Am I right, is that what I'm seeing on my floor?
When we put it down I chose the pieces with these characteristics to go in
prominant places because they were so pretty. It would be great if my guess
was right


--
Kate
______
/l ,[____],
l-L -OlllllllO-
()_)-()_)--)_)

The shortest distance between two points,
is a lot more fun in a Jeep!
Wash behind your ears before you reply :¬)

I have a couple of boxes of this stuff in the attic... in case we ever have
some sort of damage...
now, I'm thinking I would like to break into it and carve on some of it.

Hmmmmmm ...
do you think Hubs would get on to me for that?

WEG

Kate

Beautiful floor Kate.

But it brings to mind, say 150 yrs ago, some woman and man standing in
their home, looking at their carefully crafted floor like yours, and
saying "HOLY ****!!! Our floor is rotting!!!!!".

Times change.

-Zz

ROFLMAO!
Yup, that's kind of our reaction when we did in fact find some Beeeoootiful
pieces that turned out to be kind of pulpy.

Kate

"Zz Yzx" wrote in message
...
Beautiful floor Kate.

But it brings to mind, say 150 yrs ago, some woman and man standing in
their home, looking at their carefully crafted floor like yours, and
saying "HOLY ****!!! Our floor is rotting!!!!!".

Times change.

-Zz

I had this piece laying on my bench, and picked it up one day while I was
bored. I started in on it then couldn't make myself set it aside until I was
finished with it.
Now, it looks like it's going to be a box top.

"Kate" wrote in
:

Am I right, is that what I'm seeing on my floor?


Yup. As the mushroom said, "There's a fungus among us".
Spalted woods go for a premium. I bought several pair of wood hand-screw
clamps from Harbor Freight. The wood was spalted maple. I imagine they
made the clamps from whatever wood they had on hand, or whatever was
cheapest. A quick search online showed that the cost of the wood alone was
several times the cost of the clamps.

Pretty cool Kate, you didn't start with a picture or pattern? I not sure I
could do that at all.

--
Mike
Watch for the bounce.
If ya didn't see it, ya didn't feel it.
If ya see it, it didn't go off.
Old Air Force Munitions Saying
IYAAYAS
"Kate" wrote in message
.. .
I had this piece laying on my bench, and picked it up one day while I was
bored. I started in on it then couldn't make myself set it aside until I
was
finished with it.
Now, it looks like it's going to be a box top.

Kate wrote:
I had this piece laying on my bench, and picked it up one day while I was
bored. I started in on it then couldn't make myself set it aside until I was
finished with it.
Now, it looks like it's going to be a box top.




Sure looks like you have a way with wood. I couldn't do anything like
that unless . . .uh . . .maybe . . .uh . . .Nope. I just can't do it.

Wayne

On Wed, 26 Dec 2007 19:47:21 -0600, "Kate"
wrote:

I had this piece laying on my bench, and picked it up one day while I was
bored. I started in on it then couldn't make myself set it aside until I was
finished with it.
Now, it looks like it's going to be a box top.


Is that all free hand, Kate?


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

On Thu, 27 Dec 2007 04:03:41 GMT, Smaug Ichorfang wrote:

"Kate" wrote in
:

Am I right, is that what I'm seeing on my floor?


Yup. As the mushroom said, "There's a fungus among us".
Spalted woods go for a premium. I bought several pair of wood hand-screw
clamps from Harbor Freight. The wood was spalted maple. I imagine they
made the clamps from whatever wood they had on hand, or whatever was
cheapest. A quick search online showed that the cost of the wood alone was
several times the cost of the clamps.

But it probably wasn't spalted when the clamp folks bought it..

The piece I started this thread with is a good example:

A friend knew someone that had a tree cut down away from power lines and wanted
to get rid of it..
Being greedy, I took it all..lol It was a pepper tree and I turned a dozed or so
pieces green...
Not bad wood to turn and warped nicely, but not much color..

We brought the last 4 or 5 logs with us when we moved to Mexico and they sat in
the shop for months.. when I cut some bowl blanks I saw that it had spalted!
It looks, turns, and finishes very differently then before it spalted and it's
just wonderful..
I think I've sold 6 or 7 pieces made from it so far and most folks at shows sort
of zero in on them..


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

Kate expressed precisely :
I have a couple of boxes of this stuff in the attic... in case we ever have
some sort of damage...
now, I'm thinking I would like to break into it and carve on some of it.

Hmmmmmm ...
do you think Hubs would get on to me for that?

WEG

Kate

I don't think so Kate. Actually, he'd probably appreciate it; seeing
what you've done recently.

"asmurff" wrote in message
...
Pretty cool Kate, you didn't start with a picture or pattern? I not sure I
could do that at all.

Yep, I did start with an outline of the dragon.
I can carve and redesign, but I'm not much good at sketching
this is the piece of clipart I used fot the dragon

I get a lot of good inspiration from a site
www.clipart.com
You can use so many things as inspiration and then alter them to suit your
project or style.

Kate

"NoOne N Particular" wrote in message
. net...
Kate wrote:
I had this piece laying on my bench, and picked it up one day while I was
bored. I started in on it then couldn't make myself set it aside until I
was
finished with it.
Now, it looks like it's going to be a box top.




Sure looks like you have a way with wood. I couldn't do anything like
that unless . . .uh . . .maybe . . .uh . . .Nope. I just can't do it.

Wayne

Sure you could!
thanks for your kind words.
Trouble is, all I want to do these days is sit at my bench and carve and I
just don't have enough time!

Kate

"mac davis" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 26 Dec 2007 19:47:21 -0600, "Kate"
wrote:

I had this piece laying on my bench, and picked it up one day while I was
bored. I started in on it then couldn't make myself set it aside until I
was
finished with it.
Now, it looks like it's going to be a box top.


Is that all free hand, Kate?


mac


I didn't create the dragon but the enhancements are out of my warped
imagination.
Pretty easy really. I keep thinking that I need more depth but then I look
at it and tell myself that it's not needed on this piece.
What do YOU think?

It's just the right size to hold a deck of playing cards, if I make the box
deep ehough, it could hold a couple of decks. Might be kind of cool.

Kate

"mac davis" wrote

I think I've sold 6 or 7 pieces made from it so far and most folks at shows
sort
of zero in on them..


mac

There is something about the dark stripes in it that makes it pop. When I
saw them in the flooring I got really tickled about it. Not knowing what it
was until just recently, I just knew that I liked it.

K.

On Fri, 28 Dec 2007 12:11:16 -0600, "Kate"
wrote:


I didn't create the dragon but the enhancements are out of my warped
imagination.
Pretty easy really. I keep thinking that I need more depth but then I look
at it and tell myself that it's not needed on this piece.
What do YOU think?

It's just the right size to hold a deck of playing cards, if I make the box
deep ehough, it could hold a couple of decks. Might be kind of cool.

Kate

I couldn't do that with a template!

My best guess without seeing and feeling it live is that your instinct said
"this deep" and you should go with it..


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

On Fri, 28 Dec 2007 12:11:16 -0600, "Kate"
wrote:


"mac davis" wrote in message
.. .
On Wed, 26 Dec 2007 19:47:21 -0600, "Kate"
wrote:

I had this piece laying on my bench, and picked it up one day while I was
bored. I started in on it then couldn't make myself set it aside until I
was
finished with it.
Now, it looks like it's going to be a box top.


Is that all free hand, Kate?


mac


I didn't create the dragon but the enhancements are out of my warped
imagination.
Pretty easy really. I keep thinking that I need more depth but then I look
at it and tell myself that it's not needed on this piece.
What do YOU think?

It's just the right size to hold a deck of playing cards, if I make the box
deep ehough, it could hold a couple of decks. Might be kind of cool.

Kate

Kate,

Very nice piece. I think that clear coating it will emphasize the
cuts and you'll find that you have plenty of depth.

You might try expirementing with a colored finishing wax to emphasize
cuts. Many carvers use this on "in the round" pieces to give them an
antiqued look.

There is a product called Briwax that comes in a dark color and some
people even use shoe polish (wax - not liquid ; ) )

HTH
Bill

btw - Santa left me lots of carving goodies and I can sympathize with
the desire to do nothing but sit at my bench and carve.

On Sat, 29 Dec 2007 07:45:46 -0500, Bill wrote:

Kate,

Very nice piece. I think that clear coating it will emphasize the
cuts and you'll find that you have plenty of depth.

You might try expirementing with a colored finishing wax to emphasize
cuts. Many carvers use this on "in the round" pieces to give them an
antiqued look.

There is a product called Briwax that comes in a dark color and some
people even use shoe polish (wax - not liquid ; ) )

HTH
Bill

btw - Santa left me lots of carving goodies and I can sympathize with
the desire to do nothing but sit at my bench and carve.

Bill.. how 'bout BLO? Might really pop the relief out, I think..


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

On Sat, 29 Dec 2007 06:57:58 -0800, mac davis
wrote:


Bill.. how 'bout BLO? Might really pop the relief out, I think..

"Robert's Sealer" is might be better than straight BLO.

1/3 each BLO, genuine pine spirits turpentine, and Seal Coat or
shop-made dewaxed shellac. Keep it well shaken as it's used, I mix it
in a Lee Valley squeeze bottle. Wipe on, wipe off a few minutes
later. It dries for good in ~ 30 minutes. Overcoat with just about
anything, or leave it alone.

It gives the nice color of BLO, with no oozing bleed-back, and seals
the surface.

Sorry I am new at this......What is "BLO"?



"B a r r y" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 29 Dec 2007 06:57:58 -0800, mac davis
wrote:


Bill.. how 'bout BLO? Might really pop the relief out, I think..

"Robert's Sealer" is might be better than straight BLO.

1/3 each BLO, genuine pine spirits turpentine, and Seal Coat or
shop-made dewaxed shellac. Keep it well shaken as it's used, I mix it
in a Lee Valley squeeze bottle. Wipe on, wipe off a few minutes
later. It dries for good in ~ 30 minutes. Overcoat with just about
anything, or leave it alone.

It gives the nice color of BLO, with no oozing bleed-back, and seals
the surface.

On Sat, 29 Dec 2007 23:40:47 GMT, "Donald Weber"
wrote:

Sorry I am new at this......What is "BLO"?

My fault.

Boiled Linseed Oil.

Sold in any paint store, hardware store, or paint dept. of any home
center. A typical brand is Kleen Strip.

On Sat, 29 Dec 2007 06:57:58 -0800, mac davis
wrote:



Bill.. how 'bout BLO? Might really pop the relief out, I think..


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

Mac,

I've never used BLO. Most of the time, I finish my carvings with a
varying number of coats of Minwax Antique Oil Finish, depending on the
sheen that I want to achieve.

I would imagine that this would be a similar looking finish to the
BLO.

Does BLO cure to a hard finish?

Bill

On Sun, 30 Dec 2007 07:40:26 -0500, Bill wrote:


I've never used BLO. Most of the time, I finish my carvings with a
varying number of coats of Minwax Antique Oil Finish, depending on the
sheen that I want to achieve.

I would imagine that this would be a similar looking finish to the
BLO.

Does BLO cure to a hard finish?

Bill

I can only go by one experience, Bill...
My wife bought me a quart of BLO by mistake years ago... (I wanted Danish Oil)

A few months ago, we picked up a very used pine stereo cabinet and she was going
to go over it with a wet rag..

Hearing about BLO a lot in the woodworking group but not knowing that it was a
finish, I suggested that she use the BLO instead of water...
WOW! What a difference.. Slightly darker color and grain popping out.. dents and
scratches much less obvious, etc..
She put a 2nd coat on a few days later and we didn't do a topcoat, because we
love the way the wood looks..
Not sure if you'd call it a "hard" finish, but as I understand it, linseed oil
dries slowly if at all, but the boiling changes the properties and allows it to
dry faster... It seems to me that it was dry to the touch in a few hours..


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

"Bill" wrote
Very nice piece. I think that clear coating it will emphasize the
cuts and you'll find that you have plenty of depth.

You might try expirementing with a colored finishing wax to emphasize
cuts. Many carvers use this on "in the round" pieces to give them an
antiqued look.

There is a product called Briwax that comes in a dark color and some
people even use shoe polish (wax - not liquid ; ) )

HTH
Bill

btw - Santa left me lots of carving goodies and I can sympathize with
the desire to do nothing but sit at my bench and carve.

-------
Thanks Bill!
I've been trying to come up with a way to 'antique' it a little
I did consider shoe polish, even have been trying to come up with some way I
could mix stain with some sort of other medium that wouldn't bleed if I
applied it with a fine brush.

Santa brought me FOUR different sets of Dockyard micro carving tools...
I can't keep my hands off of them.
I've looked and looked though and cannot find anyone that sells their micro
sharpening tool.

Do you ever use micro tools? I know they would only neet a quick swipe on an
Arkansas stone and a lap or two on my leather strop once they begin to dull
but I would like to keep the proper 20 degree angle on the edges.

BLO ?

Kate

"B a r r y" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 29 Dec 2007 06:57:58 -0800, mac davis
wrote:


Bill.. how 'bout BLO? Might really pop the relief out, I think..

"Robert's Sealer" is might be better than straight BLO.

1/3 each BLO, genuine pine spirits turpentine, and Seal Coat or
shop-made dewaxed shellac. Keep it well shaken as it's used, I mix it
in a Lee Valley squeeze bottle. Wipe on, wipe off a few minutes
later. It dries for good in ~ 30 minutes. Overcoat with just about
anything, or leave it alone.

It gives the nice color of BLO, with no oozing bleed-back, and seals
the surface.

Bill wrote:
I've never used BLO. Most of the time, I finish my carvings with a
varying number of coats of Minwax Antique Oil Finish, depending on the
sheen that I want to achieve.

I would imagine that this would be a similar looking finish to the
BLO.

Does BLO cure to a hard finish?

Nope - mostly soaks into the wood. It's not a film finish, but is a common
ingredient in other finishes such as Danish Oil. It'll pop the figure in a
piece really nicely. After it's cured a couple days, many folks will put a
coat of shellac or varnish over it...

....Kevin
--
Kevin Miller, Juneau, Alaska
http://www.alaska.net/~atftb
Registered Linux User No: 307357

On Sun, 30 Dec 2007 14:57:32 -0600, "Kate"
wrote:

BLO ?

Kate

Boiled linseed oil, Kate..

"B a r r y" wrote in message
.. .
On Sat, 29 Dec 2007 06:57:58 -0800, mac davis
wrote:


Bill.. how 'bout BLO? Might really pop the relief out, I think..

"Robert's Sealer" is might be better than straight BLO.

1/3 each BLO, genuine pine spirits turpentine, and Seal Coat or
shop-made dewaxed shellac. Keep it well shaken as it's used, I mix it
in a Lee Valley squeeze bottle. Wipe on, wipe off a few minutes
later. It dries for good in ~ 30 minutes. Overcoat with just about
anything, or leave it alone.

It gives the nice color of BLO, with no oozing bleed-back, and seals
the surface.



mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

Kevin Miller wrote:
Bill wrote:
I've never used BLO. Most of the time, I finish my carvings with a
varying number of coats of Minwax Antique Oil Finish, depending on the
sheen that I want to achieve.

I would imagine that this would be a similar looking finish to the
BLO.

Does BLO cure to a hard finish?

Nope - mostly soaks into the wood. It's not a film finish, but is a common
ingredient in other finishes such as Danish Oil. It'll pop the figure in a
piece really nicely. After it's cured a couple days, many folks will put a
coat of shellac or varnish over it...

...Kevin

Actually it IS a film finish, but not a very hard one. Linseed oil is
what artists have been using for centuries to make oil paint. Those
tubes of artist's oil paint that you can buy today down at your local
Hobby Lobby are nothing more than simple pigments mixed with
(non-boiled) linseed oil. The boiled variety dries much more quickly
(which is why they boil it), but even that takes a while to cure and can
give the impression that it never really dries. But dry it does, and
the final result is really quite tough, though somewhat rubbery if you
build it up too thick.

--
Free bad advice available here.
To reply, eat the taco.

On Sun, 30 Dec 2007 12:51:00 -0600, "Kate"
wrote:

Do you ever use micro tools? I know they would only neet a quick swipe on an
Arkansas stone and a lap or two on my leather strop once they begin to dull
but I would like to keep the proper 20 degree angle on the edges.


I have a set of six of the Dockyard micro tools and use some of them
quite often.

I initially sharpened them on a fine oil stone. It's just a matter of
being careful to maintain the proper angle (15-20 degrees). I have an
advantage of being near-sighted, so I can look very closely at the
edge while I'm sharpening : ). Then stropping on a leather strop
occasionally.

Over the years, I have managed to drop and break most of my stones, so
I've replaced them with a diamond hone, and I love it for setting the
initial edge.

Now I have a home made rig for maintaining the edge of my tools. It
consists of a piece of oak about 14 inches long and 2 inches wide,
with a handle carved on one end. I rounded one end for stropping the
inside of larger gouges and stretched an old leather belt around it
while wet (inside of small goughes anf v tools can be run alonf the
edge of the belt). When the leather dried, it shrank and tightened
up. On the other side, I glued a piece of plexiglass on the stick to
which is spray glued a piece of 400 grit wet and dry sandpaper. This
works very well for touching up the edges of small tools. The best
stropping compound that I have found is the Flexcut Gold compound.

I've attached a couple of pictures to help explain this - you can see
that the sandpaper is getting pretty chewed up and will be replaced
soon.

I've also attached a picture of some of my carving tools and
accessories. As you can see, a tackle box makes a great tool holder.
Some of the things that come in handy are small files, dental picks
and a toothbrush for cleaning away small chips.

Bill

Thanks Mac...
Does Linseed oil smell like old deep fryer oil?
I got some new tools for Christmas and the handles on them smell like ...
ass.

K

"mac davis" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 30 Dec 2007 14:57:32 -0600, "Kate"
wrote:

BLO ?

Kate

Boiled linseed oil, Kate..

"B a r r y" wrote in message
.. .
On Sat, 29 Dec 2007 06:57:58 -0800, mac davis
wrote:


Bill.. how 'bout BLO? Might really pop the relief out, I think..

"Robert's Sealer" is might be better than straight BLO.

1/3 each BLO, genuine pine spirits turpentine, and Seal Coat or
shop-made dewaxed shellac. Keep it well shaken as it's used, I mix it
in a Lee Valley squeeze bottle. Wipe on, wipe off a few minutes
later. It dries for good in ~ 30 minutes. Overcoat with just about
anything, or leave it alone.

It gives the nice color of BLO, with no oozing bleed-back, and seals
the surface.



mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

Kate wrote:
Thanks Mac...
Does Linseed oil smell like old deep fryer oil?
I got some new tools for Christmas and the handles on them smell like ...
ass.

That sounds like "Chinese Factory Stank"!

On Mon, 31 Dec 2007 10:47:34 -0600, "Kate"
wrote:

Thanks Mac...
Does Linseed oil smell like old deep fryer oil?
I got some new tools for Christmas and the handles on them smell like ...
ass.

Well.. I won't touch that one...

It has a mild mineral spirit / turpentine kinda smell that goes away in a day or
so..


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

Sure you could!
thanks for your kind words.
Trouble is, all I want to do these days is sit at my bench and carve and I
just don't have enough time!

Kate



Hey. It's winter. Time to just get a little heat going in the cave,
get your favorite things to do in there, Get a little food and grog,
roll a big boulder across the entrance, and do what you want.
Everything else (except potty breaks) can wait.

Wayne

Kate wrote:
Thanks Mac...
Does Linseed oil smell like old deep fryer oil?
I got some new tools for Christmas and the handles on them smell like
... ass.

SNIP

It's the type of plastic used to make the handles. Resiliant but stinks to
high heaven. Let them sit out for a few days and they will out gas.

Happy New Year!!, Rich

mac davis wrote:
On Mon, 31 Dec 2007 10:47:34 -0600, "Kate"
wrote:

Thanks Mac...
Does Linseed oil smell like old deep fryer oil?
I got some new tools for Christmas and the handles on them smell like ...
ass.

Well.. I won't touch that one...

It has a mild mineral spirit / turpentine kinda smell that goes away in a day or
so..


mac

That's not the aroma I normally associate with linseed oil; unless
perhaps it's been thinned out with one of those solvents. I think it
has a rather pleasing and "nutty" smell, which I guess is indicative of
the flax seeds from which it is made. Supposedly there are raw
(non-denatured) varieties that even have dietary uses...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linseed_oil

--
Free bad advice available here.
To reply, eat the taco.

Kate wrote:

Thanks Mac...
Does Linseed oil smell like old deep fryer oil?

No - it's the distinctive smell in Danish Oil (at least the Watco variety)
and is quite pleasant IMHO.

I got some new tools for Christmas and the handles on them smell like ...
ass.

LOL. As in donkey or derriere?

....Kevin
--
Kevin Miller, Juneau, Alaska
http://www.alaska.net/~atftb
Registered Linux User No: 307357

"B A R R Y" wrote in message
et...
Kate wrote:
Thanks Mac...
Does Linseed oil smell like old deep fryer oil?
I got some new tools for Christmas and the handles on them smell like ...
ass.

That sounds like "Chinese Factory Stank"!

Well... I don't think so.
They're Dockyard, made in the good ol USA. I got four sets of their micro
carving tools.
I was pretty disapointed in the finish on the handles though. They were all
rough and needed to be sanded to feel nice in my hand.

I dunno... the tools work GREAT though.

K.

"mac davis" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 31 Dec 2007 10:47:34 -0600, "Kate"
wrote:

Thanks Mac...
Does Linseed oil smell like old deep fryer oil?
I got some new tools for Christmas and the handles on them smell like ...
ass.

Well.. I won't touch that one...

It has a mild mineral spirit / turpentine kinda smell that goes away in a
day or
so..


mac

Ok, well... that's not it. I don't think anyway.
K.

"Rich" wrote in message
g.com...
Kate wrote:
Thanks Mac...
Does Linseed oil smell like old deep fryer oil?
I got some new tools for Christmas and the handles on them smell like
... ass.

SNIP

It's the type of plastic used to make the handles. Resiliant but stinks to
high heaven. Let them sit out for a few days and they will out gas.

Happy New Year!!, Rich
-----
Happy New Year to YOU too!

Umm... Rich, the handles are made of Cherry.
LOL... plastic. Hubs isn't THAT uninformed.
http://woodcraft.com/family.aspx?familyid=1361

Kate

My only reference is tung oil. I kind of like the smell of that.
This smells nothing like it.

Umm... more likely the south end of a north bound Jackass.
LOL....
Kate


"Kevin Miller" wrote in message
...
Kate wrote:

Thanks Mac...
Does Linseed oil smell like old deep fryer oil?

No - it's the distinctive smell in Danish Oil (at least the Watco variety)
and is quite pleasant IMHO.

I got some new tools for Christmas and the handles on them smell like ...
ass.

LOL. As in donkey or derriere?

....Kevin
--
Kevin Miller, Juneau, Alaska
http://www.alaska.net/~atftb
Registered Linux User No: 307357