Hello,
I'm new here, been using the forum as a resource for some time and figured it was time to join. A few years back I got into building longrifles- the 18th century muzzleloader kind. Of course those often feature engraving, and so while my goal has not been to become a master engraver, I thought I would try my hand at some basic hammer and chisel engraving, enough to put a little "ownership" into the decoration of my gun builds. After all, many of the original master gunbuilders back in those days were amateur engravers at best, and so a little sub-perfect engraving on a traditional long rifle can be considered historically correct.
Been practicing on and off over the last couple years but with a busy career and young kids to raise, I never seem to have the time available that learning engraving demands. Anyway, this winter I finally got back into it and have been making some headway. I got over the sharpening learning curve and that has made a huge difference. I have a few basic questions that I wouldn't mind some help with...
1) Should my chisel hand be resting on the work, or should I be holding the tool so that my hand is above the work and not on it?
2) How much pressure or grip should I be using to hold the chisel? I noticed that I tend to hold the chisel very firmly and apply a lot of downward pressure into the work to help control the tool. Is this right, or is the idea to have as relaxed a grip as possible?
3) What's the rule of thumb for rolling the tool when cutting curves? I've heard that the tool should be rolled to the outside of the curve, and also that it should be rolled to the inside. Is there a relationship between the amount of tool roll and the radius of the curve being cut? I've tried all sorts of different ways to see what works best but have had mixed results. I figure it would be good to know the "proper" way or the correct theory before developing too many bad habits.
Thanks in advance for any help. This is a great forum.
Dave
I'm new here, been using the forum as a resource for some time and figured it was time to join. A few years back I got into building longrifles- the 18th century muzzleloader kind. Of course those often feature engraving, and so while my goal has not been to become a master engraver, I thought I would try my hand at some basic hammer and chisel engraving, enough to put a little "ownership" into the decoration of my gun builds. After all, many of the original master gunbuilders back in those days were amateur engravers at best, and so a little sub-perfect engraving on a traditional long rifle can be considered historically correct.
Been practicing on and off over the last couple years but with a busy career and young kids to raise, I never seem to have the time available that learning engraving demands. Anyway, this winter I finally got back into it and have been making some headway. I got over the sharpening learning curve and that has made a huge difference. I have a few basic questions that I wouldn't mind some help with...
1) Should my chisel hand be resting on the work, or should I be holding the tool so that my hand is above the work and not on it?
2) How much pressure or grip should I be using to hold the chisel? I noticed that I tend to hold the chisel very firmly and apply a lot of downward pressure into the work to help control the tool. Is this right, or is the idea to have as relaxed a grip as possible?
3) What's the rule of thumb for rolling the tool when cutting curves? I've heard that the tool should be rolled to the outside of the curve, and also that it should be rolled to the inside. Is there a relationship between the amount of tool roll and the radius of the curve being cut? I've tried all sorts of different ways to see what works best but have had mixed results. I figure it would be good to know the "proper" way or the correct theory before developing too many bad habits.
Thanks in advance for any help. This is a great forum.
Dave
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