Cherry eagle

[wooly]

Still got a ways to go on this one. Gonna try to finish the detail work with some smaller tools and maybe try something new with the finish coloring if all goes according to plan.

Just sort of winging it with this one. Worst case scenario is I have to grab another block of wood and do everything over again! 

BTW- I'm looking for recommendations on a 4" angle grinder if you guys have any suggestions on a tool that has proven it can stand up to a good amount of punishment...?

 

[grampy]

Looking good so far wooly, I see a bunch of potential in this one!

Can't help ya with the angle grinder. But I've found anything made by Dewalt to be very good. Most all my power stuff here, and at the farm, is Dewalt, and holds up incredibly well.

[ny hunter]

Looks great so far... Can't wait to see the finished product....

[rob-c]

Nice wooly, I like it. I have to  agree with grampy about Dewalt. 

[Gencountyzeek]

Looks great, Rigid has done great for my uncle who flips houses, and they have a lifetime warranty i believe.

[Tughill Tamer]

Looking good wooly.

Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk

[helmut in the bush]

Looks good, I have  Dewalt's, I don't think it really matters what brand you get, go for what fits your hands the best

[philoshop]

Looking good, Wooly! Any of the name brand grinders will hold up to a lot of use. I've even had some real el-cheapos (think Harbor Freight, etc for about 15 bucks) that lasted for years of cutting tile backerboard, and that cement stuff is dusty and a real tool-killer. My advice would be to start cheap and if you like the way a grinder works the wood then upgrade as necessary. Best of luck!

[G-Man]

looks similar to pygmy.. i didnt know you did charachtures....

[Brokeass560]

Makita grinder. Awkward trigger at first but once you get the hang of it you should like it.  Eagle looks awesome. 

Edited July 8, 2018 by Brokeass560

[moog5050]

Looks great but do you have any trees left around you.  Don’t forget the story of the Lorax!  The truffula tree never rebounded.  

[wooly]

Slow but steady progress now shaping the beak and adding in some details with the Dremel to get an idea of where this one is going. Hope I'm not getting ahead of myself.

 

[philoshop]

I like it a lot, Wooly!! Wait 'til you get to the talons, though. ;-) Sorry.

[halfnelson]

Nice job Wooly!

[wooly]

12 minutes ago, philoshop said:

I like it a lot, Wooly!! Wait 'til you get to the talons, though. ;-) Sorry.

Ha- yep.... trouble ahead!

I'm trying not to think ahead that far yet, but I'm hoping I left enough there to curl them over the rocks. I still got some fixing up to do below the belt on this guy so one way or another, I'll make it work even if I have to erase a part of the base that's already "done". It's a good thing this one's not entered in a speed carving competition.

[philoshop]

I did exactly one table with 'claw foot' legs. Never again. I spent more time on the feet than I did on the rest of the table. I got way too detailed and it was nuts. The more I focused on the feet the more others saw flaws with the feet and stopped looking at the whole table. It's similar to photography criticism: "The eye wasn't clear and bright enough for my taste." Yo, buddy, I got a decent photo of the bird!!

[Pygmy]

On ‎7‎/‎8‎/‎2018 at 11:45 AM, G-Man said:

looks similar to pygmy.. i didnt know you did charachtures....

looks more like one of my old girlfriends...

Some guys like girls with big hooters...I like girls with big honkers, like Gloria Estefan....

The Mermaid has BOTH which is even better...Hehehe...

[ny hunter]

Amazing!!!!!

[grampy]

No doubt, your talent will see you to the end on this one!  Is figuring out as you go, the most fun of doing something like this? Or does it take a bunch of looking forward, and pre planning, to make it to the end?  I only ask this because I am curious, as to how you go about it, and I have no artistic talent to pull from!

Eagle looks amazing so far!

I really like how on this project, you are showing us the progress from start to finish.

[wooly]

29 minutes ago, grampy said:

No doubt, your talent will see you to the end on this one!  Is figuring out as you go, the most fun of doing something like this? Or does it take a bunch of looking forward, and pre planning, to make it to the end?  I only ask this because I am curious, as to how you go about it, and I have no artistic talent to pull from!

Eagle looks amazing so far!

I really like how on this project, you are showing us the progress from start to finish.

Thanks guys!

Dave- since I'm still getting my feet wet with this stuff and learning as I go, it's easier for me to make it up as I go instead of trying to create an exact replica of an idea from the start. This way I'm not devastated if  all does not go according to plan and I'm free to make adjustments and alterations to the original idea as I cut away at it whenever necessary.

When I say I'm gonna do an eagle at the beginning, I really have no idea yet what kind of eagle it will be until I get rolling. For my NEXT eagle I already see a few things I'll do differently, and I'll make a point to incorporate those features into it first before I let the rest of the bird become what it wants to be. Eventually I'd like to start including some action and interactions into these things to bring them to life instead of just having stationary figures standing on a stump.....BUT, you gotta crawl before you can walk, so I just keep taking baby steps for now!

I probably should have started taking pics earlier than I did with this one, but here's the first I have.

 

As one of the best carvers I know once told me.... "they gotta look bad before they look good!"

I just have to keep reminding myself that somewhere in that block of wood is my eagle and I just need to dig him out!

 

[Culvercreek hunt club]

Wooly, Have you ever used one of these?

https://www.harborfreight.com/22-tooth-carving-disc-61638.html

 

[wooly]

7 minutes ago, Culvercreek hunt club said:

Wooly, Have you ever used one of these?

https://www.harborfreight.com/22-tooth-carving-disc-61638.html

 

Not yet.

I've heard a lot of very scary stories about them from guys who work with them every day.

A guy like me who doesn't have much of a safety plan in place probably has no reason to get one of those in his hands.

BUT, they have a wide variety of uses from what I've seen, and at that price, it'll be hard NOT to throw one in the cart with my next supply order! 

[Culvercreek hunt club]

6 minutes ago, wooly said:

Not yet.

I've heard a lot of very scary stories about them from guys who work with them every day.

A guy like me who doesn't have much of a safety plan in place probably has no reason to get one of those in his hands.

BUT, they have a wide variety of uses from what I've seen, and at that price, it'll be hard NOT to throw one in the cart with my next supply order! 

I probably wouldn't use one on a grinder unless the screw in handle for the grinder was attached. 

[wooly]

7 minutes ago, Culvercreek hunt club said:

I probably wouldn't use one on a grinder unless the screw in handle for the grinder was attached. 

I get the impression using one of those things are a lot like my old clutch-less Milwaukee "Hole Hawg" I used to drill out rough plumbing in houses.

Those drills used to scare the shit out of a lot of guys using anything over a 2 1/8" self feeding wood bit, but I loved that freaking thing because I LEARNED how to use it. It did beat me up a few times along the way, but I never suffered any broken bones I saw a few guys receive from them. 

I'm sure one of these will eventually find it's way into my tool bucket though!