Starting my journey - Help choosing/narrowing down some of the learning materials?

[therue]

Having recently moved out of the U.S. I was unable to make any purchase due to the ridiculous shipping fees on International orders. But a friend is coming to visit soon, so I'm taking advantage of this opportunity and planning to get as many things as I can at once.

Does anyone happen to have experience with some of these materials? Which would you recommend? I would obviously love to get them all eventually, but for now, which one is more comprehensive for:

1. Learning to draw Scrolls
2. For actually learning to Engrave (but with Chisel & Hammer)


NOTE: Will be starting out with Hammer & Chisel


Engraving Historic Firearms by John Shippers

Arts & Design Fundamentals by Lee Griffiths + DVD
(is it worth it to get the DVD as well?)

Drawing and Understanding Scrolls by Ron Smith

Advanced Drawing of Scrolls by Ron Smith
(Regarding Ron Smith's books, do they overlap in terms of materials taught at all?)

Scroll and Engraving Techniques by Lynton Mckenzie
(This is only 52 pages but cost $110 though)

There's also various DVDS by Lynton Mckenzie, but they are rather expensive and weren't mentioned much on the forum i think)
https://www.amazon.com/s?ie=UTF8&field-keywords=Lynton McKenzie&search-alias=dvd


The Essential Guide to Drawing Scrolls by Sam Alfano
Engraving Scrollwork Start to Finish by Sam Alfano
The Expert's Guide to Graver Sharpening by Sam Alfano
(Is Sam's Graver Sharpening Video based on using the sharpening system? or does it also teaches sharpening the traditional way?)

*Lastly, what are some of the better materials for learning Bulino?

Sorry for so many questions guys!

 

[John B.]

Therue,
I was privileged to teach hammer and chisel engraving for 27 years in the NRA Summer College Classes.
Engraving Historic Firearms by John Schippers is by far the greatest modern text and direct learning aid for H&C engravers.
It is the book that made me put away all my book publishing notes. For the basics of H&C engraving John's book is pure gold.
All the other books and aids you mention are great and should eventually be part of your library.
But starting out for H&C John Schippers is the way to go IMO.
Best of luck and enjoy your engraving journey. Look forward to seeing some of your work.
PS. Concentrate on H&C first but also add push engraving to your repertoire.

 

[monk]

i had the schippers book for quite some time. then, i actually began reading it ! good instruction there. pricey, but more pricey is waddling around without needed information. as important as technique, is great drawing skills. the work you see here can be complex and confusing. the books by griffiths and didyoung are good to show how to dissect all that complexity. they both show that 3 or 4 simple lines can combine to produce much of the engraving that one strives to do.

 

[tdelewis]

Shippers book is great, and comprehensive. Everyone that engraves will have their own style. As you get more experience it would be good to study other styles. I have talked with John extensively and have great admiration for him. His story is unique. Be sure to read page 442 in his book. He is an amazing person.

 

[Dani Girl]

Sam's scroll and scrollwork engraving dvds are invaluable.

Bulino there's a great dvd out now by Chris Decamilis on Tira's website.
http://www.engraver.com/bulino-techniques-training-set-by-christian-decamillis/

and watch Sam Alfano's youtube videos