carving jig and WIP

[Woodturnerjosh]

Hi all,
I just thought I would post a photo of the new Kelton carving jig and a piece of my work in progress. This piece is somewhat of a first for me as it is not exactly abstract (which I normally do) and it's my first wholly carved one. It's made from Huon pine and based on the shell of the alligator snapping turtle. There is still a lot of work to go!
Cheers
Josh

[underfoot]

It's made from Huon pine and based on the shell of the alligator snapping turtle. There is still a lot of work to go!
Cheers
Josh

hey josh, love to see a closer shot of the carving, looks interesting

[Woodturnerjosh]

Here are two more shots of the piece. Unfortunately I had a glue block disaster this morning and tore a chunk out of the top, I managed to patch it up (sort of) and as there will be a bit of pyrography on the top, to add a more depth and texture, I'm hoping it won't be visible. Now I have to figure out a way to hold it while I hollow out the bottom- any suggestions?

By the way Underfoot I absolutely love your work! If I didn't hate life drawing so much (I'm glad I don't have to do it this year) I would be tempted to have a go at torso carving.
This piece is one component of a larger work that will be part of a series for my graduate exhibition.
Cheers
Josh

[INVENTOR]

Josh, nice work, how are you finding the carving jig,? I am interested as I have been using one of the first prototypes for months now.

To hold your work you could use a set of soft jaws ( foam etc) in the Superjaws. I made some years ago and they work well on unusual shaped, delicate pieces.

[springwater]

Gutsy work Josh, I can see why the form attracted someone otherwise into abstraction. Curious subject, at least I learned something today. Where did you get the interest in such an animal? Why you have so many hand pieces? More pics in progress please

[Woodturnerjosh]

Hi Inventor,
I am very happy with the jig so far and find it locks off solidly in any position. The handles you see on the base are ones that I actually purchased after market as I found the fixed bent-angle ones that it came with got in the way too much. As that is $40 worth of handles I am not sure it would be worth putting on the original as most people probably wouldn't worry about it.
I have not yet had the chance to use it with a lathe chuck (which was why I originally bought it) but when I did put on a VM120 (just to check) I found that there was already enough weight to cause a small amount of deflection. I can't see this being a problem though and the only solution would be a ridiculously heavy and expensive carving jig!
I also found that the ball needs to be pushed up about 4 - 5mm from it's base-ring to engage the clamping collar (I hope you understand these terms). If it was closer it would operate more smoothly but if I ever think it's necessary I'll just cut it down and weld them on again. I assume Kel has a reason for doing it this way so maybe I'll just leave it!
I made up a threaded steel plate with holes corresponding to the mounting holes in the base plate. This just makes it easier to change from the horizontal to the vertical mounting as you don't need to fiddle around under the bench with a socket wrench every time.
So to sum up a very long winded post (sorry) I think it is an absolutely fantastic jig and compared to other ball and socket jigs (the cheapest of which was double the price) it offers a greater range of movement and jig fixing positions.

Your idea of using superjaws (which I don't own) actually just gave me the idea to try some bowl jaws with extenders (I'll see how I go).
Cheers
Josh

[Woodturnerjosh]

Hi Springwater,
I actually found out about the animal while watching a documentary about them on TEN HD and I was absolutely fascinated! At first it was their size that astounded me (up to 275 pounds) but then when I saw the pictures of the younger ones with the spiky shell carapace I thought "I just have to carve that!" As this is my final year of a visual art degree (sculpture major) and everything has to have a meaning, this fit in quite well as it's a protected species. When I get around to building the rest of the piece I will post pictures.
As far as the handpieces go well..... you can never have enough! I would actually like to get another #28 (the slim one). It's mainly so I don't have to keep changing collets in them and I have them each set up with 1/4, 1/8, and 3/32 and the micro-motor handpiece I usually keep at 3/32 because it's annoying to change.
I'll try to keep taking photos as I go.
Thanks
Josh

[springwater]

I'm sorry I missed the documentary, what a creature, talk about ancient looking and to think it's got such a tricky way of catching food.

I've recently bought a foredom thinking it would be more robust than the dremel I burnt out. I'm a bit disappointed in it mainly because of its 18,000 rpm compared to the 32,000 rpm (I think) of the dremel. The hand piece is somewhat cumbersome but I don't think I've used it enough to have a good opinion. That's why I asked about your multiple hand pieces as I've seen the various ones available and wondered especially how the slimmer ones perform.

Good luck with your degree, hope you don't mind being poor for a while but don't get me wrong, art is a journey rich with reward and worthy of pursuing, don't let anyone tell you any different!Keep us posted!

Hope you don't mind me crashing your thread with a few pics of said creature for those interested:

Alligator Snapping Turtle
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[INVENTOR]

Josh, thanks for the info. I will send you a PM.

[nz_carver]

hi josh did you get your vise here or in nz??

[Woodturnerjosh]

That photo of the larger one is great!
As far as the Foredom goes there are a lot of things it does do better than a Dremel but sometimes you just need that extra speed for smaller burs. That's why I bought a micromotor, it does 45,000 rpm and yet is not much bigger than the foredom #44 handpiece and much more maneuverable! The foredom really comes into it's own when you are using large burs (like the big Typhoon or Sabur tooth ones) or using the ruby carvers and sanding attachments. You can run it at the slower speeds needed without feeling like you're going to stall the machine and you really need to experiment with the height and position of the unit to get the flex shaft in a comfortable spot. The Frank Russel DVD's show a good range of texturing and carving techniques using the foredom that I found quite informative.
Oh, and the slimmer handpieces are really worthwhile! I find it to be very comfortable to use!
NZ, I purchased that vice through The Woodworks book and tool.
Cheers
Josh

[Woodturnerjosh]

This is the next installment.
I managed to hold the piece in bowl jaws, with extenders and some high density foam cushioning, to hollow it out. The chuck was mounted in the Kelton jig as well (I'm lovin' this thing!) and I experienced no movement when hollowing out with the mini-arbortech. Since this photo was taken I have removed more material and started sanding, the back of the spikes will then flow into the hollow rather than leaving a sharp angle.

[clare]

Oooooow!! Nice work (better late than never as they say-been away!)

Your studio is neater than my kitchen.
Well done! Look forward to seeing the finished piece.

[Woodturnerjosh]

Thanks, I am also looking forward to seeing it finished! )
I tend to be pretty fanatical about cleaning up the workshop when I've finished, though while I'm working it can get a bit messy.
I used to be a kitchen-hand so I'm the same way about the kitchen. ;-)

[schaf]

Thats right Clare. Where is all the dust that looks like it is the Kitchen.