[Woodcarver] Basswood question

[Donna Menke]

Well thanks, Jay, that is mighty kind of you. Have you downloaded and printed out the free plans and instructions? That is what they are there for. Make some bugs for your father. Dragonflies are easy. Dragonflies in cherry are very pretty- especially figured cherry.

For making such tiny cuts in basswood- like for butterfly eyes- you have to have very sharp knives. I've taught hundreds of people how to carve my bugs- and we have never run into a bad piece of basswood. I have had to touch up a few knives though. 
Best wishes-
Donna Menke
http://www.woodworks-by-donna.com 
Author: The Ultimate Band Saw Box Book



----- Original Message ----

> From: Jay Henson <jay at thewaytech.com>

> To: [Woodcarver] <woodcarver at carverscompanion.com>

> Sent: Monday, February 16, 2009 5:25:00 PM

> Subject: [Woodcarver] Basswood question

> 

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> 

> I'm using some old 3/8" sheets of basswood to learn and practice chip carving 

> patterns and seem to be running into a problem with small pieces chipping out of 

> the wood much more frequently than I'd expect (sometimes 30-50%). I read some 

> about making sure the wood has enough moisture, keeping knives sharp, not trying 

> to cut too deeply and the simple fact that chips happen. Being in SC, enough 

> moisture hasn't typically been much of an issue.

> 

> That said, I tend to carve small items and where I'm chipping out the basswood, 

> the edges are typically under 1/16" or smaller. The basic "triangle" chip is not 

> a problem now. Am I expecting too much from the basswood grain to hold together 

> more than I should? That is, should I just keep the size of the carving on a 

> larger scale? I did get a box of nice Northern Basswood from the folks at Smoky 

> Mountain Woodcarvers recently, but haven't tried it yet, until I had a bit of 

> practice.

> 

> Since I've carved cherry more than anything else for years, I'm most familiar 

> with how much I can do with it even in very small details. BTW, I loved the work 

> Donna Menke shared from her web. I really like the work on those beautiful 

> butterflies (my dad is an entomologist) and those feathers.

> 

> Thanks,

> 

> Jay Henson

> jay at thewaytech.com

> 

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