Anyone ever glue up?

[BasketballJones]

I've only glued up once; a practice piece that came out fairly decent. I don't like to see scrapwood not being utilized. I know from gluing-up furniture that no two pieces lay perfectly flat and it takes some effort to match the grain and all; even from the same piece. Is there an average acceptable diameter for a caricature carving?

My planning consists of 'I wonder if I can carve this' and 'If I turn it upside down it looks like....' I save the good wood for some serious planning that actually involves measuring. But I enjoy practicing profiles, ears, noses, mouthes, objects on a scrap piece. I got to thinking what would happen if I did something outstanding on a piece of scrap. I would want to be able to dress it up some. I believe practicing on the correct diameter would be a more practical exercise.

Thanks,
Ken

[DaveE]

glue ups are a tried and true tradition. as you said the joinery is key.

as far as a 'correct diameter' I can only think you mean proportion. any good artists anatomy book will give you some ideals. as you posted this in caricature though you have some leeway... big ears or nose, hands or feet, etc. If your going to glue up why not glue up a blank? a bust or a whole figure? at best you will have something your proud of. at worst you will have some scraps for glueups or fire place. Unless your carving for a specific destination (show, competition, customer) I don't know of any rules. Learn anatomy and proportion first and then apply exaduration. there is nothing wrong with doing an outstanding ear on a piece of scrap. do another and another and then put one on the carving you want to do. the hard part will be putting an identical one on the other side of the head . practice and doing is how we get better. my three cents (inflation).

Dave

[Kenny_S]

I seen a couple of guys glued up once and it wasn't a pretty sight.

They were reduced down to a one word vocabulary,'' WOW'.
Just a little humor!

[Kenny_S]

I have seen carvers take 3/4 ' think pieces and glue them togehter to create the thicknee they wanted.

[Greyhair]

i have glued up pieces before because I did not have a large enough block to carve what I had in mind. I worked hard to get the grain to go the same direction but other than that it glued up fine and was not discernable once carved. I used scrap pieces and squared them up really well before I glued them.

[BasketballJones]

all for your replies. The large blocks of basswood at Woodcraft are expensive, however I love that store. It makes me like I feel like the Mrs. in a clothing store.
I have done a few on 2x2 and 4x4 blocks and seem most comfortable with 4x4s. I recently carved a golfer from 3/4ths glue-ups on a whim. I find that I struggle when I plan a carving and enjoy it more when I just start drawing on the wood and carve. Which is wierd considering when I do other woodworking structures I am very detailed before I start the first cut.

[Greyhair]

I just finished a glue-up that was made from two pieces 1 1/2 X 4. I carved a golfer. There is a 'line' that is clearly visible but it is not unnattractive once it is painted. I think I will do it again particularly on a new design that I have not tried before.

did you run it on the jointer or planer first?

No I did not. I cut it on the bandsaw with a 1/8th inch blade with 14th teeth per inch and I ran it lightly accross the belt sander and then glued up. I did match the grain direction and I also tried to match the end grain as well so it had a circular pattern. It seemed to work out just fine.