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4K views 5 replies 3 participants last post by  Wcarver 
#1 ·
Celtic clock

I have been working on this project on and off for the last year, The wood is Ancient Kauri, from the northern island of New Zealand. This is a rare wood due to it's age and manner of preservation. In the Great Flood, these trees were buried in masses of mud, silt, and vegetation, which preserved them for thousands of years. Today they are excavated from the ground, cut and dried and sold as an exotic wood. Kauri trees still exist today in small stands and are a protected species available only in New Zealand if they are deadfalls. The wood is heavy and dense, but has a strange spongy quality to it when being carved. It works easily, but is prone to tearing and fracturing if great care is not used (as I am learning!). The piece is 8"x8"x3". The Celtic design is an old pattern I did as a tattoo many years ago, I have always liked it and figured it would make a neat clock face. Here is the progress so far…...






The back side being dished in, using templates I made to check the radius. (front side will be domed out)

Down to the beginning of the drill holes.

Making an insert for the back, this backstop is to minimize breakout when the pattern is cut through to the back.




Back to the front….





Using the convex template…





Preparing to cut through to the back. I packed the dish with sawdust and fit the insert in tightly. When I screwed the piece to the holding jig it compressed the sawdust…...but not enough. While the breakout is not part of the plan, it did not affect the integrity of the design, there is 7/8" of material from the deepest point of the break and the front of the clock face, not what I wanted, but I can improvise this in the finish.









More to come…..
 

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#2 ·
Celtic clock

I have been working on this project on and off for the last year, The wood is Ancient Kauri, from the northern island of New Zealand. This is a rare wood due to it's age and manner of preservation. In the Great Flood, these trees were buried in masses of mud, silt, and vegetation, which preserved them for thousands of years. Today they are excavated from the ground, cut and dried and sold as an exotic wood. Kauri trees still exist today in small stands and are a protected species available only in New Zealand if they are deadfalls. The wood is heavy and dense, but has a strange spongy quality to it when being carved. It works easily, but is prone to tearing and fracturing if great care is not used (as I am learning!). The piece is 8"x8"x3". The Celtic design is an old pattern I did as a tattoo many years ago, I have always liked it and figured it would make a neat clock face. Here is the progress so far…...






The back side being dished in, using templates I made to check the radius. (front side will be domed out)

Down to the beginning of the drill holes.

Making an insert for the back, this backstop is to minimize breakout when the pattern is cut through to the back.




Back to the front….





Using the convex template…





Preparing to cut through to the back. I packed the dish with sawdust and fit the insert in tightly. When I screwed the piece to the holding jig it compressed the sawdust…...but not enough. While the breakout is not part of the plan, it did not affect the integrity of the design, there is 7/8" of material from the deepest point of the break and the front of the clock face, not what I wanted, but I can improvise this in the finish.









More to come…..
I don't see any pictures…..?

AHH there they are.
 

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#3 ·
Celtic clock

I have been working on this project on and off for the last year, The wood is Ancient Kauri, from the northern island of New Zealand. This is a rare wood due to it's age and manner of preservation. In the Great Flood, these trees were buried in masses of mud, silt, and vegetation, which preserved them for thousands of years. Today they are excavated from the ground, cut and dried and sold as an exotic wood. Kauri trees still exist today in small stands and are a protected species available only in New Zealand if they are deadfalls. The wood is heavy and dense, but has a strange spongy quality to it when being carved. It works easily, but is prone to tearing and fracturing if great care is not used (as I am learning!). The piece is 8"x8"x3". The Celtic design is an old pattern I did as a tattoo many years ago, I have always liked it and figured it would make a neat clock face. Here is the progress so far…...






The back side being dished in, using templates I made to check the radius. (front side will be domed out)

Down to the beginning of the drill holes.

Making an insert for the back, this backstop is to minimize breakout when the pattern is cut through to the back.




Back to the front….





Using the convex template…





Preparing to cut through to the back. I packed the dish with sawdust and fit the insert in tightly. When I screwed the piece to the holding jig it compressed the sawdust…...but not enough. While the breakout is not part of the plan, it did not affect the integrity of the design, there is 7/8" of material from the deepest point of the break and the front of the clock face, not what I wanted, but I can improvise this in the finish.









More to come…..
wow, what great work. That's going to be nice.
 

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#4 ·
Celtic clock

Due to catastrophic structural failure during the carving process, I am laying this project to rest. While the breakout in the back was more severe than I thought it would be, I could work that out. Not so the splits in the outer wall of the piece. Although fun while it lasted ( I will be redoing this project in the future, but in walnut as I believe a harder wood will stand up to the stresses of the carving needed to accomplish the design), I will now be on to other projects, the Sawcliffe Green man, and the Walnut horse.








 

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#5 ·
Celtic clock

Due to catastrophic structural failure during the carving process, I am laying this project to rest. While the breakout in the back was more severe than I thought it would be, I could work that out. Not so the splits in the outer wall of the piece. Although fun while it lasted ( I will be redoing this project in the future, but in walnut as I believe a harder wood will stand up to the stresses of the carving needed to accomplish the design), I will now be on to other projects, the Sawcliffe Green man, and the Walnut horse.








Hi:
For you, you should be able to get some real nice Walnut in your area. I have on several times.
Looking forward to your carving this project. I use to carve some, but because of a fall I lost the necessary hand strength. Maybe some day I will try power carving.
 

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