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This is a Maori hook I carved from cow bone. Carving bone is a pretty slow process...I carved this over the course of two days.
Carving a personal 'totem' like this is kind of like a journey. It's a very personal experience...
After all the time and hard work invested, and holding something so pure and beautiful... something that you carved, is an experience everyone should have (but so few do).
Before you carve your Hook, I recommend reading up on Maori culture. It's very fascinating and helps give you the inspiration you'll need for the 'journey' ahead.
This is a Maori hook I carved from cow bone. Carving bone is a pretty slow process...I carved this over the course of two days.
Carving a personal 'totem' like this is kind of like a journey. It's a very personal experience...
After all the time and hard work invested, and holding something so pure and beautiful... something that you carved, is an experience everyone should have (but so few do).
Before you carve your Hook, I recommend reading up on Maori culture. It's very fascinating and helps give you the inspiration you'll need for the 'journey' ahead.
Step 1: Pattern
Drawing a Maori hook is INCREDIBLY difficult. I recommend Googling "Maori Hook" and tracing a design you like. Cut out the traced hook, and transfer it to the bone blank (in pencil).
When picking a cow bone to carve, make sure it is white as paper. If it is in any way translucent or yellow, it contains grease. Grease will wreck your carving! Do not carve greasy bone!
You can get bone from PetsMart. It's in the form of cleaned bone dog toys (the ones made of REAL cow bone). You may even have a bone in your yard, dropped by some else's dog (or your own!).
From here on out, safety glasses are a must!
When picking a cow bone to carve, make sure it is white as paper. If it is in any way translucent or yellow, it contains grease. Grease will wreck your carving! Do not carve greasy bone!
You can get bone from PetsMart. It's in the form of cleaned bone dog toys (the ones made of REAL cow bone). You may even have a bone in your yard, dropped by some else's dog (or your own!).
From here on out, safety glasses are a must!
Step 2: Rough Carving
I did this with a band saw. You could use a jewelers saw, but this is faster.
My blade is too wide to cut out the middle part, so I'll remove that with a jewelers saw in the next step.
I drilled a hole so I would have to remove less material with the jewelers saw.
My blade is too wide to cut out the middle part, so I'll remove that with a jewelers saw in the next step.
I drilled a hole so I would have to remove less material with the jewelers saw.
Step 3: Cutting Out The Inside
Use a jewelers saw to cut out the inside bits that you can't reach with a band saw..
Step 5: Removing Extra Material
Use a 1.4'' drum sander to hog away extra bone. The idea is to hide the outline of the bone... make everything rounded and smooth. Even the back!
You should wear a respirator for this. Bone dust can hurt your lungs!
You should wear a respirator for this. Bone dust can hurt your lungs!
Step 6: Cleaning Up
Use a small Dremel cone-shaped sander at HIGH SPEED to bevel and further refine the shape.
Remove EVERY LAST tool mark!
Remove EVERY LAST tool mark!
Step 7: Hand Tools From Here!
The rest of the steps should be performed with hand tools.
Specifically, files. Lots and lots of files...like, triangles files and chain saw files and miniature files.
Shape and curve it...round every single plane and angle. This thing needs to look like it grew off a tree or something. Perfectly smooth, slick, and organic...like a fish.
You will also need to define the barbs. See the photo...
Specifically, files. Lots and lots of files...like, triangles files and chain saw files and miniature files.
Shape and curve it...round every single plane and angle. This thing needs to look like it grew off a tree or something. Perfectly smooth, slick, and organic...like a fish.
You will also need to define the barbs. See the photo...
Step 8: Sanding
Remove all file marks leftover from the previous step. This will take some time...when you're done, remove the sandpaper marks with some fine wet dry sandpaper (I think i used 600 grit?).
The wet dry will get the hook really slimy and maybe even grimy. Gently wash the hook with warm water and shampoo/softsoap. After you wash it, it'll be insanely slippery (even when dry!)...I don't know why though. Don't drop it, or it'll crack.
The wet dry will get the hook really slimy and maybe even grimy. Gently wash the hook with warm water and shampoo/softsoap. After you wash it, it'll be insanely slippery (even when dry!)...I don't know why though. Don't drop it, or it'll crack.
Step 9: Burnishing
Use some pieces of a brown paper bag to polish the hook. This prepares the surface for the next step.
Step 10: Polishing
Use car wax with abrasives in it. Put the car wax on a soft felt pad and rub everything down. It'll look pretty bad until you wash it.
After you wash it, polish it with a towel (like a beach towel). After you use the towel, use a clean piece of felt, then a piece of paper to finish the shine. At this point, it'll look shinier than glass...it's unreal.
After it was all shiny, I drilled a hole in it. As far as the tying of it, you're on your own. It's pretty easy to figure out of you look at my picture. There are about 4,000 ways to do it...so you'll definitely figure one out pretty quickly!
For some reason, I cannot catch the shine with my camera! I assure you, though, it's like a mirror!
After you wash it, polish it with a towel (like a beach towel). After you use the towel, use a clean piece of felt, then a piece of paper to finish the shine. At this point, it'll look shinier than glass...it's unreal.
After it was all shiny, I drilled a hole in it. As far as the tying of it, you're on your own. It's pretty easy to figure out of you look at my picture. There are about 4,000 ways to do it...so you'll definitely figure one out pretty quickly!
For some reason, I cannot catch the shine with my camera! I assure you, though, it's like a mirror!
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Having been a butcher in the past, another fairly flat bone to use would be the shoulder blade bone that is found in chuck roasts or 7-bone roast or you can use the bones from beef short ribs-most measure about 1 1/2 inch X 1 1/2 inch and are fairly flat with just a slight curve.
Now I just have to clean my work shop so I can get access to my band saw and drill press. Bring on dem bones
I didn't use any particular design, though it was influenced by ones I've seen. I sketched it out myself. Actually, over and over again, as I worked the bone down. It changed a bit as I worked with the bone. Turned out well, I think.
I'll post a picture later of how I strung up mine. It might help you decide how you'll do it.
This time, it isn't a hook, though the shape is similar. It's a representation of a Maori spiritual figure, called the Manaia, who was meant to have the head of a bird, the body of a human, and the tail of a fish or a whale, though representations differ quite a bit. The bird head represented the sky, the human body the earth, and the tail the oceans. The Manaia was considered a guardian of sorts, and a messenger to the spirit world. It's a fairly common Maori carving.
I think I might do a Maori Tiki next, though I'm not sure.
I need to learn how to tie Maori knots, too, and also learn a proper polishing technique that works for complex surfaces. At some point I want to get a better hanging flex shaft tool, like the sort jewelers use.
You should post more of your carvings. If you want, I could show you some sketches of designs I've done. Might give you a few ideas.
Ps- that was a reference to discovery science channel deadliest warrior.
However, there is a material out their called Faux Bone
(http://www.fauxbone.com/fauxpages/pricing.html#Anchor-49575) .
It's a plastic that looks just like bone...you can carve it with a hack saw and an Xacto knife
Unless the wood you use is extremely dense, the hook will be very fragile. Ancient Polynesians had access to wood...but they didn't use wood because it's not strong enough and would break along the grain.
Tools used were:
Utility saw
files of various sizes
craft knives (x-acto)
Rough carve it as best as you can, then let it dry. After it's dry, sand and file the contours to get smoothness.