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All Springer/NP/PCP Air Gun Discussion General > Vintage Air Gun Gate

Carving a Benji

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Yng@hrt:
I was reluctant to start off this thread like; “Carving a Dan”, one because you have already seen the process involved, & two the sacrificial lamb I decided to use for this carving might have scared folks. I know it did me. It is by far one of my favorites, one because of the model & two because of its association with one of the members. The most knowledgeable person I know with respect to Benjamin’s…”Flint”. The only reason I considered using it is because I’m not quite sure what happened to its furniture but it almost appears it was exposed to some sort of moisture or chemical that gave it a weathered look. If you haven’t figured it out by now it’s one of my S392P’s. This is why I spent considerable time coming up with the scene. To reiterate I wanted something with a Bobcat. I searched almost in vain for one that would work & finally found photos of an exceptional mount. I also knew I wanted the cat perched in a tree on a bluff overlooking a valley of some sort. That’s where the headwaters of the Rio Grande come into play. For those unfamiliar with this area of NM it is one of the most beautiful areas in the state. It’s just west of Taos, & boarder’s southern Colorado.
 
The first two pics show the condition of the stock. The next pics show the sketch & photos of the cat & backdrop used. The tree is a culmination of three different knurly dry cedar trees which are found throughout New Mexico’s high mountain peaks.

Yng@hrt:
This series of photos show the sketch transferred onto the stock which is slightly smaller than the original. I used my scanner to reduce the image to 98% for a better fit. One look at the transferred image shows how intimidating a carving this is. I began the carving by outlining all lines of the sketch so they wouldn’t disappear while handling the piece, then moved onto the backdrop, working the piece from left to right down to the river & up the other side. This is just to give me an idea of how much more material will have to be removed so I get the relief necessary for the tree & cat. You can see that a lot more material will have to be removed before that can happen but I think it gives me a real good prospective on not only the amount of material left to remove but also a feel of what the backdrop will look like.
 
This is about 8 hrs of carving. It seems to be moving along quicker than the first one. It makes a difference when you know more about what each bit is capable of whereas before it was more of a hit & miss. As mentioned before, this high quality walnut is a joy to work with. I tried to give you a close up pic of what I’m looking at, at high magnification while craving.       

TerryM:
 "That’s where the headwaters of the Rio Grande come into play. For those unfamiliar with this area of NM it is one of the most beautiful areas in the state. It’s just west of Taos, & boarder’s southern Colorado."
 



  I've floated down the river there a number of times.

ped:
going to be real nice just like the other
look forward to seeing it finished

Wayne52:
Marty it will be neat to see this one when you're done!  I'd say you're getting hooked on that wood carving and rightly so with your talent from the carving on the Dan, that one really turned out nice 8)

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