Thread: Thanks Guys, for all the feedback

Sorry to be so long in responding to the wonderful feedback I received after posting the carving in Huon Pine - 'Coming Home'.

I am still trying to get around this website/Forum etc. and mistakenly tried to answer some questions with private mail. I got told off (no names, no pack-drill!).

The carving was from an offcut and was a mother/ugly piece of Huon measuring approx. 500 X 450 X35mm. I had to carve many in-grown knotted bark/semi-rot/punky chunks out of it to get down to sound wood. You get the idea - one of those cases where the wood actually determines the design or often changes your original idea of the whole project!!(happens to me a lot in turning, as well).

An otherwise distracting grain feature was utilised and became an extension of the pyrographed 'smoke' coming from the old homestead's chimney (set way back in the background). A knot in the track became a rut, with adjacent drainpipe. Yeah, it was a challenge, but glad it worked out ok.

I asked opinions about the finish - for Huon - and yes, I agree, oil & wax is probably the best way to go; however, *in this case I used the orangey coloured shellac and then wax. More recent carvings of mine, from Huon, have been either oil (Danish works well), or - more recently, a white Shellac, which I find does not 'yellow' the wood as much.

*The Huon I had was very old and was very pale - other than the ugly ingrown bark and knots!!

Thanks everyone
Inspector Gadget