Thread: Help needed

Kirschen or two cherries are the best brand for carving .Google is your friend.

Hi again, one thing I forget to ask was what type of chisel edge do you think would best suit my application, a straight edge or skew edge? Thanks guys.

Originally Posted by nazarene

Hi to all. This is my first post due to only finding this site yesterday. I need some help in finding the right chisels. My hobby is carving Hebrew letters on to a small plank of timber (mainly pine) to form sentences as a wall hanging or house names etc. The letters are approx 20mm x 20mm. The letters have quite complex shapes and therefore I need a chisel with a blade width of 3mm. I could probably get away with 4mm but 3mm would suit much better. I foolishly purchased a couple of cheap sets off ebay. These are nothing short of garbage. The blades bend and blunt so easily. Is there any where in Brisbane where I can purchase just 1 or 2 of the type I need. I need a chisel to cut an outline around the letter and another type to remove the timber inside the cuts. What do I need and where do I get them. I will buy second hand if anyone has some to sell. I am on a disability pension so cost is of paramount importance. I noticed that some of the timber was breaking out in the thinner sections, but assumed this was because the cheap chisels were crushing the timber fibres rather than cutting them??? Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated......thank you

Straight edge, sharpness is the most important thing. Buy a small screwdriver and grind it razor sharp.

not sure if we have any chip carvers around here? but I reckon the chisels they use would be ideal. try googling chip carvers.

ps... good to have you back F+E, where you bin?

Bin laden with other things, I have revisited my priorities. AFAIK chip carving is traditionally done with knives, not chisels, with motion about parallel to the surface. If a V bottom of the carved letters is required, chip carving might be the way to go (see pic *), my comment assumed relief lettering or the more common square bottom lettering. For this application, since seeing a similar use by Ian Norbury, I prefer a square chisel with motion about orthogonal to the surface. The sharp screwdriver trick is an old one reported in woodcarving magazines.

* source: La sculpture sur bois, Carlo Jans, Musumeci, Aosta 1977