tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-82518818985837936722024-03-05T18:35:06.376-05:00BfloBif.comWhittling and other affairsBfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.comBlogger96125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-88128273404090965892020-01-16T10:19:00.000-05:002020-01-16T10:19:06.600-05:00Whittling AgainI haven't whittled much this year, to busy elsewhere- garden, remodel, having a little fun. That's one of the reasons I like to be involved in the WCI Ornament Exchange, it forces me to dust of and hone my knives and take on a little project. Helps me keep my hand in. Everybody likes ornaments.<br />
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Last year's flying reindeer earned me an article in the Wood Carving Illustrated magazine- Winter 2019 issue just came out. I am honored and humbled and amused they asked- and pleased as punch to write the article. Had a great time, giggled the whole time I worked on it.<br />
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This year I'm adapting a whittling I've done a bunch of- the man in the moon (MITM). You can put a Santa hat on anything and it becomes acceptable as a Christmas ornament. Jack Skellington, for instance.<br />
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Since it's a little different from my usual MITM, I need a prototype. Sketch the hat on, and try to figure out how thick the blank should be to make the hat and head look right. He's gonna be one sided, flat on the back. Technically I guess you'd call it whittling in the half-round.<br />
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I started working at the ball end of the hat, looking for a well proportioned half ball. Once that's done I can work down the hat, then make the head fit into the hat. I started with a 3/8" thick blank, hopefully I don't run out of wood .<br />
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And of course being a little rusty I broke the ball at the top of the hat clean off the blank about two minutes after I started. Promptly pulled out the CA/super Glue and proceeded to glue the ball back onto the blank, and my thumb to the ball.<br />
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I'll come back to this later.<br />
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CA glue takes a surprisingly long time to dry when I'm gluing a whittling back together. Not sure why. Lots longer than 60 seconds, that's for sure. I put a drop on each piece and do my best to line them up. The resultant glue line is pretty much invisible, and the hat gets painted anyway. As a prototype, it has a 50-50 chance of making it to the finish line anyway.</div>
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<br />BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-67994381509067814482020-01-14T08:02:00.001-05:002020-01-16T10:19:26.389-05:00Put a Santa hat on it...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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You can put a Santa hat on anything and it becomes a Christmas tree ornament. (couple years ago I put one on an elephant). Nobody minds, someone out there will like it, like my wife.<br />
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He's not too big, kind of a use-up-the-scrap project. I've whittled a bunch without the hat over the years, typically 1/4 inch thick for one sided moon men (fridge magnets) and half inch thick for two sided, like a ceiling fan pull. the first ornie I tried was cut 1/4 inch thick, there wasn't enough wood to work with. I don't like my whittliings to look flat, and the thinner piece of wood wouldn't let me curve his face front to back. 3/8 inch thick let me hake him thickest at the cheek and taper to the points at the top of the hat and bottom point. He's 3-1/8" tall and 1-1/8" wide. Start at the hat brim, its as thick as the cheek, more or less. Whittle the head to go into the hat, then whittle the red portion of the hat down to a pleasing taper. I like to end my Flat Plane whittlings with long smooth cuts to create planar surfaces- can't call 'em planes cuz they're not flat- instead of multiple cuts to create the curve. Since he's intended for the tree, I like the way the long cuts reflect the lights. Use a glossy finish to help with reflections too.<br />
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Happy Whittling-<br />
Buffalo BifBfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-67995088102689410862019-01-07T08:48:00.000-05:002019-02-12T14:46:04.640-05:00Ornie Time<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Looks a little like and Escher print, don't you think?</div>
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It's that time of year, the WCI Christmas Ornament Exchange (WCICOE) is here, I mailed out the first run this week. Had to whittle a total of 18 ornies to put in the mail, plus some for the family, and the wife bushwhacked me by asking IF I Could Just Make Six More for her holiday party at work next week. Thanks Hon, glad you like them of course I can. I make sure I'm whittling when it's time to cook dinner, do the dishes, or go shopping... ;)<br />
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Here's some pics of the ornies, and a bit of a show and tell about how I think about a little project like this. As a woodworker, I always like the small production runs, I'd get a chance to hone the process- I'm a nut for efficiency. Whittling a number of the same item is similar- I get to fine tune the order of cuts, etc etc. How I whittle the last one is generally quite different from the process for the first, though they look (mostly) the same.<br />
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This isn't a tutorial- more like tips and tricks, and a little insight into the way I think about a project like this.<br />
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Everything starts with a sketch- or a tracing, or whatever. I like to use lined paper and let the lines represent grain direction on the wood. I rotate the figure to avoid weak grain construction, especially on thin parts. Having the grain cross the legs would have two issues- cross grain is harder to whittle and more likely to break, either during carving or during use. I got lucky with this pattern- there really is no whittling straight across the grain- almost everything is at a small angle to the grain, making whittling a bit easier. The tail is the biggest issue- easy to break with the grain running across it like it does. I broke more than one- stop what you're doing, find the piece, and get out the super glue. This is where whittling multiples shines- set the item aside to give the glue plenty of time to dry and start another one.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjaxd3k65r0VtAdrhdcbWpS7YkSSIyFGnpnmLGkneUh6UX7fNFTgWCAz-F6woO7NNuFdNBCZB9XwafWQyloFXGr_dlyw-bZrd_wyzsPVc_aAQggfkUlikCFtReAOxpKB2YAh9frm72ok2D/s1600/TR03.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjaxd3k65r0VtAdrhdcbWpS7YkSSIyFGnpnmLGkneUh6UX7fNFTgWCAz-F6woO7NNuFdNBCZB9XwafWQyloFXGr_dlyw-bZrd_wyzsPVc_aAQggfkUlikCFtReAOxpKB2YAh9frm72ok2D/s200/TR03.JPG" width="200" /></a> I cut the pattern out when I'm happy with it and trace around it on a piece of wood. I just work on one at this point in case I find something I want to change. In this case, I switched to a larger blank for the remainder of the project.<br />
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Once I have done a prototype and made any changes necessary, I make a more durable pattern, usually from a thin piece of wood. I'll draw some grain direction lines on it, include some internal lines (whittling lines, not sawing lines) and the dimensions of the blank.<br />
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Clean up the bandsaw residue<br />
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Taper the little guy thinner on the bottom half.<br />
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Taper both legs down their length- I'm looking for the feet (hooves) to be roughly square. it's important IMO to make sure to disguise the fact that you started with a square piece of wood.<br />
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Draw the internal lines. I like to leave a lot to the viewer's imagination, so my folksy style lacks detail and does not require a lot of planning.<br />
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I like to identify the major features and cut them in first. Sometimes I have to whittle a few before I figure out what should be whittled first- that was the case here. Those lines are done- I might have to touch them up at the end, but that is all.<br />
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When I started thinking about this project, I had vintage tin toys in mind- kinda thin, two mirror image slightly shaped pieces that might have been soldered together, or joined by tabs-and-slots. The mostly continuous bevels are how I tried to emulate those toys. No eyes, no lips, no real nose- just bevels and surfaces that let you know where they go. It's an active pose- the legs and the swept back ears suggest these guys are flying. I like the way the flat bevels reflect the lights on the tree.<br />
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Antlers- I chose wood. Thought about metal, but I wanted antlers that went both forward and back from the point of attachment, and just didn't come up with a way to bend and attach metal (or wire) antlers. Couple connected shavings off the edge of an 1/8" piece did the trick. Super glued to the head, and when that set, the entire antler was coated with super glue. I never painted over SG before, it worked out OK.<br />
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Some reindeer stood on their own, some needed help. Springy clothes pins held them up while the glue dried.<br />
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These little guys need to hang on the tree, so I needed to figure out where to place the screw eye. Bent a biggish paper clip into a set of pincers....<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidORjOCC00wUsFNpJR9rmQMh-OaLCfC3WjBJybztn00nBkh9R8UcEJVaizm5kokNrBAwoxZ4ds266YoA9YUeiUFESnoe2_oDSQ0j1ad4X6hY92d1idC1wXK_vYhffck7gylSv4dX_W5jqr/s1600/TR13.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidORjOCC00wUsFNpJR9rmQMh-OaLCfC3WjBJybztn00nBkh9R8UcEJVaizm5kokNrBAwoxZ4ds266YoA9YUeiUFESnoe2_oDSQ0j1ad4X6hY92d1idC1wXK_vYhffck7gylSv4dX_W5jqr/s320/TR13.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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...so I could suspend them from different points looking for the balance I wanted. Had to put the antlers on first to make sure they didn't overbalance.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyGk31rxnKnmkIB_Z-mIcUd7iFekd-1fHI0Rg9M2Z0EhqiboECi7Mg_OOQ6TZwIOliabOpFAPOUJVwR_AvLlpxyAnKE_Df541WSEWkJwlLb-nGOcL42nBs1H5_sx7opJnCfYLyTawVAsn6/s1600/TR14.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyGk31rxnKnmkIB_Z-mIcUd7iFekd-1fHI0Rg9M2Z0EhqiboECi7Mg_OOQ6TZwIOliabOpFAPOUJVwR_AvLlpxyAnKE_Df541WSEWkJwlLb-nGOcL42nBs1H5_sx7opJnCfYLyTawVAsn6/s320/TR14.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
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I chose to have my reindeer fly pretty much straight. Up or down were options- landing or taking off- but I chose straight. Once the balance point was found by moving the pincers back and forth, I penciled in a little line on the critter's back to mark where to set the screw eye.<br />
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After that, it's just paint. I like water base, they soak in nice and clean up easy. If I haven't sanded, which I never do, the water base doesn't raise the grain. I mix acrylic paints, the cheap ones found in the Wally World craft aisle, with gloss water based polyurethane, thinned with a little water. It gives me a good color and cross polymerizes inside the wood. These guys got a coat of clear PolyU on top, and are ready to go.</div>
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I've already decided on next year's ornament, tho there's plenty of time to change my mind....</div>
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Carve Diem, if you can- Buffalo Bif.</div>
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BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-63748742241057616912018-09-11T16:30:00.002-04:002018-09-11T16:30:54.720-04:00Folder, finished<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRNqpr1jqypPcFMY8MDM01NXLFLUBHe0RdRK2KMUxFQQlLaJFWiaRUvNbz6mZ5r2EUQt4YD2SAujtatdgjmvcwv3iPxECJwTHeW9JqqrqJFUagnhogzt3fUzb-OKRyUDk1wXMn_ObmyQNP/s1600/IMG_0722.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRNqpr1jqypPcFMY8MDM01NXLFLUBHe0RdRK2KMUxFQQlLaJFWiaRUvNbz6mZ5r2EUQt4YD2SAujtatdgjmvcwv3iPxECJwTHeW9JqqrqJFUagnhogzt3fUzb-OKRyUDk1wXMn_ObmyQNP/s320/IMG_0722.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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There is is, finished. Honed, smoothed, mostly- scratch pattern on the bolster could be bettter, but the open blade has no play in any direction and I'm very happy with the action. Easy to open, could have eliminated the nail nick altogether, and pretty easy to close. Carving sharp too, and seems to hold an edge well enough.BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-39769350055192668832018-02-23T15:09:00.000-05:002018-02-23T15:09:31.588-05:00More folder progress<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghhpvO1rVa6Gc69lyrKdNLcYWggcHCDMzdl20kdLYZu-H51r_Q00xZkj9WwM0pr7RFRMzLlUWvgccfBbbo7ZbutL7-b33X4hhP8at5IOJ4pIwNnHrfAo8L1wYezjA5JMp9dcJ85i1OIcnS/s1600/102_0918.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghhpvO1rVa6Gc69lyrKdNLcYWggcHCDMzdl20kdLYZu-H51r_Q00xZkj9WwM0pr7RFRMzLlUWvgccfBbbo7ZbutL7-b33X4hhP8at5IOJ4pIwNnHrfAo8L1wYezjA5JMp9dcJ85i1OIcnS/s320/102_0918.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Well, its together. Pic above is just before peening the rivets, scales are rounded almost to final shape, all the spots I can't reach once it's riveted are as polished as they will ever be.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCKzWYxnSndtBG7IMAqAK1IWDcPXtz4Bm-Y4VkwVW5VmfOhPj5TQyFYwY68D5D7c_0OLJVvzQQsB_W0Du1R_TXewMOAqr53THR7Rsn-Yn9jI_b8JjSPcb5SWg9c_z1rwmlTdVi644h5h-F/s1600/102_0923.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCKzWYxnSndtBG7IMAqAK1IWDcPXtz4Bm-Y4VkwVW5VmfOhPj5TQyFYwY68D5D7c_0OLJVvzQQsB_W0Du1R_TXewMOAqr53THR7Rsn-Yn9jI_b8JjSPcb5SWg9c_z1rwmlTdVi644h5h-F/s320/102_0923.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here everything is peened and I've worked on grinding and polishing. Spot weld marks are gone from the bolsters, the rivets are partially ground down. Haven't touched the scales yet.</div>
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Actually ran into an O Heck moment, I made the pivot rivet too tight, it took a while to loosen it, mostly because I was scared of making too big an adjustment. Note to self: need to check the blade action after every few taps when peening here. Got a good bunch of dust in the works while roughtin out the bolsters too- few drops of oil and a few hundred open/close cycles interspersed with toothpick cleaning in the slot took care of that. I really love the action, (sorry for the hubris)- it open nice, could do without the nail nick, good snap both to full open and full closed, no play in any direction in any position, including full open. Blade is still only rough filed- need to take it to the diamonds and on to honing still.</div>
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<br />BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-30324312956559828092017-12-14T10:36:00.002-05:002017-12-14T10:36:15.910-05:00Folder progressGot some time to work on the blade, I'm surprised at how soft the steel is. It bends before it breaks, and can be worked with a file relatively easily. I looked up heat treating stainless on the web, and found some surprises. Older 300 series SS does not react to hardening and tempering, but it will work harden- hammer on it it gets harder. Surprise! Newer 400 series SS can be hardened and tempered, the site I found lists max hardness at 60 on the Brinell scale, whatever that means. I can't find a conversion chart for Brinell to RC.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1YTkELgakg_Fd68bJSOmOwnqbRwyqJiWnY5k86u33QZdZcqiP3rWHsVxi5yTZt5KpurjXad-K0GrRQ8HuLCppRUxfWPMoSzbCfajPbvll0oKmWSawOPFXi_5tVPuAvbi7M__ko9Tcgxhu/s1600/102_0913.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1YTkELgakg_Fd68bJSOmOwnqbRwyqJiWnY5k86u33QZdZcqiP3rWHsVxi5yTZt5KpurjXad-K0GrRQ8HuLCppRUxfWPMoSzbCfajPbvll0oKmWSawOPFXi_5tVPuAvbi7M__ko9Tcgxhu/s320/102_0913.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here's the rough ground blade, it's close to what I want, though I might take a bit more off the width. The shape of the blade and the length were dictated by my decision to use the original nail nick. I'll save reinventing the nick for a later knife. At this point the edge is square, about 1/32 inch thick- I haven't touched the bevels yet.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSfb6u0MzDzuPJgV-jyuUyI-Xlg9wDlVdtHKh7OGktOLG17cr204wHnDPXTR-Gi1axorW2sz1EfbvHUQSwZtLc0EoyodsA3jFRCrEFfktb3mTlbpg0nSm0cwqUHfx2CLNapsJW3j7bUMjU/s1600/102_0911.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSfb6u0MzDzuPJgV-jyuUyI-Xlg9wDlVdtHKh7OGktOLG17cr204wHnDPXTR-Gi1axorW2sz1EfbvHUQSwZtLc0EoyodsA3jFRCrEFfktb3mTlbpg0nSm0cwqUHfx2CLNapsJW3j7bUMjU/s320/102_0911.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here's a view I've never seen- interesting how the pieces nest together inside the knife, I think. I temporarily assembled the knife on one side to look at how the open knife edge related to the handle- I like them to be (mostly) in line- and to make sure I didn't end up with the point of the blade no covered by the liners.</div>
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I'm debating about whether to try hardening and tempering the blade. I'm used to harder in my carbon steel blades, on the other hand, I should test the factory blade for edge holding.</div>
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Stay tuned.</div>
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<br />BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-4023380982822369002017-12-12T11:09:00.002-05:002017-12-12T11:09:31.884-05:00Might have found the ONEI've made a few hundred knives, all fixed blades, but have regularly dreamed of a folding whittler. there are dozens of knives out there called whittlers, only one or two have blade(s) shaped the way I like, and of those they are either too pricey for my pocket or have not-so-good reviews from people I trust. <br />
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I've bought a bunch of folders over the years, always intending to modify them to suit but have never changed a single one. There's more than a couple reasons for that.<br />
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First is the fear of damaging the pivots, or blade, or having the damn thing fold up on my fingers while grinding and damage me. One solution would be to dismantle the knife, modify and re-assemble. Little more work than I want to undertake, for a knife I'm not sure I'll like when I'm done.<br />
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Second is I assumed a grinder was the only way to reshape a blade; add overheating the blade to the list of fears above.<br />
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Third, I've tried to make a nail nick, which some mods will require, but have not been successful yet. It would be a shame to let an ugly nail nick live on a nicely modded knife.<br />
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Reason 4, I've believed stainless steel blades to be inferior to high carbon, but all the HC folders were in the ozone price range. Not gonna spend that much on a knife with a 50% chance of ruining it.<br />
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Last reason is darnit, I just like some of them like they are. Couple of them have become regular carries for me.<br />
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<u>Changed My Mind</u><br />
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A recent exchange on the WCI forum opened my eyes, and a stroke of luck may let this project move forward. Couple of cronies on the forum suggested using files to reshape the blades. Not sure why I didn't think of that, but it suits me just fine. No grinding waste to breathe in, damage to the knife (and my fingers) can be avoided. It'll take a little longer, but it'll be quieter too.<br />
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Same discussion touched on the differences, or lack thereof, between HC steel and modern SS. Two guys say they have compared steels head to head, and found no difference in sharpening or edge retention (they mentioned 440 stainless). That's impressive. I'm willing to give it a try.<br />
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Then I got lucky, and found this:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT33UQkPqfJlPA5KQnWIg_GHyf28l6mopsmIuqIq3KgW16Cuo_pckI3r66o7eYU3qiviZpJ_oFp8tJpj3Ry_kQHtlgfZhdbVc7CWvpJkHNNNB9ksb9DwItlPmYD_WHoxAlAyj1b0Vthpep/s1600/102_0910.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT33UQkPqfJlPA5KQnWIg_GHyf28l6mopsmIuqIq3KgW16Cuo_pckI3r66o7eYU3qiviZpJ_oFp8tJpj3Ry_kQHtlgfZhdbVc7CWvpJkHNNNB9ksb9DwItlPmYD_WHoxAlAyj1b0Vthpep/s320/102_0910.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Rough Rider makes 5 or 6 knife kits, all parts included, assembly required. I picked this one- RRCS5- for two reasons: the barlow configuration with the (very) large bolster, and the lockback. I consider a locking blade as a Darn Good Idea. You can see I've sketched the blade rework in, I get to keep the nail nick on this first one. Working the blade on a dismantled knife seems perfect. No bolster on the back made me think I could reshape that end, but now that I hold one in my hands I see the rivet holes are going to limit that. I've emailed RR asking if the blade is 440, as it is not marked and that info is not included in their description. To date no response.<br />
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Stay tuned I will update when and if work progresses.<br />
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<br />BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-8292166090996019442017-12-11T10:58:00.000-05:002017-12-11T10:58:02.691-05:002017 Ornie ExchangeI participated in the Christmas Ornament Exchange on the Woodcarving Illustrated forum again this year. Last time was in 2010, not sure why I haven't done it more, its a lot of fun. 8 signed up this year, including one we send to the magazine as way of thanks for hosting the forum for us. I made little elephants with Santa hats, based on the baby elephant in Tom Hindes book <u>20-Minute Whittling Projects</u>. They took me more than 20 minutes each, I never am as fast as the authors. Thanks for a great book, Tom. Tom's a good whittler, and a good teacher too IMO. If you get a chance to pick up his book, I recommend it.<br />
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I thought I'd run through some of the steps I take on a project like this, starting with a pic of a finished elepehant:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYa5ySUmlWWWLLh_QHI6Rc3r0O3s7m3OX7lJZQxn0utl-BKfWJ_ofPLH850Ra1s6qEI10xzcPQc8XnF4eeGa9tUGHRpsp-tTeHIOb7mBeeg8HBw0Ejo3yNcvGnBX8_OUaLkd6D_afePovw/s1600/finished.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYa5ySUmlWWWLLh_QHI6Rc3r0O3s7m3OX7lJZQxn0utl-BKfWJ_ofPLH850Ra1s6qEI10xzcPQc8XnF4eeGa9tUGHRpsp-tTeHIOb7mBeeg8HBw0Ejo3yNcvGnBX8_OUaLkd6D_afePovw/s320/finished.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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And before paint:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBJtN-E1dDrbUpmZp3fQJFD4gdU01r4kGV8ww7gMYRvyEovtYCPFMkMDrsvm5E0dPNr1Z255r8ZjcxzBOVW7HfxxgvW296uWJA0flfO8uZoLllBFMVE8Mig1oNp2XtEPMUeyJtz7YvdeNT/s1600/nopaint.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBJtN-E1dDrbUpmZp3fQJFD4gdU01r4kGV8ww7gMYRvyEovtYCPFMkMDrsvm5E0dPNr1Z255r8ZjcxzBOVW7HfxxgvW296uWJA0flfO8uZoLllBFMVE8Mig1oNp2XtEPMUeyJtz7YvdeNT/s320/nopaint.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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When planning a whittling, I like to think about what makes the subject unique, or what features I need to steer the viewer's imagination in the right direction. Since I don't 'do' reality, imagination is required when looking at my 'work'.</div>
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Thats an easy list to make when the subject is an elephant- trunk of course, big ears (African ears are large, Indian ears not so much), tree trunk legs, big round body & butt, and a ridiculoulsy small tail. That's a long list, covering the animal from tip to bottom. jSometimes you only get one thing.</div>
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Once I've thought about the features I want, I shoot for a full size sketch/pattern on whatever paper is nearby. This one was easy- Tom included a nice little line drawing in his book, an easy starting place. Had to think a little about what makes a Santa hat too- fur brim, ball on top, red color- easy stuff there too. The first pattern looked like this:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0tCfu8atbEKcTZd2MGBLw9PjlPF1QO2S6vOuYsvDuvWhHDxJeHxG9nYtwc9WBwYzvyQNE9aHM0L_oEKTxxkMKrGiVUfiARANTyIKiy8uX8BRgoxYTjHN5FoTwSyIKkJJTaY7UI-YCaUa0/s1600/plan01.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0tCfu8atbEKcTZd2MGBLw9PjlPF1QO2S6vOuYsvDuvWhHDxJeHxG9nYtwc9WBwYzvyQNE9aHM0L_oEKTxxkMKrGiVUfiARANTyIKiy8uX8BRgoxYTjHN5FoTwSyIKkJJTaY7UI-YCaUa0/s320/plan01.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I started to think about grain direction and actually whittling this little guy, and it didn't ake long to realize the kink in the hat was going to be a nightmare. Grain had to go the long way along the trunk, making that hook in the hat tough or impossible to complete without breaking. NOTE: I use a knife only, which imposes restrictions on the work; using a dremel or similar power carver would have make the bent hat possible.</div>
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So before I even cut one out of wood I modified the pattern:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzfb0VWcCF_Q02akmtLfmA_aOUB1Kgf8ZINea29JwQ1ewGwDWHdDPEuGfe8JLaHcgnDorjd7ENqhC4VSVc9WQniryzSeQAXOW1mRvBBLUxox0M68zSBNdzpXUIt5BXvfmMYmeHKsjcDjwL/s1600/plan02.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzfb0VWcCF_Q02akmtLfmA_aOUB1Kgf8ZINea29JwQ1ewGwDWHdDPEuGfe8JLaHcgnDorjd7ENqhC4VSVc9WQniryzSeQAXOW1mRvBBLUxox0M68zSBNdzpXUIt5BXvfmMYmeHKsjcDjwL/s320/plan02.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Scissor snip</div>
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I used this pattern to trace one on wood and started whittling. I'm likely to make some changes after the first. That is one reason why I like to do repeats- the whittling evolves as I go, I love that process.</div>
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Once I've done the first, and made any changes, the next thing is a more durable pattern:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6xZVmyS_ovFonFID5r96TCk-aGy2iwDMqI8indFU7MRVNG5AN1MC-6-AJ1kEaHPCOQPseLh7AsCvhBfbTMNJqa7nzLlbUeudsGHRxT5rzjFVUmkvPgAmM0n3fQg2UwlWZLeqQPUBVqdrV/s1600/plan03.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6xZVmyS_ovFonFID5r96TCk-aGy2iwDMqI8indFU7MRVNG5AN1MC-6-AJ1kEaHPCOQPseLh7AsCvhBfbTMNJqa7nzLlbUeudsGHRxT5rzjFVUmkvPgAmM0n3fQg2UwlWZLeqQPUBVqdrV/s320/plan03.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I use card stock, and include notes on the size blank I need for each. this pattern will hang out in the shop near the saw.</div>
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I actually made another change after this- the space between the front and back legs morphed from a U-shape to a single saw cut. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKszGSlUIErixhrW1qCxidyvAqE7NuhereMZ23NQ4dSOU2lFyCljehrVrpzqKicvUPy30ls6B3mQFEvzaGdKZ3rCD1C4_4bG91bwuwBjhDmaWe_jt6Cn7m3xR4xLE_rXN30F7TvStEmSi6/s1600/roughout.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKszGSlUIErixhrW1qCxidyvAqE7NuhereMZ23NQ4dSOU2lFyCljehrVrpzqKicvUPy30ls6B3mQFEvzaGdKZ3rCD1C4_4bG91bwuwBjhDmaWe_jt6Cn7m3xR4xLE_rXN30F7TvStEmSi6/s320/roughout.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I can separate the legs with a few cuts that extend up into the belly.</div>
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There's a few things on my elephant that depart from reality. Elephants actually have quite a long bit of belly between the front & back legs- mine have none. I didn't put eyes on them either. I made up the transition from face to trunk, and varied it from one to the next. I found a couple I preferred, but can guarantee none of them are anatomically correct. I don't mind any of that- none if it detracts from creating the impression of an elephant.</div>
BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-88786995459211521072017-03-01T11:04:00.001-05:002017-03-01T11:04:26.352-05:00Thinking about pocket knives today.I've owned one (or many more) and often carried one, ever since Dad gave me my first one at 8 yrs old. I'm a fan of the barlow style, and Camillus Cutlery in particular.<br />
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I was thinking about the invention of the pocket knife, or folding knife, or at least the early days of them. <br />
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Imagine how men must have found them to be the best thing since sliced bread. Did they have sliced bread back then? Prior to the folder, nothing but belt knives. Big, useless for small work. I'd have been giddy to get a new folder. Oops- I am giddy when I get a new folder.<br />
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<br />BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-18076999418561324532017-01-26T12:21:00.003-05:002017-01-26T12:21:39.139-05:00Cut Nail KnivesThought I'd try using some cut nails to make knife blades from- they're a hardened, tempered steel nail used to attach things (mostly wood) to concrete. I've never tried them, tho they are easy enough to find- the local hardware store and the nearby Homerville have them, as do other big box stores, and of course they can be had online.<br />
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I couldn't find much of any info on steel composition or working properties (annealing, hardening, tempering data); I did get a bit of info from a post to the WWI forum.<br />
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Time to experiment, and I have learned the hard way the key to successful experimenting is good note-taking. So here they are.<br />
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First I tried annealing a nail- heat to non magnetic and left it to cool in a can of hardwood ash. It took a long while to cool, file test showed it was soft, but not as soft as the O1 I usually use (subjective observation).<br />
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I heated non magnetic again, and quenched in brine. Thin blades I make of O1 quench nicely with a momentary dip in brine and cool to room temp (10 min or so) in a bucket of hardwood ash. Tried that with the annealed nail, file test said it was hard, but again (subjectively) not as hard as the O1. Either the steel composition, the quench process, or the thickness of the nail was affecting the outcome. (Nail is approximately 1/8" thick).<br />
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So at this point I am uncertain of the annealing and the hardening process. I needed a less subjective test for soft and hard. I grabbed another nail and bent it till it snapped- I estimate 45 degrees. Good start.<br />
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Annealed another nail in ashes, and one in air. Both bent into horseshoes, but the air cooled was easier to bend.<br />
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That's progress!<br />
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On to hardening. There are three ways to harden steel- in air, in water, and in oil. I have been told brine and oil are essentially the same, and I believe that. No smelly smoke or fire in the shop with brine. Cooling the nail in air resulted in a fully annealed nail, so take air hardening off the list. Not surprised. <br />
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Reasoning that the thickness of the nail may have affected the momentary dip in brine, I quenched the next nail in water until fully cooled. Nail snapped at an estimated 30 degrees- harder than the original nail out of the box. Good info, more progress.<br />
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Last test was hardening in brine until the nail was fully cool. Nail snapped quickly, estimated at 22 degrees- sooner than the nail out of the box and sooner than the water quenched nail.<br />
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I really should test and compare quenching in oil- maybe someday.<br />
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Conclusion- Air cooling produced a superior anneal, and quenching in brine to room temp produced maximum hardness.<br />
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Tempering test is easy, but will wait until I have rough forged a few test blades. I test temper by the size of the wire edge produced during sharpening- I'm looking for the smallest wire edge I can get. Large edge, too soft. Continue with additional sample and lower tempering temp until the wire edge is barely visible even under 10x magnification. At some point the wire edge will not be continuous and Ill raise the tempering temp just a bit. That is the combination of hardness and toughness I prefer.<br />
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Onward .BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-45971377612151877962016-08-02T12:06:00.000-04:002016-08-02T12:06:33.993-04:00Some thoughts on SharpI carve with carbon steel in dry basswood. I'm not offering new advice, rather supplyiing a bit of reason behind some good advice I have learned to follow. <br />
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In the search for sharp I read somewhere there are two enemies to an edge- friction and chemistry.<br />
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Assuming we avoid conditions that cause rust, I think as carvers we can ignore chemistry. That leaves friction. Lubricants are out of the question- whittling oily bass? I think not.<br />
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We deal with friction by polishing our blades. How much polish? Good Q. Lets use a 10x magnifying glass to help us determine the answer.<br />
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Sorry I can't take 10x pics, you'll have to trust me or look at your own stuff.<br />
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I hone to 1200 grit till I get an even burr on an edge, at that point the blade looks pretty smooth to the naked eye, any reflection is getting clear. Under 10x we see a different landscape, scratches deep enough to drive your car into, and the edge looks like a sawblade.<br />
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On to the strop- for me its a power strop with green compound (mfr recommends the compound for high polish on hard metals- that's what I want). I don't strop forever, I do spend a minute or more alterrnating each side of the blade- the equivalent of a few hundred strokes on an average hand strop. I look for the wire edge to disappear, then I test the edge cross-grain on a piece of bass I keep next to the strop. I feel I gain some consistency by testing all my knives on the same piece of wood. When I get continuous shiny scratch free cuts on the wood I figure I'm done, and I give the blade 10 more passes each side on the strop to finish.<br />
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Back under the 10x, the blade looks better, but many scratches are still there. Truth is, they'll be there for quite a while- it takes a long time to polish them all out, and likely there are a few leftover 600 grit scratches in there too. Every trip back to the strop will remove more scratches, eventually they'll all disappear. I don't think you'll get better than that. I have a blade I've been using for a couple years; I'm not a prolific whittler but the edge is nearly scratch free.<br />
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Unless you go back to the stones and start yourself over.<br />
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Here's the advice part:<br />
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Strop only:<br />
- stay away from the stones if you can and your edge will improve over time. Return to the stones only to repair a damaged edge.<br />
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Take slicing cuts:<br />
- let's recall the edge under 10x right after honing with 1200 grit- the sawblade look. The sawblade will never go away, the teeth will get smaller and finer with additional stroppings, it will not show under 10x but it's still there. I'll bet somewhere on the web you can find a microscopic view of a sharpened edge. Slicing cuts take advantage of the micro-sawblade we are creating.BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-15829995783287355242016-06-15T09:55:00.000-04:002016-06-15T09:55:05.075-04:00Got Walnut?I've been thinking of trying my hand at carving walking sticks or staffs, (is that the correct plural?)<br />
and have a few ash and elm saplings well dried in the garage waiting patiently. There are also a couple walnut trees in the neighborhood, and though I do not want them on my property due to the mess they make (I watched a huge walnut tree drop every leaf in a day- left a one foot thick carpet on the ground, and that's not to mention what happens to a walnut when you run over it with the lawnmower...) I thought I'd like to grow a few to staff size and harvest them. <br />
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I've tried for about 5 years to sprout some walnuts since harvesting them is easy I typically try up to 10 nuts at a time. Tried 'em in pots, no sprouts, tried 'em in th eground, either no sprouts or the squirrels dug them up. Put bricks on top when I planted them in the fall, moved the bricks in the spring- the squirrels dug 'em up the day after I moved the bricks.<br />
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I've heard squirrels taste good....<br />
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FINALLY had some success this year, I hope I haven't jinxed the little trees by saying so. I cut the bottom out of a 6 gallon bucket, buried the bucket half way in the yard, drilled a mess of holes in the lid and planted the nuts inside and snapped the lid on. Hole let the snow melt and rain in, snap on lid let me look in every week. As of today 3 of the six nuts i planted have hatched! WOOHOOO!<br />
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I took the bucket away today and surrounded the younglings with wire fence this morning.<br />
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Now to find some basswood seeds....<br />
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Stay tuned.BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-27746914248064071792016-04-29T11:54:00.001-04:002016-04-29T11:54:40.898-04:00Not WhittlingThe snow has melted with little chance of returning this year, and I've been taking time to work on the yard & garden. Garlic is doing well, better already than at harvest time last year, which was my first year. Onions are overachieving, I think I'll end up with more than I can eat. It only goes up from there. Strawberries will get moved to a (hopefully) permanent home and I'll buy some more- they were a test item last year with promising results. Tweak 'em and watch.<br />
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I just ordered asparagus plants/roots from a northern grower on EBay, they should arrive late next week and if I work hard & smart I'll have a bed ready for them when they get here.<br />
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Been thinking of putting in a few potatoes, not sure I'll get to that. My daughter has been helping, if she sticks it out I'll make it.<br />
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After that it's tomatoes, zucchini, beans, and roots- radish beet carrot. I was a failure with the roots last year, for one I over-planted the one bed I had, and for two I failed to water sufficiently early in the year. Live and learn. <br />
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Not bad for my urban lot, to be exact I have two raised beds totaling ~40 sqft and a third planned at just over 18 sqft more. I expect I'll get a years worth of garlic, 300+ scallions, large sweet onions I'll have to learn to dry, more beans than we can eat, tomatoes & zucchini enough to eat and freeze, and strawberries to snack on all summer long. No idea how the roots will work out.<br />
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There's raspberries and blueberries down the way, too.<br />
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If you can't whittle, garden. Have fun-<br />
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BfloBifBfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-50253526817322515952016-04-22T08:39:00.003-04:002016-04-22T08:39:14.182-04:00Learning to carve facesSorry, I can't teach this one, but I can direct you to a good teacher.<br />
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I struggle with faces, I have no clear idea where to begin and no clear understanding of the relationship of one part to another (OK, I get that your nose sticks out further, but that's not enough).<br />
I found a Youtube poster who lays it out in an easy to understand logical order. She knows how to carve, and she knows how to teach. As shown, her little faces are excellent examples (In My Opinion) of Flat Plane work. Take a look at Sharon Elliot's channel, Sharon My Art on Youtube. Here are links to her Guide to Wood Carving Faces Parts 1 & 2:<br />
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VinOD6g7xEc">Guide to Wood Carving Faces Parts 1</a><br />
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ecpy7ZI_pH8">Guide to Wood Carving Faces Parts 2</a><br />
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I followed the steps as she did them the first time, now I'll just keep carving little faces and experimenting with changes and additional details to see what I can come up with.BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-14816158480880983892016-04-15T13:13:00.001-04:002016-04-15T13:13:35.177-04:00Spring just might be sprung here in the frozen north...It's a sunny day, just over 60 degrees and I'm sweaty and out of breath from digging in the garden. After a long-ish winter and a knee injury at Thanksgiving, it didn't take much to get this tired.<br />
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Happy spring- shut your computer down and go do something!<br />
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Buffalo Bif<br />
GardenerBfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-46276164654596173172016-02-25T07:29:00.001-05:002016-03-11T08:13:34.737-05:00Long time comingIts been a long time since my last post- five months, more or less. Wow- I feel negligent. The holidays and the winter have been busy, of course, and a little strange too. I've had no motivation to do anything. Part of the issue was a knee re-injury in late November that really cramped my style. Nothing but praise for Tommy Copper compression sleeves, they work.<br />
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We also had a new grandchild born this year, our first girl. She is beautiful, like I had to tell you all that, right?<br />
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So I haven't whittled, made a knife, or worked on the house since Thanksgiving, haven't posted here since late September. Like I said- no motivation.<br />
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I found some motivation yesterday, on the interweb- I came across a video on YubeTube of a Japanese master sword-maker that just left me awestruck. The precision that man gets out of a hammer & anvil has set me a new goal. Its long- 49 minutes or so- but if you get a chance and are so inclined I highly recommend watching-<br />
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gxwWf-MfZVk" target="_blank">The Secret World of the Japanese Swordsmith</a><br />
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It'll be a while before I get that good, if it ever happens at all.<br />
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I will pic up a knife today, and maybe a paintbbrush in the next couple days. Stay tuned, find your motivation, and carve diem if you can.<br />
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BfloBif<br />
<br />BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-26028999572648388552015-09-24T15:29:00.001-04:002015-09-24T15:29:04.456-04:00Heating and beatingGotten a little whittling in, more rosebuds imagine that. Also got the house painted (partially) and spent a pile of time in the garden- well deserved time if I say so myself. Haven't had soil under my fingernails for too many years.<br />
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Been doing a little heating and beating, forging little carving knife blades. I made a little forge out of a juice can, mortar and perlite, fired with a propane torch, only to find out I don't need it. The little blades I've been making to stick in wooden handles heat up more quickly directly in the torch flame. It takes longer to heat the forge, and heating the blade is not as even.<br />
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I got myself a little anvil- happy birthday to me. Its called a stake anvil, little thing with a 2.5" square milled face. I have two ASO's (anvil shaped objects) made of cast iron- look nice but don't function well as anvils, they are too soft. At 15 lbs they are too heavy for paperweights or doorstops- not sure what to do with them. I stuck the new anvil in an old newel post I saved from the destruction of my house. I also modified a broken claw hammer I had laying around, wanted to try a gentle straight peen and figured the cheap way might be best until I figure out exactly what I want/need to make my little knives. Hardened steel anvil and modified hammer work great, more forging and less grinding suit me just fine. One day soon I'll step up and try forging one of my leather handled integral knives.<br />
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<br />BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-57505052486495521212015-06-19T16:37:00.002-04:002015-06-22T14:33:34.615-04:00New knife<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Little Birdseye Maple handled detail knife, off for 'independent assessment' today. Forging a little blade like this lets me learn a little quicker- make it, take notes and go on the the next. I have a hard time photographing the blade- hi polish reflects light no matter what angle I try. Eventually I'll get to forging a integral knife with a leather wrapped handle. Few more bugs to work out first...<br />
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June 22- sent this knife off last week to another carver, wanted his opinion on it- his comment floored me on the forum: <span style="font-family: inherit;">"<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14px;">I swear that it starts to cut before it touches the wood.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14px;"> "</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14px;">Thank you.</span></span><br />
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<br />BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-17950311743913978392015-06-12T11:50:00.002-04:002015-06-12T11:51:17.975-04:00Not exactly whittling....<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I have been busy, bit of yard work, new fence and some gardening for the first time in 6 years or more. Decided to raise a bed, cheap and easy is 2x8 from the big box store, not so easy when I decided to make the front piece look like something else. I used a little Proxon grinder with an 8-tooth chainsaw wheel for most of the faux rock, and an abrasive carbide wheel to round the edges. Tomatoes, peppers, beans, celery, zucchini and a few favorite roots- radish, beets and carrots. I've been planting a mix of roots every week for a staggered harvest (that's the plan) I don't want to hear from anyone about my tiny plants, I'm working on it. I'll do better next year.<br />
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Just past the bed are four little patches planted last fall or so- garlic, onions, chives, and more onions. At the end of the year I'll raise another bed for all those items.<br />
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There's another bed-in-process just off my right shoulder in this pic, I'm about half done on a matching front piece. That one will have basil, strawberries, daisies and maybe a little thyme.<br />
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Some new study says digging in the dirt is therapeutic. Wonder how much we paid for that?<br />
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BfloBifBfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-88200142093673181402015-03-12T13:59:00.000-04:002015-03-12T13:59:00.024-04:00Life is not all about whittlingSometimes you have to garden, or if you are in the frozen north in March, you think, read and dream about gardening. The seed companies know this and send out catalogs to arrive during blizzards.<br />
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I like perennials, or annuals & biennials that reseed themselves. Generally this means heirlooms as modern hybrids don't necessarily breed true. In my Interweb wanderings for perennial herbs & veggies I came across a site suggesting I could perennially grow veggies from kitchen scraps. Hey, I wasn't born yesterday, I've sprouted an avocado pit, or a green potato, and been semi successful with pineapples before. Fun, but hardly useful. The only thing I've been 100% successful growing from kitchen scraps is mold....<br />
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However, I'm always on the lookout for some tidbit of trivia that might prove useful or entertaining, so I took a look and got taken to school.<br />
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The first site was a couple coeds blogging about growing scallions, they'd seen the idea elsewhere and gave it a try. The basic process is to only use the greens of your store bought scallions, stick the roots & whites in water to grow more greens. OK, slightly useful, but I like to use the whites too. Then a little light bulb came on, and I realized a cup of water on the window sill would probably let me keep my scallions fresher, perhaps indefinitely. We generally stick em in the fridge in the plastic bag we bought em in, use a few then forget them. I hate finding them spoiled, sometimes I find more than one partial bunch in there. Waste and Inefficiency- my two biggest pet peeves. It works well by the way, have a few in a glass on the sill as I type. Roots are growing, greens are growing- they are advancing instead of declining like they would in my fridge. Woo Hoo!<br />
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Hmmm, one page got me one tidbit, so I searched some more. Turns out there are more useful edible things people claim you can grow from veggie parts you'd throw away anyway- new celery from the bottom of the stalk (looks promising, mine is sprouting), cabbage, lettuce, broccoli(?), maybe even mushrooms. That's in addition to the old standby potato/avocado/pineapple routine. Neat hing I see there is I'll (eventually) end up growing at the same pace we consume at. Lets face it, if I buy a pack of celery seeds I'll plant all 25 or 250 seeds and never want to see celery again. If I grow another plant every time we use a stalk, we'll end up with a staggered harvest that pretty much matches our rate of consumption- I think.<br />
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We all need to eat more veggies anyway.<br />
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BfloBif<br />
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<br />BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-73682299976481862192015-02-04T08:13:00.001-05:002015-02-04T08:13:44.513-05:00Start where you are.Came across the following quote by Arthur Ashe (tennis player):<br />
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Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.<br />
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I think that's a great way to approach carving. The world is full of the next great tool you absolutely have to have in order to be a better carver. Lets face it, many of us have the tool collecting bug anyway. That doesn't mean you can't start right now- If all you have is a knife, get some wood and go for it. if all you have is $20, get a knife and some wood and go for it.<br />
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Maybe you're a whittler and that's all you need. If not, you can always get more, later.<br />
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Just go for it (Don't tell Nike I said that)<br />
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Buffalo BifBfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-30480467579413492022015-01-26T16:45:00.001-05:002015-01-26T16:45:44.972-05:00Toolmaking againSpent some time lately trying to get a better gouge than the one I have, the one I used making the spoons in the last entry here. Mine is a little gouge from an inexpensive set like you might find at the local big box craft store. The edge was ground wrong when I got it, too low and angle and the edge wore badly on one spoon. Before I finished the last spoon I managed to get the edge in good shape. However, its a little soft and I'd like something better. Has to be high carbon steel, hardened RC 60 or so, 1/2" wide.<br />
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Of course I want to use my own material for a handle, in this case I've picked a Tagua nut my Mom gave me years ago. Its pretty big, 2+ inches long, and I've looked at it dozens of times over the last few years trying to come up with the perfect project. <br />
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I can find unhandled gouges, or I can find gouges made the way I want, but I can't find both.<br />
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Dammit. I may have to learn to make a gouge.<br />
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Here's the nut I want to use- has a great organic shape, symmetrical left to right but not in any other direction. Turns out if you remove the bark carefully you can leave some of the it in the vein pattern on the nut. Cool, huh? I scraped it clean, sanded through the grits to 600 then buffed with the same green compound I use for stropping. There's a flat on the bottom, I'm thinking I'll add an ebony ferrule when I glue the blade in. Planning on a beeswax finish.</div>
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Buffalo Bif</div>
<br />BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-6620620136722582562015-01-23T12:07:00.000-05:002015-01-23T12:10:29.658-05:00The Waxing Moon SpoonSo here's a little spoon I did for a 'love spoon' exchange with 4 others on the WCI forum. I ended up whittling 7 to supply looky-loos who wanted one (wife & daughters). I'll include a couple pics of the thought process involved in designing my spoon. It's by no means a tutorial, just an example of how my mind worked.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8bMo-m_VVtqhlaP1-2VCZnuuvXCFeeovI1qWKeRZsX15klf2EY6EOO4d6YTMvmnZPjpRjKHXEVKuxg1rBO2YHEWqyLeI3xCwc7n8y5p89SK0DWEzp3IJ-BOkgK9dUu9tU1-WsChaYasG_/s1600/MoonSpoonx5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8bMo-m_VVtqhlaP1-2VCZnuuvXCFeeovI1qWKeRZsX15klf2EY6EOO4d6YTMvmnZPjpRjKHXEVKuxg1rBO2YHEWqyLeI3xCwc7n8y5p89SK0DWEzp3IJ-BOkgK9dUu9tU1-WsChaYasG_/s1600/MoonSpoonx5.JPG" height="417" width="640" /></a></div>
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Here's the finished spoons, set to go. You may recognize my fridge magnet moon. Spoons are bass, finished with water based poly, so not food safe by any means. Since they weren't going to be food safe, I left the gouge marks in the bowl. First real use of the gouge for me, by the way. Lotta fun. I glued a rare-earth magnet to the back of each to let them hang on the fridge. They're about 2" x 6" or so, not too big for a decoration.</div>
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Started the process with a concept sketch, easy to grab the moon from the pattern I kept, quickie sketch in the forever notebook to give me an overall size. Notes below the spoon are dimension measured from the sketch, notes to the right are about the attributes of the waxing and waning moon taken from a pagan website (see my previous post)</div>
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Never having done a spoon before I grabbed my favorite soup spoon from the kitchen drawer to help establish the curves in the handle and the bowl.</div>
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First roughouts cut, I was able to stack more than one up and make consecutive cuts in one block of wood 2" thick x 6 or so wide and long. Had to adjust a bit for each additional spoon to keep the grain running the length of the handle.</div>
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There you go. Not the last spoon I'll do, that's for sure.</div>
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Buffalo Bif</div>
<br />BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-51436754424352878022015-01-20T11:38:00.002-05:002015-01-20T11:39:51.420-05:00The Waxing Moon<br />
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<strong>The Waxing Moon</strong></div>
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Waxing Moon means the moon is getting larger in the sky, moving from the New Moon towards the Full Moon. This is a time for spells that attract, that bring positive change, spells for love, good luck, growth. This is a time for new beginnings, to conceptualize ideas, to invoke. At this time the moon represents the Goddess in her Maiden aspect, give praise to Epona, Artemis or one of the other Maiden Goddesses. The period of the waxing moon lasts about 14 days.</div>
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'...as the moon waxes and wanes,</div>
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and walks three nights in darkness,</div>
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so the Goddess once spent three nights</div>
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in the kingdom of Death.</div>
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I found the above on <a href="http://www.thewhitegoddess.co.uk/moon_phases/waxing_moon.asp">The White Goddess Pagan Portal</a></div>
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Why I'm posting it here will become apparent later this week. There is a good deal more there, take a look if you like.</div>
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Buffalo Bif</div>
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BfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8251881898583793672.post-54929692644971170052015-01-02T15:14:00.002-05:002015-01-02T15:14:51.830-05:00Meet me in a dreamThe holiday crush is over, all that's left is to pay the bills. The stemware I whittled ended up being a bit of a full court press; I thought I had started early enough, but two or three restarts on the cat set me back. Getting them done meant whittling every day, and I can't tell you how good that felt. I haven't put that much effort into whittling in far too long.<br />
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Sittin' here now on the edge of the New Year, looking over the year to come with a head cold, lucky me. I got involved in a spoon exchange on the WCI forum, roughed one out over the holiday and started whittling- I can't help it , it's making me giddy. (could be the cold meds... ) I feel like Allister Sims as Ebeneezer Scrooge on Christmas morning in that old black & white movie I love to watch every year. Been thinking of a spoon for a while, the exchange is small so a perfect time to stretch my limits a little.<br />
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Makin chips, trying something new, and dreaming abut having my bare feet in some hot sand, head in the sun, making chips on a tropical beach. Sounds of surf and seabirds, and no watch or clock to be seen.<br />
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See you there-<br />
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Buffalo BifBfloBifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06975888269297404464noreply@blogger.com0