are likely to tear. Step 8. Carve the mouth and the features of the gill cover. The mouth is set in with a plunge cut wilh the chisel to avoid tearing the grain with a cross-grain cut with the V tool. Use the corner of the No. 3-16mm gouge to cut the V shapes across the grain. The cut is made in two passes, first one side of the V and then the other. Note: practice on scrap wood to got the technique of properly slanting the tool to make the two sides of the tool meet exactly. Step 6. Remove wood from the body to make the fin stand away from the body. Before lowering the wood ol the head, first make a plunge stop cut around the eye to save wood for rounding the eyeball. I used the No. 6-6mm gouge. Notice that the gouge must be tilted to keep from undercut ting the eye and chipping it off. Step 9. The detail of the fins is made with V cuts similar to those made on the gill cover, in the front part of the fins they indicate spines; in the back half of the fins they resemble branch ing trees. A No. 6 sweep gouge gives the arc for setting in 1he scales. If you want to van/ the size of the scales, simply go to different sized gouges. In the demonstration here I use three different sized gouges to get the gra dation of scales. Step 10. Round the eye by using the No. 6-6mm gouge upside down. Step 11. With all but the tail completed, it is now safe to thin out the tail. Notice that I thin the extra wood along with the fail to give easy access for detailing the tail. To complete the carving, all I need to do is saw through the thin strip of wood at the end of the tail. Step 12. A satin finish completes the carving and brings out the warmth of the wood. Visit Ivan Whitlock's website at www.whillock.com. You may email him at carve@whiilock.com. ^ |
