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.