THANK YOU TOM, AWESOME VIDEOS. I LIKE MANY OF YOUR METHODS ESPECIALLY THE EYE SETTING, I INTEND TO USE THAT ON MY NEXT BIRD FOR SURE. THANKS AGAIN FOR PRODUCING THE VIDEOS AND GIVING OF YOUR TIME AND KNOWLEDGE, GREATLY APPRECIATED.
I carved decorative decoys for many years then put it aside for a break. And have had trouble getting back into it. Your video on shaping the head and especially the beak, was a huge help. Thank you so much for these videos!
Thanks so much for all the hard work at making the great videos. What a pleasure to learn from one of the best . I will be certainly applying all the tips and tricks that I have learned. Cheers from Lake St Clair ,Ontario area. Your bird looks stellar as well.
My late grandfather was an accomplished decoy carver and recently I've been inspired to pick up where he left off. This series was incredible, looking forward to trying some new techniques and seeing more of your work.
After watching again the application of plastic wood, I use to use the plastic wood but birds I carved in the past the plastic wood became brittle and cracked after a few years. Have you ever experienced that ?
I have never had an issue with it Lewis but there may be better/ stronger options out there. I have decoys that are 35+ years old without issues. What material do you use now? Thanks for the comment.
@@tomchristieart I leave a fair amount of thickness around the neck ,then make sure I make an almost perfect joint with the belt /disk sander between the head and neck base. Then I use CA glue in gel form.With the gel it will fill any imperfection in the joint. It takes about a minute or two to set. I will give it at least an hour before carving the area. CA glue is very strong and when the glue sets it will soak into the joint and cause a suction to pull it tight . I also use CA thin glue form to strengthen the tip of the bill and wing tips . Those areas can get bumped and the thin CA will soak into the wood . I apply it after I texture the wing tips or bill just before sealing the bird. The same thin CA will also be good to strengthen lets say feet or legs of a shorebird or song bird. Cheers
Tom you make it look easy. You just keep putting one foot in front of the other, then all of a sudden you have a finished carved world class bird. Are you going to paint him on video?
Thanks Tony! Not planning on painting him since I have a mallard painting video for sale already on my web site. I wanted to do something carving related.
Tom ... great video series. Thank you so much for your time and effort. A couple of questions please on one of your bits. You reference the 1/8" ruby bit that you use frequently. Is the cylinder portion "actually" 1/8" as assumed, and does the cylinder have a dome shaped head vs. a flat head ??? I cannot seem to find that bit online.
Hi Robert. That bit is slightly domed on the end and is about 1/8” in diameter. Looking on the Jaymes Company web site and in metric it is 3.5mm, so my 1/8” guidance was confusing. Hope this helps. It’s a good bit to have in your carving arsenal. Thanks for the comment!
@@tomchristieart Tom ... thank you so much for that information. I DID see that ruby bit online but was not sure if it was the correct one. I have over 100 bits, but of COURSE that is not one of them ... ughhhh Bob Wagner
If the neck attachment point is a circle it’s easy to center but if not it’s more challenging. I determine where I want the dowel to go though the neck and then use dimensions to transfer that position to the body with the centerline at the angle I want the head to sit. Then I use the drill press in both the head and the body to get a nice true dowel hole. Hope that helps.
Thank you for the videos, I've been looking for a few years for just this type of instructional series.
You are welcome Rick! I’m glad they have been helpful.
Tom I have learned a great deal from your demonstrations , thank you.
Great to hear! You are welcome and thanks for the note Dana.
THANK YOU TOM, AWESOME VIDEOS. I LIKE MANY OF YOUR METHODS ESPECIALLY THE EYE SETTING, I INTEND TO USE THAT ON MY NEXT BIRD FOR SURE. THANKS AGAIN FOR PRODUCING THE VIDEOS AND GIVING OF YOUR TIME AND KNOWLEDGE, GREATLY APPRECIATED.
You are welcome Joe! Glad you can use some of this for your own carvings!
Wow! I learned a lot! Very well put together Tom
Glad it was helpful! Thanks Loyd!
I carved decorative decoys for many years then put it aside for a break. And have had trouble getting back into it. Your video on shaping the head and especially the beak, was a huge help. Thank you so much for these videos!
You are welcome and thanks so much for that encouraging feedback Doug!
Thanks so much for all the hard work at making the great videos. What a pleasure to learn from one of the best . I will be certainly applying all the tips and tricks that I have learned. Cheers from Lake St Clair ,Ontario area. Your bird looks stellar as well.
Thanks for following along Lewis. glad they were helpful!
Thanks so much Tom. It turned out beautiful. Looking forward to future video's.
You are welcome!
My late grandfather was an accomplished decoy carver and recently I've been inspired to pick up where he left off. This series was incredible, looking forward to trying some new techniques and seeing more of your work.
Thanks for the note Zach. That is awesome and I hope you will enjoy it as much as I do.
thanks for the teaching ,,,good looking mallard
You are welcome and thanks for the comment! i appreciate it.
Thanks for sharing. Great tips.
You are welcome Zeke! Thank you.
After watching again the application of plastic wood, I use to use the plastic wood but birds I carved in the past the plastic wood became brittle and cracked after a few years. Have you ever experienced that ?
I have never had an issue with it Lewis but there may be better/ stronger options out there. I have decoys that are 35+ years old without issues. What material do you use now? Thanks for the comment.
@@tomchristieart I leave a fair amount of thickness around the neck ,then make sure I make an almost perfect joint with the belt /disk sander between the head and neck base. Then I use CA glue in gel form.With the gel it will fill any imperfection in the joint. It takes about a minute or two to set. I will give it at least an hour before carving the area. CA glue is very strong and when the glue sets it will soak into the joint and cause a suction to pull it tight . I also use CA thin glue form to strengthen the tip of the bill and wing tips . Those areas can get bumped and the thin CA will soak into the wood . I apply it after I texture the wing tips or bill just before sealing the bird. The same thin CA will also be good to strengthen lets say feet or legs of a shorebird or song bird. Cheers
@@lewandlo sounds good and thanks for sharing your technique Lewis! Always learning. 👍🏻
great videos, I have learned alot. My question is where would I find templates for various ducks head, body etc.
Thanks for the nice comment Terry. I would recommend Pat Godin’s web site, godinart.com for individual patterns and pattern books.
Tom you make it look easy. You just keep putting one foot in front of the other, then all of a sudden you have a finished carved world class bird. Are you going to paint him on video?
Thanks Tony! Not planning on painting him since I have a mallard painting video for sale already on my web site. I wanted to do something carving related.
Tom ... great video series. Thank you so much for your time and effort. A couple of questions please on one of your bits. You reference the 1/8" ruby bit that you use frequently. Is the cylinder portion "actually" 1/8" as assumed, and does the cylinder have a dome shaped head vs. a flat head ??? I cannot seem to find that bit online.
Hi Robert. That bit is slightly domed on the end and is about 1/8” in diameter. Looking on the Jaymes Company web site and in metric it is 3.5mm, so my 1/8” guidance was confusing. Hope this helps. It’s a good bit to have in your carving arsenal. Thanks for the comment!
@@tomchristieart Tom ... thank you so much for that information. I DID see that ruby bit online but was not sure if it was the correct one. I have over 100 bits, but of COURSE that is not one of them ... ughhhh
Bob Wagner
Got a question for you Tom, the best way to line up head to body to drill for dowling? Thanks
If the neck attachment point is a circle it’s easy to center but if not it’s more challenging. I determine where I want the dowel to go though the neck and then use dimensions to transfer that position to the body with the centerline at the angle I want the head to sit. Then I use the drill press in both the head and the body to get a nice true dowel hole. Hope that helps.