Just for fun: part of a tool I like too ;-)

[charangohabsburg]

I feel I have to open a new thread. Continuing here could be considered as thread hijacking...

Well, It's just a wooden fence for my plough plane, a bit fancier than this one but I hope mine will do the job as well

Record 43 Plough Plane with mermaid fence

There were two different thoughts that let me think of a mermaid on the wooden fence:

1)
Most people will think of a figurehead of old ships when thinking of a mermaid. But since 1983 Thomas Turino (an Ethno Musicologist) published his article The Charango and the "Sirena": Music, Magic, and the Power of Love, Latin American Music Review / Revista de Música Latinoamericana Vol. 4, No. 1 (Spring - Summer, 1983), pp. 81-119, every year there are some more charanguistas who learn that the mermaids made their way to some remote waterfalls in the Peruvian Andes, and that a couple of musicians who had heard of the existence of that had shaped their charangos as a mermaid. Those mermaid-charangos were never very common. Fortunately Thomas Turino wrote about them before they got forgotten forever.
Some years ago I also read Turino's article. That's how the mermaid has some more meaning to me than "just" greek mythology and old ships.

2)
I wanted to have more than just a square piece of wood screwed to the plane. The shape of Craig Clancy's wooden fence looks elegant and "fast". Of course I could have copied that one. The forward movement of the plough plane and it's sliding fence just called for some forward moving motif. And at a certain moment my thoughts about the fence and those of the charango mermaid collided, I can't say why. But I'm happy with the result considering I never before have carved not even a flower (just necks).

I mainly used several home made miniature chisels and gouges, a small (commercially available) carving gouge and a 3mm Japanese knife blade.

These are 2 tools (out of 4) I had to make for this carving. Both have the same cutting curve radius. The smaller one I made from a 3mm steel nail, the bigger one from the rear end of a 4mm drill bit.

[Allen]

That's a cracker. You've obviously got a bit too much time on your hands though. Perhaps you've been snowed in?

[Clancy]

Damn. Wish mine had boobs on it like yours.

Seriously, that's nicely worked! You'll be carving the soundboards like somogyi next.

[charangohabsburg]

Thanks for your kind comments.

Allen, unfortunately I'm not snowed in which of course would have me allowed to complete the mermaid two weeks earlier. I think having "too much" time is a pretty widespread "problem" amongst those who build instruments for fun and not for a living . Normally I'd just make my tools and jigs work. Usually they look quite ugly, and building them is not as much fun as it could or should be. With this one I found myself on the other extreme. Although, it was not that much work as you probably believe it had been. For me, the toughest and most time consuming part was getting the outlines right. I'm not a gifted drawer or painter, it's not for nothing I left the body and face just as a silhouette). Carving the scales was a matter of two or three hours - other people do meditation instead...

Craig, the boobs were the only reason why I carved the mermaid (don't tell anybody). Now I also know why the plough plane has a depth stop...
I think carving a soundboard is still a different kettle of fish. Somogyi's great artwork, to me it's not only inspiring but also pretty much intimidating, it's way beyond what I want to do (and what I would be able to do). But I have to admit that Martin's lute rose carving has encouraged me a lot. As the mermaid didn't require neither even one straight cut nor a cut at a 100% exact position, this was a piece of cake compared to Martin's lute rosette. But it was a good exercise for me. Maybe, sometime... But at the moment there's still a lot of repair work on my bench waiting to be done. No lute in sight at the moment.

[DarwinStrings]

Nice work Markus. My partner and the women she works with would love it, they are all active artists and they all paint and sculpt mermaids often as there subjects, They once put together a group exhibition called "Mermaids" and appeared in promotional pictures for the local paper in mermaid costumes. Next time I visit her at work I will show her and her work mates your plane, I'm sure they will be impressed.

Jim

Edit....I think I might add one of these to my Xmas list, it is not a Stanley but it is not a Stanley copy either.

[charangohabsburg]

Next time I visit her at work I will show her and her work mates your plane, I'm sure they will be impressed.

That honors me!

Edit....I think I might add one of these to my Xmas list, it is not a Stanley but it is not a Stanley copy either.

Plan ahead if it has to be Xmas . There are always some Record 43's around on ebay but most of them lack some parts such as blades and depth stop. There are also many 43's with flaked off nickel plating which would mean a pain to use them. Good luck!

[kiwigeo]

But I have to admit that Martin's lute rose carving has encouraged me a lot. As the mermaid didn't require neither even one straight cut nor a cut at a 100% exact position, this was a piece of cake compared to Martin's lute rosette.

The next rosette I do is going to have a pair of whopping great norks on it......thanks for the idea!

Very nice work on the mermaid....