New test carving... part of a mantle

[bladesmith]

Good afternoon all.

Here's a carving I ran as a test for a new mantle / surround for
my fireplace. Let me know what you think please.
The island map at the left is from USGS elevation data. The center image is a panoramic shot of Kaneohe bay on Oahu, and the right image is the Kalalau valley on Kauai. The Photos are original by me.

Cheers,

Bladesmith

[liquidguitars]

Nice work I like the boats in the harbor and elv maps..

LG

[pamjmayo]

I think it's absolutely wonderful!!!! Pam

[bladesmith]

LG, Pam,

Thank you for the kind words. I finally have an actual hardware problem at
just over 54 hrs of CARVING time. (not counting probe time, etc). The board sensor has gone. At most I can get 0-1 on it. After a little time with Support ...
(Great folks by the way!) A new sensor will be on the way Monday.

For those interested, the intent on this mantle piece is to paint the carved
portion to closely resemble the actual photograph (Like to see me actually pull that one off!). This was carved in a pine shelf made up of smaller boards, and so the grain is not really suitable for staining. It will take some time, but I hope to be able to post pics of the other parts, and the completed project later on.

Cheers,

Bladesmith.

[pamjmayo]

This is going to be so cool when it's done. Don't forget to send the pictures. How long is your mantle? Did you have to use a joiner to get it all one piece? I just got my second machine today and was so excited to get started but I have a bad board sensor too. I'm going to send it back and get another one. If I can't make my first carving there might be lots wrong with it. Oh well, another two weeks and I'll be carving again! Pam

[bladesmith]

Pam,

I used in-feed and out-feed roller stands, and a 6 foot long pine shelf .75 inch thick by 12 inches wide. no joints that weren't there when I started. It took
about 8 hours to carve. Good luck with your machine! I've been very happy with
mine. Just wish I had more time to use it.

Cheers,

Bladesmith

[pamjmayo]

Bladesmith, thanks for your answer. This is an amazing piece and I can't wait to see it done. It never occured to me that you could carve such a large piece with our little machine! I'll have to check out what the roller stands looks like and learn something new! Pam

[bladesmith]

Pam,

You can get 12" wide roller stands at Home Depot or Lowes (or local equivalent) for around $35 or so. I put one on either side of the machine, so that if the board is centered, either end is on the roller stand, and then adjust their height to level, and so the board is resting on the sandpaper belt, then crank the head down, and ready to go. They keep the weight supported
so that the belts don't get too much drag, and keep the end of the board from flipping up (even slightly) inside the machine when it comes out from under one of the rollers as it approaches the carving bit.

Seems to have worked out ok so far. They call them "Roller Stands"
sometimes used to support long boards with table saws, or cutoff saws, etc.


Cheers,

Bladesmith

[Charles M]

I'll have to check out what the roller stands looks like and learn something new! Pam

Here's the ones I got at Harbor Freight for $12 each on sale:
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=46074

[Charles M]

Here's the ones I got at Harbor Freight for $12 each on sale:
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=46074

I just got a sale paper from Harbor Freight today that shows these for $9.99

[pamjmayo]

Charles and bladesmith, too cool. I'm on my way to Harbor Freight. Course I had to send my saw back today (boo hoo) but in another week I'll be ready to play. Thanks for the info.

Pam

[pamjmayo]

Has anyone in the forum ever made their own moldings? After seeing the mantle, the idea popped into my mind that I could re-do my moldings into something really beautiful???? Pam

[MrFTAMan]

Has anyone in the forum ever made their own moldings? After seeing the mantle, the idea popped into my mind that I could re-do my moldings into something really beautiful???? Pam

Pam, I am thinking the same thing, too! I want to create my own door and window facings, using some kind of country look. If I come across any patterns and designs that may work, I will let you know. I hope you do the same for me.
I tried one design with a 1 X 4 fur board but it wasn't what I expected it to turn out. As soon I perfected this one I will try to post it to let you see how it comes out.
Who know? One of us may end up in the Better Homes And Garden magazine!
:p

[pamjmayo]

MrFTAMan: What didn't you like about your carving? I found some moldings that are already designed in Vector 3-D. I tried doing a pattern out of the designs that come with Designer but my consistency wasn't good enough. Is there a way you know to repeat a pattern - for say 8' of board. They have beautiful scrolls. I'll check for Country patterns too while I'm looking. The sun flowers in Vector are really beautiful as well as the roses.

Keep in touch with your work! Pam

[Dan-Woodman]

Us Beta testers have copy offset,which is really nice for duplicating a pattern along the board. I don't think it came with the sears units though.

[Dirtydan]

Good afternoon all.

Here's a carving I ran as a test for a new mantle / surround for
my fireplace. Let me know what you think please.
The island map at the left is from USGS elevation data. The center image is a panoramic shot of Kaneohe bay on Oahu, and the right image is the Kalalau valley on Kauai. The Photos are original by me.

Cheers,

Bladesmith

In the words of Tony the Tiger That's "GREAT"!!!

Love the detail, now I'll have go look at all my old pictures to see if I can find something half as neat... Very nice job...:p

[MrFTAMan]

Well,Pam, the design I picked looked great, but with me using fir (not pine) there were some chipouts. I thought of leaving it that way and painting it like it is so I can have a "antique" look. As soon I figure out how to post the ideal of this molding I will post it to get your opinion.
So far I got the sides (of the window) now I am trying to create the top and bottom facings. Since I am planning to have blinds instead of curtains, I am trying to have a picture frame look.
So you understand where I am going with this?
I want a home with a country feel but unique since the moldings and all will be created by me.
I got great ideas for the kitchen cabinet doors and I have been buying ptn files from Vector 3D company to carve for each cabinet doors.
Pam, having a CC machine gives me great potentials for what I want to do for my home!
I need a woman view on this so any advice and ideas from you (or any ladies) will be greatly appreciated!
I will keep you posted!


















do

[pamjmayo]

Oh Boy! I'd love to be one of your advisors on what a woman would like. It sounds like a dream to me and I can't wait to see what you are doing. Hurry up and get pics of your work. I like the idea of the chipped out antique look by the way. Pam

[Gman_Ind]

Excellent suggestions on how to make lemonade out of a lemon. If a pattern chips out, antique it! I had the choice on a plaque I made as well, I scaled it down too small and the detail chipped, so I distressed it more instead of tossing it in the firewood bin.

[Dirtydan]

Excellent suggestions on how to make lemonade out of a lemon. If a pattern chips out, antique it! I had the choice on a plaque I made as well, I scaled it down too small and the detail chipped, so I distressed it more instead of tossing it in the firewood bin.

I perfer to think of it as "Rustic":p

[Hanna]

Pam, you asked for advice. Best I can offer is........take a deep breath........twice:)

We are in the beginning stages of building a house. Talk about a CW mind running amuch! Before I knew it I had....in my mind, carved something into about every piece of wood there would be:)

I soon realized, you can overdo it, so I decided that I need to consider the carvings I want the most, for example the most important one for me is the mantel, then using that as the foundation of my plan, think of everything else with that carving work in mind. How close to it do I want other carvings, what can I use to match the theme but still be different, etc.

For example I wouldn't want a carving very close to it that is larger than the main carving on the mantel....I want that to be a focal point, not blended into the background of something else.

[pamjmayo]

Hanna, thank you. At this point, I think I really want to focus on new baseboards. My home is already done with lots of wood that doesn't want to come down to get carved. I'd love to do a mantle but I'm not ready to remove mine yet. Hopefully you'll get to show us some pictures.

Pam

[smalltowngirl]

I have a 1910 craftsman bungalow home that I am currently working on with my compucarve. I have the original cast iron fireplaces in 2 rooms and I have completed one mantle for them so far. I have showed the picture to several friends and they love it. I am currently working on cabinet doors and drawers for my kitchen. By doing the work myself I have already saved $3,000. I the thing is, I am not finished yet.

[eagle1]

I have a 1910 craftsman bungalow home that I am currently working on with my compucarve. I have the original cast iron fireplaces in 2 rooms and I have completed one mantle for them so far. I have showed the picture to several friends and they love it. I am currently working on cabinet doors and drawers for my kitchen. By doing the work myself I have already saved $3,000. I the thing is, I am not finished yet.

It's not fair to keep the pictures all to yourself. Let's se your masterpieces

Dean:)

[Kenm810]

smalltowngirl,

Some of the carving projects for yourself and your home are often the most satisfying.
Please keep us informed from time to time on how you're doing.
And yes we do love photos

[beachman]

I posted the pattern in the depot,here is what i'm going to carve with it

[Matty]

Thats very cool,

[smalltowngirl]

I plan on sharing when I get the photos uploaded from the camera to my computer! I am a full time working mom of 3 kids. :wink: So give me a few days, but I will share them. :lol: My girlfriend came over and she wants me to do her mom's kitchen cabinets! By gosh, I think I can make a little money off this machine!

[smalltowngirl]

This one is a peak of my living room fireplace mantle. :smile: More to come, but my camera takes such high resolution pics that I have to crop them.:roll:

[Dan-Woodman]

Very nice mantle, you'll never run out of projects with this thing.

[rjustice]

This one is a peak of my living room fireplace mantle. :smile: More to come, but my camera takes such high resolution pics that I have to crop them.:roll:

Small,
Your mantle looks really nice! As far as the high res pictures there are programs that will take the resolution down, but the easiest thing i have found is to set my camera to the lowest resolution i think it is 640x480. The pictures look good on the computer, and you can easily upload 2 or 3 full size pics. Just remember to set it back to the high resolution for stuff you want to photo print, or develop.

Ron