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Getting started....mounting your carving blanks...and removing them when finished


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Post your methods and questions here on how you mounted your blanks or remove them after you are finished.

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I am far from being an expert at carving in wood.  This was my first attempt and it seemed to work really well.  I am sure some of you will have alternative methods for mounting your carving blanks.

 

The Queen's cipher is probably the easiest of the designs to start with so I recommend starting with those.

 

mounting1.jpg

 

To mount the blank,  I used a thicker 1/8" or 3/16" thick piece of scrap wood (not included with the blanks).  Its cherry and is hard enough to take a beating.  I would imagine softer woods are not the best to use and probably should be avoided.  The base was cut just a little larger than the piece being carved.  It was glued on with a childs glue stick.  This glue is easy to remove and cures permanent and strong....but will easily be treated with rubbing alcohol when the time comes to remove it.

 

mounting2.jpg
 
Dont be shy with how much you use.  You want this piece secure.  These are fragile pieces at 1/32" thick.  Take special care with the areas that would be prone to breaking like the bottom tails for the letters.  The glue will dry hard but also flatter.   If some squished out its not a problem because you can easily scrape it away while carving.
 
mounting3.jpg
 
Because the designs are so thin it will have a tendency to curl when wet with glue.  To solve this problem I sandwiched it with another small scrap piece and clamped it to dry.  I let it dry overnight before starting to carve it.
 
mounting4.jpg
 
To remove the piece after you are done...I literally just filled a small plastic container with 90% rubbing alcohol and dropped it in.  I let it fully submerge in a 1" deep bath for about 3 hours.  It actually fell right off the base without any trouble.
 
Feel free to share other ways here or in your logs when you start one.  I would NOT recommend trying to carve these blanks without mounting them to a base.  They will just break apart in the first 2 seconds.
 
Chuck
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Chuck, have you had any experience using Aspen or Poplar or Maple (easily found in Lowes/Home Depot) as the base instead of cherry?

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No but I am sure that would work....I just had a bunch of bad cherry I needed to use up.   I am sure any relatively hard base will do.   About 3/16" thick  or even 1/8" thick.

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  • 2 weeks later...

i would glue a piece of paper with pva to the mounting block then glue your piece to the paper again with pva, after you finish you just leave it in water and your piece should fall away.  i havent tried this method but i have never used a mounting block, i just dive in and carve

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  • 2 weeks later...

I have experimented with carpet tape and it does the job. 

David B

I have used carpet tape for other projects and it does as you mentioned, but the residue is hard to remove unless you use acetone. The same applies when using contact cement in a spay can. It works great but don't let it cure too long with small pieces.

That brings me back to what Chuck suggested.

Edited by Modeler12

Jay

 

Current build Cross Section USS Constitution  http://modelshipworld.com/index.php/topic/10120-cross-section-forward-area-of-the-uss-constitution/

Finished USS Constitution:  http://modelshipworld.com/index.php?/topic/103-uss-constitution-by-modeler12/

 

'A picture is worth a  . . . . .'      More is better . . . .

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  • 1 month later...

 

I am far from being an expert at carving in wood.  This was my first attempt and it seemed to work really well.  I am sure some of you will have alternative methods for mounting your carving blanks.

 

The Queen's cipher is probably the easiest of the designs to start with so I recommend starting with those.

 

attachicon.gifmounting1.jpg

 

To mount the blank,  I used a thicker 1/8" or 3/16" thick piece of scrap wood (not included with the blanks).  Its cherry and is hard enough to take a beating.  I would imagine softer woods are not the best to use and probably should be avoided.  The base was cut just a little larger than the piece being carved.  It was glued on with a childs glue stick.  This glue is easy to remove and cures permanent and strong....but will easily be treated with rubbing alcohol when the time comes to remove it.

 

 
Dont be shy with how much you use.  You want this piece secure.  These are fragile pieces at 1/32" thick.  Take special care with the areas that would be prone to breaking like the bottom tails for the letters.  The glue will dry hard but also flatter.   If some squished out its not a problem because you can easily scrape it away while carving.
 
 
Because the designs are so thin it will have a tendency to curl when wet with glue.  To solve this problem I sandwiched it with another small scrap piece and clamped it to dry.  I let it dry overnight before starting to carve it.
 
 
To remove the piece after you are done...I literally just filled a small plastic container with 90% rubbing alcohol and dropped it in.  I let it fully submerge in a 1" deep bath for about 3 hours.  It actually fell right off the base without any trouble.
 
Feel free to share other ways here or in your logs when you start one.  I would NOT recommend trying to carve these blanks without mounting them to a base.  They will just break apart in the first 2 seconds.
 
Chuck

 

 

Thanks for showing Chuck !

 

very smart solution for fixing / removing   ;) Nils

 

Nils

Current builds

-Lightship Elbe 1

Completed

- Steamship Ergenstrasse ex Laker Corsicana 1918- scale 1:87 scratchbuild

"Zeesboot"  heritage wooden fishing small craft around 1870, POB  clinker scratch build scale 1:24

Pilot Schooner # 5 ELBE  ex Wanderbird, scale 1:50 scratchbuild

Mississippi Sterwheelsteamer built as christmapresent for grandson modified kit build

Chebec "Eagle of Algier" 1753--scale 1:48-POB-(scratchbuild) 

"SS Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse" four stacker passenger liner of 1897, blue ribbond awarded, 1:144 (scratchbuild)
"HMS Pegasus" , 16 gun sloop, Swan-Class 1776-1777 scale 1:64 from Amati plan 

-"Pamir" 4-mast barque, P-liner, 1:96  (scratchbuild)

-"Gorch Fock 2" German Navy cadet training 3-mast barque, 1:95 (scratchbuild) 

"Heinrich Kayser" heritage Merchant Steamship, 1:96 (scratchbuild)  original was my grandfathers ship

-"Bohuslän" , heritage ,live Swedish museum passenger steamer (Billings kit), 1:50 

"Lorbas", river tug, steam driven for RC, fictive design (scratchbuild), scale appr. 1:32

under restoration / restoration finished 

"Hjejlen" steam paddlewheeler, 1861, Billings Boats rare old kit, scale 1:50

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  • 3 years later...

I've used scrap tile with a smooth surface

Current build: Great Harry, restoration 

On hold: Soliel Royale, Mantua

Completed:

Bluenose ll, Artesania Latina

San Francisco llArtesania Latina

Chris Craft barrel back triple cockpit, Dumas

Chris Craft 1940 double cockpit, Dumas

Santa Maria, Artesania Latina

1901 Scow Schooner, scratch built

Hannah, Continental Navy, scratch built 

Candelaria bomb ship, OcCre

Pride of Baltimore, Model Shipways

17 foot Chesapeake kayak (2, one scratch), Midwest

USN Picket Boat #1, Model Shipways

Kobuksan, Turtle Korean ironclad, YoungModeler

HMS Revenge, scratch

NY Pilot Boat, kit bashed, Model Shipways

USS Monitor, scratch

Nuestra Senora de Afortunado, 1926 Popular Science plan, Resoration

Martha, CBMM,

Puddle Jumper, scratch stern wheeler

Lady Sarah, kit bashed Constructo Victorian launch

 

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