Comparisons

Nick1

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Jun 23, 2007
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Are there any photos out there that show the difference in quality between 2 like engravings. One by Hand and one by Machine.
 

sam

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Nick: None that I'm aware of. Quite frankly, engraving done by hammer & chisel or hand-pushed gravers can be just as good as anything done by pneumatic handpiece. Handpiece engraving can make learning much easier and faster, and there are some things I can do with my GraverMach that I can't do as well or as fast with hand tools. Look at the work of Winston Churchill, Alain Lovenberg, Ron Smith, or Creative Art, and you'll see masterful use of hand tools. Then look at the beautiful works done by the power users and you'll also see stunning, world class engraving.

It's not so much the type of tool, but the person driving it. / ~Sam
 

Ron Smith

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Nick, it is you becomming envolved with engraving that will teach you the difference. As you observe other's works, you will become knowledeable about what you are looking at. In the beginning of my learning, I thought some really hack jobs were beautiful. Only when I began to study the best works did I begin to recognize the differences. Accuracy is one of the criteria, and grace is another. Technical ability and designing skills fall under these two criteria and even though crude work might be appealing because of good design ideas, grace and accuracy will determine if it is top notch work. Study the best examples you can find, break them down as I describe in my book, and you will be able to put them back together with better success. Understanding the parts is the secret to understanding the work. Now to simpify the answer a bit, crudness and cleanness are the two very important criteria, but that doesn't necessarily mean that the work is not appealing, but it does determne the finnesse of both catagories............................and that is my two cents on the subject............Ron S

Also also include all the other outstanding men and ladies in this field as they will all give you insights into the value of personality and creativity combined with tried and true techniques we all use to get the results we get......That is the value of good teachers.........Forward!

Does anyone really have a hard time being attracted to powerfully impressive work? It kind of speaks for itself I think, if you take the "beauty is in the eye of the beholder out of it". Beauty is in the adherence to structural elements of grace, and that is a fact. That is a rule of the universe. And it is agreed upon by honesty and not personality perception differences, if you know what I mean. Even though the mountains and forrests are beautiful in a crude, wild, sort of way, a garden is beautiful because it is structured, and what is the difference whether it is scrolls, mountains, or humans. It is the same law is it not? The laws of attraction and repulsion come into play here, and discipline is always more attractive than loose, radical, obnoxious energy, is that not correct? Real power is like a comet streaking through the heavens sucking everything in its path into its wake, just because it exists. It is the sheer force of its existence, being, and purpose. Put that into your work and you cannot fail.....Sorry, that is kind of a long explaination, but hope it helps. I can't seem to do short ones. :)
 
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Ron Smith

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Nick, Sam whacked that nail again! Only an extremely trained eye might be able to tell the difference, but that is doubtful too. If a "hand" (chisel) engraver is moving along rapidly, you can see the hammer strokes, but as for the push or palm tool, the finnesse of the cut is determined by the skill of the engraver, not by the tool itself. The great differences in the two approaches is in the stress relief and learning curve and that is about all, but that is a monsterous relief in both cases; the stress relief being the greatest factor as far as I am concerned. It is sheer pleasure to remove that aspect of the struggle with engraving. You can only know how much, only if you have used the hand tools. The main thing is, as you become more involved with engraing, you will become knowledgeable just being associated with it, and what does it matter, as it is the beauty of the end result that most lay people (or general public) know about and appreciate anyway.

It is obvious to me the skill in a man's hands by quick observation, and in your studies pay attention to all of the great artists in this field. They all adhere to some basic principals, but the personality factor is the most amazing to me. Within it lies the diversity of ideas and application of them, and this is extremely inspirational; a necessary force that keep those fires of passion burning, while the struggle to control the tols is kind of a drag. It is structure and finesse that is important here, or in other words accuracy and cleaness of work and design determines skill, not the tool. Your mind and character are your greatest tools however, and in that spirit we are all the same, with time and experience usually making up the difference...........and that is my two cents on the subject.....Ron S

my apologies, I thought I had lost the first post on this subject, and so wrote another one. and must have been writing it while Sam was writing his or something.................Maybe I should write another book, that is what I seem to do, is blah blah blah....sorry! OK, so it is my fifty cents on the subject!
 
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