It's Throw-Back Thursday!

Throw-Back Thursday seem s to be the thing at the moment so here's my carving contribution to that meme!  I can't remember exactly when I did this one although it was quite some time ago and I'm too lazy to go back and check for the Blog post.

Where's The Beef?

Here's my latest.  Seems this poor fella was getting ready to sink his choppers into that big T-bone only to end up with Beans and Biscuits!  This one stands about 10-12 Inches tall with the walnut base.  Ought to be pretty neat once it's painted.  I still have to locate material for the beans.  While I've used mustard seeds in the past they would be too small for this piece.  I'm thinking either buckshot or BB's.   Was going to name it Biscuits, Beans, and Bacon but was worried that some Muslim would have been offended.  Yeah...right!

The little fork was the weakest point of the piece so I reinforced it was a metal rod at the bend.  Now it's probably the strongest!  I carved the fork then cut it in two.  Snipping off the head of a wire brad and bending it to match the forks shape I drilled matching holes in each piece and glued it together.  It will take a determined effort for someone to break it.

Hope you like him and there are some more photos in the Gallery.  Next up?  A wrangler carrying a saddle!

Yellow Hawk

Here's a small one, standing about 10" with the base.  Just a quickie but I thought I'd show it off.  Really bright colors and I might darken up his skin tones a bit.  No more photos but your comments are always welcome.

He Looks Like a Good One!

I finished this one last week so I guess it's time I put him up for inspection.  He's a good sized piece...standing about 22" tall with the base.  I really like the coloring.  That blue shirt shows lots of use which is as it should be.  The same goes for the gloves.  I do see some areas for improvement after looking at the photos so have made a note of those areas.
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I want to say one thing about the lariat that I think might be of use to those of you who might want to include this detail in one of your pieces.  Even though we might work in caricature it's important to still follow some rules to make our carvings correct.  The other day I saw a carving of a Cowboy holding a lariet which looked more like a Piggin String than a lasso.  A Piggin String is what is used to tie the calfs  feet together during Rodeo roping competitions.  It's about 6' feet in length.  The normal lariat runs from 28' to 32' in length.  Some are even longer. When I make my version I first determine the scale by measuring my figure and then scaling the wire length to match a 6' cowboy.  In the case of this figure the length came to about 10 feet.  That might seem like a lot but after making the loop and coiling it through his hand it looks just as it should.  So, when he throws that rope around that rangy cayuse he shouldn't come up short.
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I hope you like him as I do and there are more photos in the Gallery.  As always, your comments are welcome and appreciated.

Apache - All Done

Finished up the final detailing on this guy.  Turned out pretty well but sure was a lot of painting!  Hope you like him.  More photos in the Gallery and comments always welcome.