I had to shoot the eagle

Shot the eagle?! Don't worry I just winged it. Had to, there was a big crack in the left wing which I don't mind ( adds character ) but I don't want it to grow and ruin the bird.

So I drilled a big hole and added a homemade dowel with epoxy...

...cut it and sanded it and there it is.

I had to come to a point where I was done sanding and just live with some scratches.
So...








Pause for dramatic effect.







...boom goes the dynamite.

I stained it and just need to seal it and its done. Lots of time in this one and there is some things
I'll do different next time, but I'm pretty pleased with it and will let you know how it does at the fair.

The eagle is landing

Well I'm about 35-40 hours into this project , maybe more, I've kinda lost track. I have sanded and sanded and sanded and I still will probably sand another couple of hours before I call it done. Remember, the wifey likey so I have to look at this the rest of my life and I want it as close to perfect as my patience will allow.

I have entered several projects into the Ozarks Empire Fair over the last couple of years and have done pretty well as far as ribbons are concerned, but the have so many categories that the ribbons are handed out liberally. I also carve in the expo center for a few nights during the fair and that's the fun part. This year it looks like this is my only entry unless I can work some magic in the next month and a half, which is unlikely.

So some more sanding and the finishing is all that's left. I'll probably stain the base darker and just seal the rest and move on to some thing easier like a bear or anything I can get done in A few nights.

Eagle four

Well I'm pretty much done carving this bird. Now I just have to sand on it for probably 4 or 5 hours cause its got to be smooth.
I was talking to my wife about how much I should sell this carving for and she informed me that it's not for sale. So sorry to all who were getting out your checkbooks, this birds not for sale.

Anyway I carved the eyes and beak and am pretty pleased, I was nervous because they could really make or break this whole project.
I still have a little work to do on the feet, or talons as Napoleon Dynamite would say, but mainly just a lot of sanding and a little shaping.

Kinda mean looking huh? cool

Eagle three

I was able to get some more carving done this week and man is this a big project. I put about 4 more hours into it this week and it looks pretty much the same. I had to skinny up the wings quite a bit which took the most time but I also added some more shape to the feet and head.
The main problem I ran into was the bottom of the wings, which you can see in the picture below. There just not symmetrical, which really bothers me. I almost have them fixed but ran out of time when my helper got home and didn't get a picture. I show comparison photo's in another blog later, but don't worry it will be fine. I just have to cut away everything that doesn't look like an eagle.

Below is a good view of how much I took off the wings so they weren't so chunky. Chunky is good on babies not eagles. Also, you can see more shape to the head and beak.

I think I have about 20+ hours in this already and will probably spend that much more trying to complete it, unless it really speeds up which sometimes happens when I don't run into to many symmetry problems.

This is when production came to a grinding halt, but when all the fun started. Henry is really jammin' to some tunes.
You see, I told you, chunky is good on babies not eagles.

This was about 6 weeks ago. I was in the other room and didn't hear any noise ( this is a real red flag to a parent of a toddler who loves his brother but can't really love gentle ) So I ran in the room and found that I was wrong he can love gentle.
For you that don't know me the littlest is Harrison ( he is abut 10 weeks now ) and believe it or not, just as cute as his big brother.

Last one I promise. Henry jammin' with daddy's scwrench ( chainsaw wrench, also known as a T-wrench )

Eagle two

This is where we left off (above). A few guide lines with the sharpie and I'm ready to go.

It really helps to sit back and stare at the carving for a few minutes and making some rough sketch lines before getting after at it, just to make sure the proportions are right. With this large of a project ( 5ft tall x 18in around ) it's easy to get lost in one section and mess up the entire carving,

This is the sketch lines drawn with the tip of my chainsaw. Man it really helps to visualize it with just a few cuts.

I still have lots of work to do but its going good so far. At this point if I mess anything up it should be fairly easy to fix. It seems for me that if I make a mistake that can't be overcome ,without a fire, it's usually within the first few steps. So far anyway.

This is my oldest boy Henry. He's helping daddy water some sod that I got from work and used to patch in some of my lawn.
I threw it in because he's so stinkin' cute.

Eagle one

This big chunk of Hackberry was one of four logs I got from some random old guy driving down my street one day while I was carving in my driveway. It was really hard to understand what he was saying, but he wanted to give me logs. Well, I have no shortage of logs and didn't really want them until he said I could cut what I wanted and he'd load them with his backhoe. Load them with a backhoe, I thought ; they must be big. Well they are, I could only take two at a time because I drive a Ford Ranger, so I made two trips. The logs are 18in in diameter and 4 to 5 feet tall weighing around 300lbs, I think. I had to move them by myself twice. Let me just say a fella can move more than he thinks with the right leverage.
Anyway, This is the only one I have carved on yet and it's hard. I roughed it out about 4 months ago and it's been sitting in my driveway getting questions like, is it a bunny, is it an angel, is it a gargoyle which is fine because now I want to carve all of the above, but I must see this one done before changing directions.

The first two pictures are the original rough out work, the last two are almost up to date, minus the work on the tail and legs, that is not shown.

Now it's starting to look like the eagle is landing where I want him. Let me just say I have to sharpen all 4 of my chains which had just been sharpened prior to this 3 hour session. Usually I can get by with two chains.
Doesn't look like much for 3 hours but I'm excited again about this project and that seems to be the most important part, motivation. If I don't like the way it is looking I'm very capable of cutting it's head off and warming myself next to it's burial, but this has only happened once. Usually I can look at it with disgust for a while and then get bored and fix it.

Finished fishin'

The trash man said no more wood scrap in the trash or they would have to charge me more money. Does that make any sense to anyone? Oh well whatever, this way of disposal is much more fun and this winter will help keep me warm when I'm carving in my covered and well lit carving fort which this project is funding.
So other than a few minor setbacks all went well with the completion of the crappie which 3 different fishermen guessed first try. Don't feel bad if you guessed wrong ; aunt Jerri, because the arm fin was an inch to high the first time and that threw the whole thing off. What? you never heard the term, arm fin, well it's real scientific, and much funnier than pectoral fin.

Here she is in all her glory. Steve told me not to worry about putting a finish on it but I had to because I knew the beautiful grain would really pop with something on it. I used Thompson's water seal because it really helps repel water and is a clear finish. This picture is right after my second attempt at a finish so it looks glossy but is just wet. Second attempt? Oh yeah the first attempt I didn't check the forecast and it got well below 50 degrees that night and clouded it over so I had to strip it off and do it again

The last step in carving the fish was the scales. I took a u-gouge and ground the sharp edge flat and used it as a punch with a mallet like a thousand times for what I think looks real fishy.
I also carved the eye with my chip-carving knife.

Al, I hope you enjoy your fishy stump, I sure enjoyed carving it and I recommend sealing it every spring and setting it on a gravel bed or something to keep it off the wet ground to extend it's life.

Commission Fishin'

Commission Fishin'A friend from church asked me to carve his neighbor a fish on his walnut stump. I probably would have never attempted to carve a realistic fish, just because I'm not into fish, unless of coarse it's cooked on a plate with a squeeze of lemon. Yum.
This fish is a specific type of fish, which I will not mention in hope that you will guess what it is so I'll know that it looks right. This is important to the project because he was very specific in what he wanted. I told him it would look good or he would get a load of mulch and we don't want anymore stinking mulch.

Man I love walnut, the grain is wonderful and so is the smell.

It's been 3 or 4 months since I've been able to carve with a chainsaw, because of weather, time change and I am a father of 2 small boys as well as a husband which I would like to continue to be. I almost forgot how much I love doing it and thank the Lord, my wife and the weather for letting me do it. Anyway, I'll post the finished project hopefully next weekend.

Floor refinish

Christmas already! Nope, just the best picture of the nasty carpet we had in the living room. This picture is about a year and a half old and trust me, it just got worse. So about a month ago my wife asked me what it would take to get rid of the carpet and refinish the plywood floor underneath, I said, leave town for a weekend hoping that would get me out of it, but it didn't.

Day one: Friday after work. to stay on schedule I had to be ready to stain by Saturday night.
I had to pull tack boards and staples and be ready to sand in the morning.
I didn't know before I tore out the carpet that there was a ton of paint and varnish stains covering the entire 250 sq ft.

Day two: Sand and sand and sand and stain. I can see the original painters in 1958 saying "we don't need no stinkin' tarps, no one in their right minds would finish this plywood floor", oh but I did.

Day three: Poly, sand, poly, sand, poly, poly.
Start time Friday 4pm, end time Sunday 6pm; 50hrs give or take.
The main reason I decided to refinish the plywood underlay is the price. Hardwood flooring is about 3 bucks a sq ft. Of coarse there's always craigslist, but its still 1.50/2.00 per.
This cost .60 per.

The main test was, does the wifey likey.
Oh yes she loves it, and the boy has already scratched it, but that's okay it was cheap, and is rustic so scratches blend right in. (That's what I have to say to keep my sanity).

Carving Fort

Now that looks like a proper place to play with chainsaws and chisels.
Finally Phase 1 of my carving fort project is done!
Phase 1 you ask. Why yes, I have lots of plans for this little piece of heaven.
There's a roof, more fencing, lighting and oh yeah the crane. That's right the crane, I need a way to lift 500lbs logs out of my truck, move them around reload them in my truck etc....
Anyway that's why this Phase 1.
If any one has any ideas for my crane let me know.

Also, the big walnut stump in the middle of my fort is my first commission piece with a chainsaw. A friend from church wants a carving of a fish on it for his neighbor, but thats a blog for another day, soon.

Carving pictures

Here are some of the carvings I've done in the last couple yearsThis a round house carved from Cottonwood bark (pictured above and below). It is hollow with some detail inside which is hard to see in the picture, but you can see in one window and out another.

Below is "Happy creek" one of the few scenes that I have done. I have big dreams of doing a large western street scene and a castle scene but they would take a lot of time and as a father of a 20 month old and a 4 week old time is scarce, and I'm pretty sure their a better investment of my time. Although my carvings don't fuss, but my kids don't collect dust. Okay the kids, Right?

Yes, definitely the kids.

This is spoon and spork I made for my dear sweat mother. She loved to cook, and boy was she good at it. My parents got rid of cable T.V. a couple years back and my dad says mom only lasted a few weeks without the food channel before she went crawling back to the cable company asking for forgiveness. Of course they willing to forget it ever happened for 50 or so bucks a month.

You'll never guess what this is. No its not a duck, it's a hummingbird. A hummingbird on a bamboo skewer. It was hard to get it to hold still. ha ha No seriously it's wood.
Story time; Once upon A time I was making a bear with a chainsaw in my driveway,and I was carving an arrow threw its head so it could be a sign that said "No Huntin". Well, my neighbor came over to see what I was doing and said I should put a strap on the arrow around the back of the head like it was a fake arrow because it was a little graphic, I laughed and said don't worry its not a real arrow.
You know because it's not a real bear either. I ended up carving in the strap because it made me laugh and I really thought it was a good Idea.

Above is a random whimsical castle thingy. Below is a caricature of a cabin in the woods I helped my good friends the Farrars build and gave to them as a Christmas gift a few years ago.

Okay there are a few of the types of things I do. I usually do a type of carving about a half a dozen times then get bored with it and try something new.