holds detail?

[new_guy]

What does it mean that one type of wood 'holds detail' better than another type?

I guess what we really should say is that it TAKES detail better. What that means is that hard woods because they are more dense will take detail better than softer woods. For instance the grain is usually tighter on hard woods so it makes it harder to push the gouge or knife through the wood. Soft woods because they an not as dense will allow the gouge to go through the wood with a lot less pressure. Also you will be required to sharpen your tools more often with hard woods. It is a really good question and I know what I am talking about and what everyone else is talking about when they say it holds detail but to a new comer I can see where you are coming from. As I try and answer your question I find that I may have confused you it was definatly not my intention. Welcome to the board nice to have you along keep asking questions thats how we all learn
Good question
Colin

[Donna_T]

Hey new_guy,
As someone who has trouble keeping v-tools sharp, I'd like to 'ditto' what Colin said. I always explain the term 'hold detail' to mean that the wood doesn't tear, splinter or have chunks come out as you're trying to carve some small or even large details. I usually think about this when I'm trying to do faces or fingers on hands, or buttons or other detail that's small.

Even with basswood, you can get some pieces that 'hold' detail well and is easy to carve, and other pieces of basswood that's really hard or that the wood just kinda shreds rather than take clean cuts.

Donna T

:-/ I'm not sure. What do they mean by detail? How is it held?In carving, let's say, a human face. That is an oval with accessories, eyes, nose. ears, and so on. These are details,
I think. Now if the face has a hat with a brim(thin) and a cigaret or pipe(slim), earring, these are details also.There is when you might want a piece of something a little harder and stronger than cottonwood bark.
not me
art

[Hugh]

Pine is an easy wood to carve, I use it for carving slicks, shore birds, woodpeckers etc, that the feather detail is painted on and not carved. If I put fine detail on a piece of pine, it seems to dissapear. Tupelo wood , although its a hardwood I believe, is a soft textured wood, and holds fine detail to the point I would describe it as crisp. For bird carving, tupelo is an excellent wood to work with.

[bcarvings]

Hey,
I thought holding detail is where on basswood, I notice if I carve a point it will wear away to not as fine a point. And then I 'havent tried this yet' but on white pine if you were to make a point on it, it would not wear away because it holds detail better? Mabye I'm wrong, mabye I'm right I will never know unless an expert jumps in. 8)

with basswood it would depend on the kind of paint you use.haha
there are many different white pines out west, our Idaho white pine is softer than basswood.
art

[AlArchie]

I guess I consider holding or 'taking' detail, a property of wood that lets a carver EASILY, carve fine features such as the rays on fish fins, eye detail, noses, or fur and hair without the wood chipping or tearing. I have been really partial to aspen over bassood for this feature, but just finished a Santa pin in aspen that had the 'chip and run' syndrome, so I guess a lot of this may be due more to individual
'pieces than species'
Al

[mdallensr]

I take 'taking/holding detail' to mean being able to carve crisp detail, such as fur or hair, feathers, facial features, etc AND having those details be durable. If you've seen good gun stock checkering, that's one example. Basswood is a great all-around carving wood because it is soft and easy to carve and its fine, straight grain does take detail farily well, but it's not very durable. You can carve some fine detail, then kncok it off while you're carving more. Soft butternut is even worse; really fuzzy and brittle. You can pop a pretty big hunk of butternut off of a carving with a slip of a gouge. Not so with cherry or walnut.