December-February cuts [Archive]

scottp55

02-16-2020, 04:42 PM

Thank you all for the kind comments!
The "Mom's Harley" project was the first one in a while made from perfectly a straight/parallel rectangle.....branches and firewood are Never boring:)
And Tiny and Small's are infective...even Randall got into it:)

https://forum.vectric.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=33770

Funny Scott.......That was one of the first things Mom asked...."Can you tighten the chain?" :)
Actually went into the reason Mom picked a Harley model dedicated to the memory of her father here(Interesting Harley story);

https://forum.vectric.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=33936

Her bigger Birdseye one is next(after some more testing of VR settings for the Desktop)
Thanks Brady.....and even Loaded Scott's VR settings for small VCarving:)

jTr

02-17-2020, 10:57 AM

Wow- like many others here, wish I had the time to try such cool stuff!
Particularly interesting to me was the "lin-wax" methodology. Pretty dang brilliant. Really appreciate you sharing your techniques!

Jeff

scottp55

02-17-2020, 11:34 AM

Thanks Jeff......When you and Don retire you can be a Shopbot Bum like me:)
Of course cabinets and furniture would daunt ME:)
Just paying back a little from all the techniques I learned from you guys!

Interesting that it started kind of a "Tiny" craze on Vectric Forum:)
Thanks all!!
scott

dmidkiff

02-22-2020, 07:00 AM

Nice work as always.

scottp55

02-22-2020, 07:48 AM

Thanks David!
Just helping the Winter go by faster:)
Test cut for a larger piece of Curly(Buddha).
A total muck up from years ago of Wolves, that Creative sanding found a home with my Drs wife finally:)
And then a PITA plaque that mill marks took forever to sand/burnish out for a very good friend's girlfriend.
Spindle is warming up for a Small Racoon in a Walnut Branch.....Winter is sliding by! :)

Jerry Carney

02-23-2020, 11:23 AM

A couple more, but Harley was dimensioned first,and was a test cut for a larger one so was playing with Brady's 3D VR settings Finally...

Scott, were these carved with 1/16 bn bits and did you get them from Drillman1?? If possible could I get your E-mail address. Thanks JERRY

scottp55

02-23-2020, 02:10 PM

No Jerry,
There was a thread about Tiny Tapered Ball Nose bits on Vectric Forum about 2 yrs(?) back, and Randall linked where he bought the inexpensive 1/8" shanks;
https://www.ebay.com/c/2242300477#oid253004835589
I was leery at first, but the Radius was perfect for my small stuff...after experimenting I bought 2 more sets(although I still use the originals sometimes)
Only a .5" CEL on those, so I also ordered 1 .25" shank (1.2" CEL) to try out, and after trying now have 2 sets of the .25" shank 3" long ones;
https://www.ebay.com/str/shangyoutools/1-4-shank-diameter/_i.html?_storecat=11014878015.

I did that small test Harley with the 1/8" shanks, but Mom's piece is larger, so I'll use the .25" shank ones.
Hope that's what you were asking.
My e-mail is under my Contact information....Be nice to hear from you:)
scott
OH....I'm waiting on 3 bits for Mom's carving.....but might be awhile as they're overdue.
There ARE other suppliers on E-Bay with same/similar bits from US distributors, but I've got a friend who ordered .25mm TBNs from someone else, and had 2 broken tips...
so I'll stay with Sy-Tools as they're the only brand I've used, and had excellent cuts...AND a couple stupid mistakes that punished them with no damage.

scottp55

02-23-2020, 02:40 PM

Shoot...missed the edit period.
For TINY detailed carvings(like Old Man/Owl), and touch up/add detail like Owl on a Twig( and virtually all my tiny Font work)...
Yes, Drillman1 started carrying the .25" shank Onsrud 30 degree Engraving bit with the .005" flat. My Go-To for a lot of fine details.

scottp55

02-25-2020, 11:51 AM

Just finished this one at 2am....(23.5 hour day:( Getting to old for that! :)

Black Walnut branch from my Aunt's tree, and used 1mmTBN for Roughing to depth, .25mmTBN for finishing, and then ran an Onsrud 30 degree engraving with .005"tip for fine detail.
Long rambling thread on Vectric Forum for details;
https://forum.vectric.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=34042

mezalick

02-25-2020, 05:06 PM

Scott,
So, you're in the habit of leaving spare change laying around on your CNC machine ??

You can always send it off to me. LOL

Great work,
Michael

scottp55

02-26-2020, 09:33 AM

Ha! Started that with buttons for something to scale for Dad...and just kept doing it for scale on Tinys.
NOT worth your while though Michael....usually around 38 cents on computer shelf:)

DID remind me... once I was making a plaque for Dad and Joan's anniversary, and that darn Walnut board would NOT lay flat on the spoilboard...
no matter How hard I hit it with the mallet!!
Turned it over to do the back.....a dime had hidden from me at wheelchair height right next to X fence!! :)
NOW I run my hands along fence before clamping something down:)
It made a nice impression!

Thanks Michael!
scott

OH.....Also it seems I have "Rules" on the Vectric Forum (I didn't think I had ANY)....."Rule #5" Says I HAVE to have a penny:)

scottp55

03-04-2020, 06:46 PM

Well...going to show as I go regardless of title:)
March 2...inspected wood at dawn(KNEW I wanted to cut)...decided on top left Walnut branch in Paper Birch/Black Walnut pic.
Not a highly detailed model, but chose wood to have a brown Bear....caught heartwood fairly good.
Fun day, but jigging/drawing/and going from 1mmTBN to .25mmTBN to last minute 30 degree engraving with .005" flat...quit at 11:45pm...long day!

Brian Harnett

03-08-2020, 12:01 PM

Pretty amazing, I have never tried to do anything that small.

scottp55

03-14-2020, 11:47 AM

Thanks Brian:)
Whatever you do, DON'T start on a wood as soft as Paper Birch!! (PITA but doable) :)
Finished this Thursday night.
They came from 3 trees encroaching on garage steel roof, so cut down a year ago November....I have lots of it, so was trying methods to carve clean I can use it.

mdebruce

03-15-2020, 09:26 AM

Reminds me of my Chinese cork art. Very nice work!

scottp55

03-15-2020, 09:50 AM

Funny you should mention that!
When in my 20's had a bad motorcycle crash,and family dragged me along to Disney World on crutches..I gave up on rides and went to Epcot.
DISTINCTLY remember the Chinese Pavilion, as I had to rest and get my knee elevated....
The bench I sat on was right in front of a huge Chinese cork carving with the tiniest details I'd ever seen!!!
Musta spent 2 hours looking at it!
I think that's where my love for tiny details came from:)
Must have impressed me to last 45 years!! :)
scott

cowboy1296

03-15-2020, 11:12 AM

I really like the racoon. with what is going on In the world today I hope that everyone stays safe and healthy. I have not posted anything in a while so I hope that you donthttp://www.talkshopbot.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=33700&stc=1 mind if hi-jack your thread to show one of my latest. I am just now starting to finish it. it goes out to a retiring k-9 officer in Houston.

scottp55

03-15-2020, 11:28 AM

Yep....that furry little bandit has a look on his face "Who Me? Would I touch your garbage can?" :)

Don't mind at all Rick....we all ought to post more of our work...Forum has been too quiet too long! :(

Beautiful piece Rick!! Always love your finishes!
NICE to see a piece not totally completed!
My thoughts go out to all the people and Vets who are medically compromised! Quads and Paras like me have to worry just a hair more, but really worried for 88yr old Mom and her generation:(
scott

mdebruce

03-16-2020, 09:50 AM

Cowboy where is the penny.."what size is that" Looks really nice.

cowboy1296

03-16-2020, 10:22 AM

its 19.4 inches round with the officers name not showing

scottp55

09-07-2020, 08:59 AM

Finally got spoilboard repair done and registered...and shop was now cool enough to run DC:)
(Summer was warmest on record, and 90+ days were 3 times normal...never mind the super muggy 89F days!)

And just couldn't resist cutting a new model I'll eventually cut in black soapstone I just bought that's 3.25X3.25X1.25".
So grabbed a similar sized Black Walnut branch that had been surfaced and sealed years ago...
Sized the model down to 2 inches tall(.14" model height) and cut it 2 days ago;
https://forum.vectric.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=35579

The Lady's head is about half a cooked grain of white rice, and it was sapwood just a hair softer than usual, But it gave me a good feel for the model for the soapstone.
I want to cut it in wood larger also, so keeping an eye out for Maple chunk so that Lady is in a whiter area, and Dragon in darker area. Be nice if there was figure behind lady:)

Took it to the stationary belt sander yesterday for prelim shaping.....now it's all hand sanding and some knifework to blend it all in.

evan

09-07-2020, 01:35 PM

Absolutely Beautiful! Exquisite detail! Looking forward to seeing it in the soap stone. Thank you for sharing!

scottp55

09-08-2020, 05:12 AM

Thanks Evan! :)
I was inspired by Randall;
https://forum.vectric.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=35438&hilit=more+soapstone
And when I opened the link in that thread, I saw a piece I liked and bought it.
Was gifted 3 pieces of soapstone from a Penobscot Lady years ago that her sister sent her from Nova Scotia...and never carved.
This piece I bought should give me the nerve to finally carve those pieces.

I collected Canadian pieces for a while, but only have a Walrus and Shaman head left after divorce:(
I also have this Bear model which would better match my 2 pieces, and this bought piece of soapstone.
Next wood carving might be the Bear to get a feel for it.
Dragon Lady at that size doesn't show full detail...might be better on my larger/flatter gifted piece.

Thanks again for the comment!
Made my morning:)
scott

evan

09-10-2020, 01:07 AM

The bear is very indicative of the north west, captures it wonderfully, I'm sure you will do it justice, even though you're on the other coast ;-) I've done very little carving on the Shop Bot but the few times I have it was always very satisfying. Your art is inspiring.

scottp55

09-10-2020, 04:48 AM

Yep, but I got a taste of Pacific Northwest when I hitched the Trans-Can in "75 and wound up on Victoria,BC after a 10day single ride with Canadian family(4,000 miles in one hitch:)
Spent 2 months there, and shops carried soapstone carvings and met a carving grandson of a carver....THAT was an interesting week and got me hooked:)
I think it Will be the Bear fishing....I toolpathed it yesterday...and at the soapstone size....It only uses half the material(which I can cut off with diamond trim saw) and do something else:)

DO have to do a "Harley Filling Station" twice the size of the one above for Mom's 89'th birthday beforehand....only 1 month away, and it's a long carve!
TWO mornings with a smile on my face Evan!
Thanks for calling it art! I TRY! :)
scott

scottp55

10-09-2020, 05:06 PM

Did a test cut on Black Walnut the same exact size of the soapstone blank.
And then yesterday did an inscription on the back of post# 17 Bear that was a tricky cut on the fly for Mom.
(UMO (University of Maine at Orono) used a Black Bear as a mascot/symbol when Mom was in school.
(THAT cut was royal pain to jig because of the 3D on the bottom side/no parallel faces/and hard to guesstimate when I'd hit a big enough oval of sapwood)

evan

10-10-2020, 05:27 PM

Looking Good!

scottp55

10-11-2020, 09:41 AM

Thanks Evan!
I was concerned about my exaggerating model height on that small bear from .26" to .4"....It Looked good in preview, but I was worried about how it would Feel in the hand.
Felt good, and now I know it will require a .25mm TBN, AND a 30 degree engraving with .005" tip to get final details I want(bear's fur/eyes and the salmon's eyeball).
Looks like the 4 coats of thinned shellac ALL over the spoilboard stabilized it to mild humidity changes helped a Lot!
I waited till the next day to use the engraving bit, to simulate a multi day cut coming up....and it was Right on the money!
Before I had to Tweak temporary Zeros sometimes on multi-day cuts(which was a pain...and I should have done that years ago!)

scottp55

11-09-2020, 08:57 AM

VERY "Niche" info!
Some of that 3-5"D Paper Birch I had cut down 2 yrs ago,
simply got stacked against some storage racks for 2 yrs(one 4' (5"D)and one 8' (3.5-5"D) ) and left to hopefully spalt(or just get returned to the woods).

Unsealed on ends, as Paper Birch Bark is so oily, and Knew it was going to split anyways.
Funny, Spalt occurred mainly in the center sections of the 8' smaller diameter trunk where moisture would have been trapped.
(Should have expected that, as Paper Birch wood is WAY more perishable than the oily bark
(best way to make a fire in a rainstorm is kicking punk out of fallen Paper Birch and filling hollow bark with resinous softwood twigs)
(Also good for making a "Tube" for a "Smoker" if stuck in the Boonies)

Anyways...8 footer showed spalt around the perimeter mainly(hardly at all at a "wound" site)...going to be interesting:)
VERY Niche info...but spalt streaks are graphic...Fast in warmer climes I imagine...and just plain pretty:)
FAST spalt in a "Junk" wood that won't have to have much strength!! :)

Oops...Endgrain shot!

scottp55

11-09-2020, 09:01 AM

EASY to go through the spalt layer on my batch!

scottp55

12-09-2020, 05:25 AM

Agreed to do a Christmas present for my RX delivery Lady's son....Unfortunately she picked a pen and ink sketch of a Lemur for Liam.
NEVER did a Shallow cut for paint infill before:(
Got a Lot of good tips on the Vectric forum;
https://forum.vectric.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=36145
The first two paint ones came out Great( I REALLY thought I was going to muck it up!)

Cutting a third one now with a .01" Start Depth like Michael Tyler recommended, so I can sand off all shellac without losing details.
These are half sized(and so are engraving bit flats).

evan

12-09-2020, 11:24 AM

Lucky Liam! Those look great. I'm kinda partial to the first, the lighter one, not that it matters, ;-)
Hope your Holidays are warm and you and yours are safe.

scottp55

12-10-2020, 05:19 AM

Thanks Evan,
NOW it matters....as she agreed with you on the lighter one:)
That one was the .03" Flat Depth, and I painted in 5 small sections(wiping off with a Wet Viva paper towel as I went).
There's more detail on paint and moisture on towels in that link as well as tips from others.

Doing half size test pieces(with half the flat size) Seemed like a good idea....THEN I said if there was a good one, I'd cut it out as an ornament for the tree.
Naturally now trying to figure out a pleasing ornament shape...but like normal, Didn't leave much room on one side and too tight for a .25"R pointed round over :(
I see some "Organic Sanding" in my future:)

Did do 1 more Lemur with a .01" Start Depth like mentioned, and a kitten playing with a butterfly for stepmom's ornament...with Kitten...I gave myself more room!

Luckily most of a large family is playing it safe because of 89yr old Mom, and 4 aunt's in their 80's, but Maine is finally starting to getting hit hard.
Best wishes to you and yours and All the Shopbot Family!
scott

evan

12-10-2020, 11:43 AM

Thank you Scott,

It's been trying times for sure! We've been playing it safe as well with a 92 , a 93 and a couple 80+ year olds not to mention the youngsters (all the way down to 7). Hopefully by this time next year we'll all be able to gather and celebrate around the table. Peace to you and yours and All the rest.
emc2