What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?

Huntley K Williams wrote:
What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?

I assumed you meant Balsa. very soft woods like balsa are not good
for learning carving. Soft woods require an extremely sharp tool,
otherwise they tend to fray.

Basswood is probably the better for carving since it is moderately
soft and cuts well. Half of learning to carve is learning to sharpen
your tools. The other half is practice.

--
G.W. Ross

I tried being reasonable once. I
didn't like it!

"Huntley K Williams" wrote:

What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?
--------------------
Try bass wood.


--
Have fun


Lew

"Huntley K Williams" wrote in message
...
What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?


I assume you mean balsa but I think basswood has always been the choice for
carvers.

Huntley K Williams wrote:
What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?

Butternut used to be popular. Prettier than bass wood.

--

dadiOH
____________________________

Winters getting colder? Tired of the rat race?
Maybe just ready for a change? Check it out...
http://www.floridaloghouse.net

On 7/13/2012 5:30 PM, Huntley K Williams wrote:
What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?

As others have written basswood is a traditional carving wood that has many
favorable characteristics. Depending on your location you might also find
it called lime or tilia.

G. Ross wrote:
Huntley K Williams wrote:
What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?

I assumed you meant Balsa. very soft woods like balsa are not good for
learning carving. Soft woods require an extremely sharp tool, otherwise
they tend to fray.

Basswood is probably the better for carving since it is moderately soft
and cuts well. Half of learning to carve is learning to sharpen your
tools. The other half is practice.


And the other half is learning the history and culture, at least as much
as possible. A disappointing thing you learn, I think, is that,
historically, woodcarvers were pretty far down the totem pole. For
several decades now, I think one of the more profitable aspects of it is
in teaching others to do it. The beauty of the stylized Acanthus leaves
changed my life--I have two books dedicated solely to them (which in
some ways I find silly when I think about it). That's been my secret,
so please keep it under your hat.

Bill

Huntley K Williams wrote:
What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?

A matter of useless information and a digression,Balsa is a
hardwood,look it up.

On Jul 13, 9:35*pm, F Murtz wrote:
Huntley K Williams wrote:
What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?

A matter of useless information and a digression,Balsa is a
hardwood,look it up.

Also the strongest wood for its weight.

On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 11:35:40 +1000, F Murtz wrote:

Huntley K Williams wrote:
What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?

A matter of useless information and a digression,Balsa is a
hardwood,look it up.

In that it's not a conifer, sure.

On Fri, 13 Jul 2012 14:30:43 -0700,
(Huntley K Williams) wrote:

What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?

Balsa, poplar/cottonwood, Basswood, or anything free (and fresh.) g

Douglas fir is cheap and soft when wet, but hardens up like iron.
Poplar is similar. Dry, they're a beeyotch to carve.

--
Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air…
-- Ralph Waldo Emerson

On Fri, 13 Jul 2012 20:51:36 -0400, Bill wrote:

G. Ross wrote:
Huntley K Williams wrote:
What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?

I assumed you meant Balsa. very soft woods like balsa are not good for
learning carving. Soft woods require an extremely sharp tool, otherwise
they tend to fray.

Basswood is probably the better for carving since it is moderately soft
and cuts well. Half of learning to carve is learning to sharpen your
tools. The other half is practice.


And the other half is learning the history and culture, at least as much
as possible. A disappointing thing you learn, I think, is that,
historically, woodcarvers were pretty far down the totem pole. For

+1


several decades now, I think one of the more profitable aspects of it is
in teaching others to do it. The beauty of the stylized Acanthus leaves
changed my life--I have two books dedicated solely to them (which in
some ways I find silly when I think about it). That's been my secret,
so please keep it under your hat.

Names, please! I bought a couple of real acanthus plants and was
disappointed that they don't look like the stylized leaves in old
carvings. I like the plants, though.

My favorite book is by Dick Onians. (Huntley, $1.28 at Amazon)
http://tinyurl.com/8327srm

--
Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air…
-- Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Cliff H" wrote in :


"Huntley K Williams" wrote in message
...
What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?


I assume you mean balsa but I think basswood has always been the choice for
carvers.

Indeed it has. My father-in-law took up carving as a retirement hobby about thirty years ago,
and is amazingly good at it. Some time I'll post pics of some of his work.

Anyway... he's carved one piece in walnut, one in beech, and one in catalpa, that I know of. As
far as I know, everything else -- hundreds of pieces -- is basswood.

zzzzzzzzzz wrote:
On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 11:35:40 +1000, F Murtz wrote:

Huntley K Williams wrote:
What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?

A matter of useless information and a digression,Balsa is a
hardwood,look it up.

In that it's not a conifer, sure.


That's not actually the technical distinction between hardwood and
softwood. Many people just think it is.

On Fri, 13 Jul 2012 23:54:45 -0400, Bill wrote:

wrote:
On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 11:35:40 +1000, F Murtz wrote:

Huntley K Williams wrote:
What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?

A matter of useless information and a digression,Balsa is a
hardwood,look it up.

In that it's not a conifer, sure.


That's not actually the technical distinction between hardwood and
softwood. Many people just think it is.

Mr. Webster, too, evidently:
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hardwood

Definition of HARDWOOD
1: the wood of an angiospermous tree as distinguished from that of a
coniferous tree
2: a tree that yields hardwood
3: a basketball court


....or:

http://www.yourdictionary.com/hardwood
hardwood

noun

1. any tough, heavy timber with a compact texture
2. Forestry the wood of an angiosperm possessing true vessels, in contrast
to the softwood of a gymnosperm, which lacks vessels
3. a tree yielding hardwood

zzzzzzzzzz wrote:
On Fri, 13 Jul 2012 23:54:45 -0400, Bill wrote:

zzzzzzzzzz wrote:
On Sat, 14 Jul 2012 11:35:40 +1000, F Murtz wrote:

Huntley K Williams wrote:
What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?

A matter of useless information and a digression,Balsa is a
hardwood,look it up.

In that it's not a conifer, sure.


That's not actually the technical distinction between hardwood and
softwood. Many people just think it is.

Mr. Webster, too, evidently:
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hardwood

Definition of HARDWOOD
1: the wood of an angiospermous tree as distinguished from that of a
coniferous tree
2: a tree that yields hardwood
3: a basketball court


...or:

http://www.yourdictionary.com/hardwood
hardwood

noun

1. any tough, heavy timber with a compact texture
2. Forestry the wood of an angiosperm possessing true vessels, in contrast
to the softwood of a gymnosperm, which lacks vessels

I think the vessels, or lack there of, are distinguished by whether the
seeds of a tree have a "seed covering" or not. A book I lave lists
several conflicts with using coniferous at the distinction. I think
Balsa was one of them, but I'll have to double-check. Maybe the
biologists have learned something new or changed their mind since the
book I was using for a reference was published?

Regards,
Bill


3. a tree yielding hardwood

What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?
Huntley K Williams

Balsa wood is great for models , like planes, that need to be very
light. For woodcarving, the preferred wood is Tilia or Lime, otherwise
known as Basswood. It is a hardwood species that has very tight grain
making it very appealing to look at and easy to carve.

Another wood is Tupelo, having virtually the same characteristics of
Basswood. Other woods with tight grain and relatively easy to carve
are Butternut (although getting harder to find), Chestnut and some
fruitwoods.

You can carve virtually any wood, it just depends on how hard you want
to work. I have carved almost everything, except black locust, which
is extremely hard. I pretty much stop at pear for its color and
relative softness. I love walnut but large pieces are very tiring to
carve by hand.

If you use a power carver, then you can carve anything but remember to
research your wood species to ensure you are not breathing in toxic
dust as many species can be very toxic to the human body.

Hope this helps.
`Casper

Larry Jaques wrote:

My favorite book is by Dick Onians. (Huntley, $1.28 at Amazon)
http://tinyurl.com/8327srm


On pp. 32-33 of this book, he provides the basis of the two definitions
for the terms softwood and hardwood that krw and I were discussing in a
subthread he The historically "common" one, and the "biological" one.
These papes contain the most readable distinction between softwood and
hardwood that I have seen.

Huntley K Williams wrote:
What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?

For practice, think soap. (The washing kind, not a wood.)

"HeyBub" wrote in news:PLqdnRN-
:

Huntley K Williams wrote:
What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?

For practice, think soap. (The washing kind, not a wood.)

Aspen runs pretty close. I grew up in northern New Mexico, and we'd get
occasional pieces from downed trees. Very soft, and carved quite nicely.
I have no idea if it's available commercially.

Doug White

"Huntley K Williams" wrote in message
...
What is a good wood for a beginner to carve?


As others have mentioned basswood is a good type. I've found that air dried
clear white pine and air dried walnut carve pretty nice. I've cut thousands
of carving blanks for the Boy Scout camp out of those woods. Kiln dried
pine is generally too hard but kiln dried walnut is OK.

I'd avoid things that don't have grain and a fibrous structure if you are
interested in learning wood carving. As such, things like soap, linoleum and
the various closed cell foams should be avoided. Learning to work with grain
is a very important aspect of learning to carve.

Mary May and Rick Butz were presenters at my club's woodworking show last
spring, and Mary was on Roy's show last year. Take a look at this video for
discussion of the grain issues and how to deal with them.

http://www.pbs.org/woodwrightsshop/video/2900/2905.html

John

On Jul 14, 9:30*am, Casper wrote:

You can carve virtually any wood, it just depends on how hard you want
to work. I have carved almost everything, except black locust, which
is extremely hard.

Chainsaw and angle grinder.

Catalpa tree So I hear. Some say it is string like - but
the wood is white and tight small grain. Fishing worms and Fishing
lures are made with the aid of the tree.

Martin

On 6/22/2013 1:16 PM, Edward A. Falk wrote:
In article ,
G. Ross wrote:

Basswood is probably the better for carving since it is moderately
soft and cuts well. Half of learning to carve is learning to sharpen
your tools. The other half is practice.

Been carving cedar lately; not happy with the results. It tears
too easily. I'll try some harder woods next.

On Friday, July 13, 2012 8:51:36 PM UTC-4, Bill wrote:
G. Ross wrote:

... A disappointing thing you learn, I think, is that,

historically, woodcarvers were pretty far down the totem pole.

Oh, but the lower figures on the totem pole are the biggest ones,
the most important! That's consistent with woodcarvers down
low, the totem pole artist knows he and his fellows are the key players...

whit3rd wrote:
On Friday, July 13, 2012 8:51:36 PM UTC-4, Bill wrote:
G. Ross wrote:

... A disappointing thing you learn, I think, is that,

historically, woodcarvers were pretty far down the totem pole.

Oh, but the lower figures on the totem pole are the biggest ones,
the most important! That's consistent with woodcarvers down
low, the totem pole artist knows he and his fellows are the key players...

Your snipping made it look like I wrote the above, which I did not.
You should have also snipped out my name. But no harm done.

--
 GW Ross 



Balsam poplar is actually the name of one of the lightest and softest woods.

was heard to mutter:
Balsam poplar is actually the name of one of the lightest and softest woods.

Skip balsa. It's great for models but rought to carve.

Easy woods are basswood, butternut, jelutong, or cottonwood. You can
carve pine but it gets rough. Maple, walnut and cherry are good but
harder. Basswood is recommended for beginners. Tight grain, usually
blemish free, and very easy to carve by hand.

On Saturday, August 3, 2019 at 8:13:12 AM UTC-4, Casper wrote:
was heard to mutter:
Balsam poplar is actually the name of one of the lightest and softest woods.

Skip balsa. It's great for models but rought to carve.

Easy woods are basswood, butternut, jelutong, or cottonwood. You can
carve pine but it gets rough. Maple, walnut and cherry are good but
harder. Basswood is recommended for beginners. Tight grain, usually
blemish free, and very easy to carve by hand.

7 years later, I wonder if the OP is still sitting there, knife in hand,
waiting for an answer. ;-)

On Sat, 03 Aug 2019 08:13:08 -0400, Casper
wrote:

was heard to mutter:
Balsam poplar is actually the name of one of the lightest and softest woods.

Skip balsa. It's great for models but rought to carve.

Easy woods are basswood, butternut, jelutong, or cottonwood. You can
carve pine but it gets rough. Maple, walnut and cherry are good but
harder. Basswood is recommended for beginners. Tight grain, usually
blemish free, and very easy to carve by hand.


+2 on the basswood

DerbyDad03 was heard to mutter:
7 years later, I wonder if the OP is still sitting there, knife in hand,
waiting for an answer. ;-)

If so, it explains a lot.
"Train your mind to test every thought, ideology, train of reasoning, and claim to truth."