[Woodcarver] waterfall

[Joe Dillett]

Hi Wynne,

Congratulations on your sign commission. 

Good woods that hold up well to the weather are mahogany, white oak, cypress, cedar and redwood are the most common. Also there is a foam board, used in the sign industry, that may even be better than wood for ease of carving, cost and availability.

Tools to use, I would use a router if I had large flat areas that needed to be removed. Hand chisels for the rest of the work. A sign like that I would be using about a 25 mm #3 sweep, large 60-degree V-tool, 14 mm #5 sweep and an 8 mm #3 sweep fish tail gouge.

I imagine that the waterfall portion of the sign is symbolic in the counseling so I would follow the picture your customer gave you as accurately as possible. Pay close attention to the detail of the rocks and the lack of detail in the falling water. Detail stops movement so the rocks should have lots of detail to hold them still. The water should have swift lines of movement without detail. For the most part all the shapes of rocks and water that you see in the photo can be carved into the wood. Close observation of those shapes and experimenting with those shapes and textures with the chisels will make it look like the photo.

If you use the sign foam board you will not be able to hold the small details so I recommend that you apply Bondo or Evercoat Rage (from you local automotive supply store) for those details. These materials can be shaped and carved after they harden and made waterproof with a good coat of exterior grade paint.

If you are using wood you'll need to glue it up with a good exterior grade of glue. I like Titebond 2 for outdoor applications. 

Stock thickness? I wouldn't go any thinner then 2 inches and maybe as thick as 4-inches in some areas.

If you use wood I assume that you will still paint the water and waterfall area and perhaps some of the lettering. If you use foam board you'll be painting the whole sign. If you use Foam Board under 3-inches thick I recommend you back it up with an exterior grade of plywood for strength. 

I hope this was helpful.

Joe Dillett
The Carving Shop
645 E. LaSalle St. Suite 3
Somonauk, IL. 60552

(815) 498-9290 phone
(815) 498-9249 fax
http://www.thecarvingshop.com [business web site]
http://www.carvingmagazine.com ['Ask Joe' column]
http://community.webshots.com/user/joe_dillett
******************************************************************
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Wynne Simmons 
  To: woodcarver at six.pairlist.net 
  Sent: Monday, August 21, 2006 10:54 PM
  Subject: [Woodcarver] waterfall


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  I've got a commission to do an outdoor sign for a Christian counselor.  The business is called 'Living Waters' and the owner wants a waterfall tumbling over rocks.  Not one of the tall waterfalls, but a low one covering some distance.  I'm probably not describing it well.  I'm thinking maybe I should make the water real smooth (It looks smooth in the picture I'm using) and the rocks rough, but I'm in the design stage, haven't had much time to think about it yet, and welcome any suggestions.  It needs to be peaceful, comforting and soothing, but powerful.  How do I convey the power of the waterfall?  



  What is the best wood(s)?  The sign will be approximately 3'x 4' or 4'x 5', held by stones on the sides.  How thick should the sign be?



  What tools do you recommend for a carving this size?





  Wyndy

  SE Alabama

  wyndysim at graceba.net

  http://www.wiregrassalpacas.com

  http://www.picturetrail.com/gallery/view?p=6&uid=138062&







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