January 23, 20233 yr Popular Post I finally have some free time and want to do a seashell carving. Here's the original and I'm not sure of how to start this carving. I'll do some "thinking time" before starting. Maybe get my lathe involved before carving begins? Of course, basswood and gold leaf when finished?
January 23, 20233 yr Author 5 minutes ago, lew said: Following this one!! Stop by anytime for a look-see and a visit!
January 23, 20233 yr 2 minutes ago, FrederickH said: Stop by anytime for a look-see and a visit! Thanks!
January 27, 20233 yr Author What lies within? The carving process will start with a lathe and a rip saw.
January 27, 20233 yr Somehow missed this start Monday??? I'm here now and in-line to follow. Your creative artistry is amazing besides addicting.
January 27, 20233 yr Author Popular Post Here's the glued up blank on my lathe. It probably weighs 15-20 lbs. I've knocked off the corners, on the table saw, before mounting it on my lathe. You don't want to be in front of it when you start the lathe(very slow speed). Can you guess where I'm headed with this carving? By the way, basswood is $hit for a turning wood!
January 27, 20233 yr Great start. I can already hear the ocean. Love your old school Rockwell lathe too. Looks like one from a vo-tech high school? Assuming basswood is so soft, lots of tear-out??
January 27, 20233 yr Author Popular Post 1 minute ago, Grandpadave52 said: Great start. I can already hear the ocean. Love your old school Rockwell lathe too. Looks like one from a vo-tech high school? Assuming basswood is so soft, lots of tear-out?? Good eye! My 1460 Rockwell came from the school district of Annapolis, MD. I can't be sure of which school it came out of? The basswood has a lot of small side-grain tear out. This should disappear with the carving and some sanding. By the way, that ocean sound that you may be hearing, might be me screaming in frustration!
January 28, 20233 yr Author Most of the lathe work done..... need to do some final adjustments tomorrow. Once this is done, I'll do a cut line(rip saw) for the shell to rest on and then begin the layout and carving.
January 29, 20233 yr Author Lathe work finished and onto the cut for the shell angle. I calculated the cut angle by setting the wooden shell(propped at the correct angle) next to the actual shell and matching them up. This angle will determine how the shell sits on the plaque used to mount the shell to. I then used a pencil scribe to mark the bottom perimeter of the wooden shell and cut to this line with a rip handsaw. Very little clean up was needed for the cut. The carving on the underside of the shell will be done first.... this will allow me to mount it to a carving board/vise for the top/side details.
February 2, 20232 yr Finally beginning to get caught up on my reading a little. Looks great so far. Appreciate the what and how pictures leading up to the carving steps. Just curious...is the shell "model" a local find or one found on your journeys?
February 2, 20232 yr Author 8 hours ago, Grandpadave52 said: Finally beginning to get caught up on my reading a little. Looks great so far. Appreciate the what and how pictures leading up to the carving steps. Just curious...is the shell "model" a local find or one found on your journeys? Dave, that shell was found just off of Key West Florida in 1972. My wife and I had just gotten married and we drove down to Florida. First to Disney World, then onto to Marathon, Florida. We spent a week there scuba/skin diving around Sombrero Light House and just exploring the areas of the Keys. After a visit to the Ernest Hemingway House(we almost kidnapped a 6-toed kitten there), in Key West, we then headed for the Southern-most point of North America. That's where we found the shell on a nearby beach, in knee-deep water. https://www.lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?ID=701 https://www.hemingwayhome.com/ https://cityofkeywest-fl.gov/Facilities/Facility/Details/Southernmost-Point-44
February 2, 20232 yr Love the back story associated to this carving journey. This endeavor will be an extra special remembrance tribute to a special time in your lives. Thanks for including us to share it with you.
February 7, 20232 yr Author Carving is coming along slowly because of some commitments. There are several things that are taking time. The first is holding the shell for carving, because of the odd shape, it's difficult to hold the shell to do any carving on the bottom but I was able to use my front bench vice for that. Today, I glued on a carving glue block to help hold everything in the upright position. This will now be attached to my Wilton Powerarm Jr. and it will allow me to pivot the shell around a get at the awkward places. The second thing is that almost of the carving is done to the end grain of the shell. Most of the original block has to be carved away. Keeping my carving tools razor sharp is a must... lots of continued honing being done to achieve that. Now, to figure out the set backs, for the horns, to keep the spiral going!
February 7, 20232 yr Quite the undertaking on this project. Steady as she goes. Well worth the extra time overcoming the obstacles. The model took quite a long time to form as well. I'm loving watching this one evolve. Your creativity and vision to transform a glue-up to the finished art is outstanding.
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