"Sorry Boys! It's Beans Again!"

Whittled the shovel this morning to finish the major parts of this scene.  Still have to make some biscuits to go into the Dutch oven then it's off to the paint table.  I gave him a water bucket to put something in that right hand.  He can use it to douse that new fella who always complains when there's no meat involved.  It's empty now but I'll fill it with resin once the paint is dry.   It took me hours to balance that shovel so I could take the photo.  (Actually, I just put a drop of super glue on the base and a squirt of activator locked it in place.)  I'll cut through the top two bases to make it look as though it was stuck into the dirt.  You always need a shovel around the cook fire to move the hot coals around for the ovens and occasionally bang a head or two when the clean-up crew balks at their assigned duties.

The Woolaroc Museum is up there in cattle country so this wagon chef should be a hit.   Hope you like him too.  More photos in the Gallery.

Checkin' Her Out!

I can't say whether he's looking at the 4 legged filly in the round pen or the 2 legged one setting on the fence.  Whichever, by the look on his face I think he approves of what he sees!

For a while I had my doubts about the paint job on this wrangler but in the end he turned out pretty well.  With the base he stands about 14" tall which makes a really nice presentation.  The stampede string on his hat is just twisted wire with a wooden bead I carved.  I wrapped a short piece of the wire around the center of the bead which gave me a post that I could use to anchor the strings to his chest.

Hope you like him and there are more photos in the Gallery.  Comments always welcome.

A Cowboy Bust in the Raw

My good friend Rich Baginski from up in Montana stopped by for a couple of days of carving and this is what my efforts produced.  It sure is enjoyable to have another carver in the shop to exchange ideas, tell jokes and basically just have fun.

I'm not sure what the title of this one will be but he ought to be a nice piece once painted.  I'll add a stampede string to his hat which will fill up that empty space above the neckerchief knot.  He stands about 12" tall with the base.

Hope you like him.  A few more photos in the Gallery and your comments are always welcome.

Buffalo Soldier - Part 22, The Lookout

Well, here he is.  I decided not to do another video segment to finish up this series but to just post the photos which are in the Gallery.  I hope this is okay with everyone.

I think you'll agree that this turned out to be a pretty impressive piece,  at least I hope you do.  It sure has seemed a long and involved one with lots of hurdles to jump but I think we did okay.  There are a few things that could be improved on though.

1.  I had hoped to have a little more action in him than the final pose which seems to me to be a little static.  By that I mean he's just standing there.  I had originally thought of having the right leg elevated on top of a rock feature but in experimenting with a model just couldn't get it to work the way I wanted.  Will have to save that idea for another carving.

2.  The blue of the coat could have had more white in it along with a little darker blue.  When painting in washes it's hard to judge the final color until the varnish is applied.  I'm still contemplating whether to do a little dry brush to the entire figure to give it a more worn look but with all the time involved with this one I'm just too hesitant to alter anything at this point.

3.  The facial coloring was spot on but again, due to the wash technique, wood grain played just a little too much of a part in altering the colors.  I mentioned this in the painting videos about how I might have to go back and retouch certain spots once the varnish is dry.  But again, he's looking pretty good so I'll wait a bit on that one too.

All in all I think this one will draw lots of positive comments as it's a subject rarely done in caricature or woodcarving in general.  I think a lot of this has to do with carvers being just a little too concerned about being criticized about the subject of Blacks and political correct-nous.   However I think if you do it in a respectful mannerthat's something that we shouldn't worry about.

So, I hope you like the way he turned out and also we hope you were able to pick up a few new techniques that will help you along on your own path.   I'm not really sure what the next project will be as it will take place a little down the road as I have to finish up some other projects in the shop.  Whatever it is we'll try to keep it interesting.

Lots of photos in the Gallery and your comments are welcome and appreciated.

P.S.  Deb, I'll oil that chair before the next one!

Buffalo Soldier–Part 21

Buffalo Soldier - Part 21 from Out West Woodcarving Videos on Vimeo.

Buffalo Soldier–Part 20

Buffalo Soldier - Part 20 from Out West Woodcarving Videos on Vimeo.

Buffalo Soldier–Part 19

Buffalo Soldier - Part 19 from Out West Woodcarving Videos on Vimeo.

Buffalo Soldier–Part 18

At last…..the carving is finished.  Now on to some final details and the some painting.

Buffalo Soldier–Part 17

The right arm gets carved and we start on the binoculars.

Buffalo Soldier–Part 16

We finish up the Carbine and the hand.

Buffalo Soldier- Part 15

Making the Springfield Trapdoor Carbine.

Man of the Mountains - Finished

A nice little bust if I do say so myself!  Actually, it's not that small....14 1/2" with the base.  Really like the red capote and I tried something different this time on the feathers.  To duplicate some fluff on the eagle plumage I used some acrylic modeling past and then dabbed it to create some texture.  Works pretty good.  Anyway, hope you like him and your comments are always appreciated.  More photos in the gallery.