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In this chapter from Del Herbert’s bird carving series, learn how to carve a shorebird’s head from a solid piece of wood while taking grain direction and wood strength into account. The demonstration explains how to position the pattern to maximize the strength of a long, delicate bill, cut the profile on a bandsaw, refine the shape using a template, and establish a centerline to preserve the bird’s profile throughout the carving process. Del also demonstrates how to prepare the base of the head for a clean, secure joint with the body.
Transcript
In this chapter we’ll talk about carving the head out of a solid piece of wood.
Many woods are not strong enough for the long thin bill of a shorebird.
Tupelo and Jellyutong are definitely not strong enough, whereas a good piece of basswood or yellow cedar might be.
Now, the maximum strength of any wood is directly along the line of the grain.
When we’re going to lay out our pattern, we’re going to put the weakest point of the bird right along the line of the grain to get the maximum strength of the bill.
This is how I would lay out the pattern on this piece of wood.
Then I would go to the bandsaw and cut out the profile view on the bandsaw.
I cut the profile view directly on the line. I do not leave any excess for carving.
No matter how careful I am on the bandsaw, we always get a little curve or a little lump or bump. So, to make sure that I’ve got the profile view exactly the way I want it, I’ll take the template that we cut out earlier, and I’ll fit it over the piece of wood.
And I’ll have to make small adjustments with either knives or a rotary carver or maybe even by sanding until the template fits the pattern exactly.
Once I’ve got that done, I will draw the center line on the piece of wood.
From here on, we’re never going to touch that center line with any piece of carving. If we do, we would destroy the profile of our bird.
The last thing I’ll do to this piece of wood is I will take and I’ll flatten this surface so that I can make a good joint with the body later on.