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Woodcarving By
NUMBERS
Pt.1 — Six Basic Techniques by Mike Davies
W
hether you are a woodturner, cabinetmaker, pyrographer or dedicated woodcarver, it is useful to have basic woodcarving skills. Over the next few issues I will discuss tips and techniques that will put you on the road to becoming a competent woodcarver. I will also provide a selection of projects to put theory into practice. A common misconception about woodcarving is that you need to be artistic. This is not the case as a logical stepby-step approach will usually produce satisfying results.
Tools When starting out as a woodcarver it can be a daunting task to select a beginner’s set of chisels from the vast selection available. There are literally hundreds of tools available, but as with most things in life, Pareto’s principal of the 80/20 rule can be applied, ie. typically 80% of your work can be done with 20% of your tool kit. As a professional woodcarver and teacher for over 20 years, I have found that there are a few favourite tools used on every job. It is this small selection of tools that I have used as the basis for my Woodcarving by Numbers course. No other carving tools are required to complete the projects in this series. I have given each blade profile a number (Fig.1) and as the tool is required, I will make reference to the profile in the text. If you have your own carving tools, Photo.1: Record Power boxed set for Woodcarving by Numbers
then use Fig.1 to identify the relevant tools. Alternatively the full set of profiles is available as a special set from Record Power (Photo.1)
The Significant Six Techniques These six techniques are the foundation skills for successful carving. First let’s clarify some terms. When I mention the ‘shank’ of a carving tool, I am referring to the entire length of steel blade between the handle and the cutting edge. The ‘cutting edge’ is the razor sharp edge at the end that is used to cut the timber. The ‘profile’ is the shape of the cutting edge — this can vary from flat to a full semi circle, from a V-shape to a U (Fig.1).
The Pinch Position The first two techniques relate to how to hold the carving tool correctly. The first is called the Pinch Position (Photos.2 & 3). Pinch the blade between your finger and thumb. Don’t worry if you are left or right handed. Simply hold the tool in whichever hand feels comfortable. This position is used for fine work or for ‘setting in’ a cut. ‘Setting in’ is where the shank of the carving tool is held at around 90° to the surface of the work.
The Fist Position The second technique is the Fist Position (Photo.4). Make a fist around the shank of the carving tool making sure that the cutting edge is next to your little finger. You should have around 25-30mm of blade exposed. Holding the tool in this way will
Fig.1: Tool profiles used in this series give you a firm grip. Once again, don’t worry if you are left or right handed. Just hold the tool in whichever hand feels most comfortable.
Anchoring Irrespective of how you hold the tool, it is absolutely essential that the hand holding the carving tool, or the arm of the hand holding the chisel, is always firmly Photo.2: The Pinch Position for setting in a cut
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Photo.3: The Pinch Position used for fine work
Photo.4: The Fist Position, for those occasions when you need a firm grip ‘anchored’ to the work or workbench (Photo.5). This ensures that you have control of the blade at all times which will prevent you from slipping. Note in the pictures for the pinch and fist positions how the hand that is holding the tool is firmly fixed to the work, ie, pressed down onto the surface.
The Tapping Technique The Tapping Technique involves the combination of the fist position and anchoring (Photo.6). When pushing the chisel forward it is essential that you only ever use controlled
Photo.5: ‘Anchor’ the hand to the workpiece to avoid slipping with the tool
arm weight. Never apply body weight behind the carving tool as this may lead to a loss of control. With the tapping technique, hold the chisel in the fist position. Establish a fixed position with your anchoring hand and tap the handle of the tool with your mallet. First practise this technique without removing any timber. Note that after each tap the cutting edge returns to its original position. When using this technique to remove timber, you can apply an increased force and maintain control at all times. Practise this technique to remove fine shavings of timber and then larger pieces with heavier blows.
Photo.6: Practise the Tapping Technique to remove fine shavings and larger pieces
The Sliding Technique If you cut a loaf of fresh bread and only apply a downward force on the knife, then regardless of the knife’s sharpness, the resulting cut is very ragged and torn. The knife is much more effective if you slide the cutting edge across the bread as you press downward. The same principle applies to a carving chisel. As you push the carving chisel forward, try to include a sliding motion. Note in Photos.7-9 how the entire length of the cutting edge is used by rotating the handle during the cutting process.
Photos.7-9: The Sliding Technique — practise sliding the blade across the cut as you push forward
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Photo.10: Hold the carving tool in the right hand when carving to the right hand side of the bench
Becoming Ambidextrous Once you have mastered these five techniques, there is just one more to learn. This one really makes life interesting and is why, as a carver, it doesn’t matter if you are left or right handed. When carving to the left hand side of the bench you should hold the carving tool in your left hand, and vice versa for the right (Photos.10 & 11). Depending on whether you are right or left handed, one of these positions will definitely feel awkward at first, but do persevere. Just like riding a bike it will soon become second nature. The most important aspect of this technique is that it prevents you from having to contort yourself into compromising positions, or from having to constantly move your work.
Making Your First Cuts To carve timber effectively it is helpful to understand how the timber is formed. This, in turn, will help you make decisions about the appropriate direction to cut. Imagine a piece of wood as being a bundle of long drinking straws, the length of the straws representing the direction of Fig.2: Working in the correct direction produces a smooth clean cut
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the grain. Figs.2-4 show that the cut will always be more effective when it is directed from short grain to long. Before you dive into your first project, it is worthwhile familiarising yourself with your tools and the six basic techniques. The following exercise is also ideal for testing the sharpness of your tools. Sharp tools are absolutely essential for effective woodcarving, but we will take a closer look at sharpening techniques in the next issue. Start with a clean, flat piece of timber that is light in weight and has a close straight grain. Clear (knotfree) Pine is inexpensive and suitable for practice work. The piece should measure approximately 250mm x 140mm x 20mm. Mark two square lines across the board, measuring approx. 50mm in from each end. Then mark a series of parallel lines, approx. 10mm apart and running with the grain as shown in Photo.12. Fix the timber firmly to your work surface, making sure that the grain is running horizontally in front of you. In whichever hand you feel most comfortable, hold chisel #4 (Fig.1) in the fist position. Fig.3: Working from long to short grain as shown will result in the timber breaking out and giving a ragged cut
Photo.11: Hold the carving tool in the left hand when carving to the left hand side of the bench
Straight Cuts Slide the chisel through the timber in the direction of the grain, making sure that you anchor the hand holding the shank. Remove small scoops at a time, moving the chisel with controlled arm weight only. If you find that you need to apply body weight, you are trying to Photo.12: Practice board marked with parallel lines with the grain
Fig.4: As a general rule, always cut from short fibres to long
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remove too much timber in one go. The objective is to create high ridge lines in place of the parallel lines. The ridge lines need to be perfectly straight.
Reverse Hands Now hold the carving tool in the opposite hand and carve the lines in the opposite direction. Remember, hold the carving tool in the left hand to carve to the left of the bench and vice versa for the right. It will feel awkward, but do persevere! Use the tapping technique to form deeper channels. Try to produce clean channels, formed by a number of taps, without any visible chatter marks from the blade.
Flutes Mark a series of parallel lines across the grain, measuring 10mm apart. Draw two lines running in the direction of the
grain, 60mm apart to form the top and bottom of the flutes. Continuing with Tool #4, hold the tool in the pinch position so that the shank of the tool is 90° to the surface. Gently set in the profile of the blade to form the bottom of the flute (Photo.13). At this stage try not to set in your cut any deeper than 2mm. With tool # 4 in the fist position, carve across the grain using the sliding technique (Photo.14). The goal here is to remove a uniform strip of material between the lines and create a perfectly straight line on the surface of the timber. You will need to practise sliding the blade to get a clean finish across the grain. This is where razor sharp tools are essential. Use your anchor to give control as your channel meets the set-in cut. The base of the flute needs to be set a little deeper than the channel. However, it is important not to leave heavy cuts on either side of the flute where it meets the surface (Photo.15). The base of the flute should be deeper and the sides shallow (Photo.16). To achieve this, use the tips of the cutting edge like a knife blade and slide the cutting edge to create a deeper cut in the base of the flute (Photo.17). The shape of the blade profile will follow the set-in cut if you angle the handle and slide the blade. Once mastered, these skills can be translated to numerous designs and decorations (Photo.18). To watch an online tutorial video of the Significant Six techniques, visit the Carving section of the Record Power web site, www.recordpower.com.au or www.recordpower.co.nz, and click on the link to open the video. The Record Power 12 piece Carving Tool Set with bonus Woodcarving Foundation Skills DVD and booklet (RRP $132.00) is available from The Australian Woodworker Mail Order Bookshop, pp.82-90, Ph: 02 4759 2844 or from Record Power stockists. w
Photo.13: Starting a flute with the tool in the Pinch Position Photo.14: Cutting a flute with the Fist Position and the sliding technique
Photo.15: Avoid making heavy cut such as this at the edges of the base of the flute
Photo.16: The correct cut with a shallow cut at the edges
Photo.17: Slicing the edges of the flute to achieve the shallow cuts Photo.18: A simple carving made with the techniques described in this article
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