[Baren]: The mailing list / discussion forum for woodblock printmaking.

Baren Digest              Wednesday, 3 March 1999      Volume 06 : Number 469

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From: "Jean D Parus" <ltz797@dreamscape.com>
Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 08:38:12 -0500
Subject: [Baren 3314] Re: wood prep 

Hi, John and all. I am a new member but thought that I would plunge right in
and agree and add a note about hand planes. Yes, I use scrapers though, I
first start with a smoothing plane. I use the american versions (Stanley and
Record) but I understand from reading David's article that there are
Japanese versions and that he sometimes avails himself of the services of
someone who does this exclusively? (I'm taking about the article about the
block maker.)I'm not clear on the differences between Japanese and American
planes but can get a glass smooth finish on cherry with relatively little
effort with the planer and scraper combo that we can get here in the states.
I only went to the trouble of getting the plane because like an earlier
message to Baren by Jean E. I got wood that was too wide for available
planer machines. I did not want to cut down a beautiful piece of wood ...
and what about getting a wider print?... so ... I went about planing it by
hand with readily available hand tools (found at Woodcraft supply, Stanley
Tools,Sears, hardware stores)and found that it wasn't hard at all. I also
would like to get what is called a scrub plane made by Record that
supposedly can take down rough lumber to the point where you use a jack or
smoothing plane.

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From: "Jean Eger" <jeaneger@LanMinds.Com>
Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 07:31:41 -0800
Subject: [Baren 3315] Re:   Baren Digest V6 #468

Hi John,
Do you have a photo or a diagram of the scrapers?

Jean Eger

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From: Gayle Wohlken <blueman@pantek.com>
Date: Tue, 02 Mar 1999 11:05:36 -0500
Subject: [Baren 3316] Re: Baren Digest V6 #467 

Okay, folks, here's what happened with the brush.
I soaked it overnight (remember I told you in Baren
or two ago) and went at it the next morning and still
it looked the same.  After looking at Dave's photo,
I went vigorously at it and tried the tapering thing and
did get some sort of rounded look on the brush.  It 
still feels pretty stiff, but I believe it is the brush itself
that is extremely stiff and that this is as good as it 
gets.  The shape is right, so I'm not going to wear the
brush down anymore.  By the way, like I told Dave
Stones in a private email message, I didn't mean to
soak it overnight.  I was going for two hours but something
came up (a rehearsal that took so long, I forgot about the
brush soaking away in my art room).  

Gayle

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From: "Jean D Parus" <ltz797@dreamscape.com>
Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 11:18:02 -0500
Subject: [Baren 3317] Re:   Baren Digest V6 #468 

Jean, hi ... This is Jean Parus. The scrapers that John is talking about are
pictured in the Woodcraft Supply catalog & their various uses are listed. I
'm not trying to advertise ... it's in the ency. I get a catalog every year
just as a reference tool ...

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From: amoss@mindspring.com (John Amoss)
Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 14:07:33 -0500 (EST)
Subject: [Baren 3318] scraper page 

To Jean E. and others interested in scrapers:
There is an excellent explanation of scraper sharpening and use with pics, see:

<http://www.wood-worker.com/articles/scrapers/index.htm>

***

The robins are in congress,
the buds are popping green
Dare I say I feel the stir
of a slowly waking spring?

- -John

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From: James G Mundie <jimandkatemundie@juno.com>
Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 14:14:13 -0500
Subject: [Baren 3319] At long last... here come the prints! 

It took me until four in the morning last night, but all the packages for
the exchange are wrapped and ready to go.  I'm sitting here now waiting
for the FedEx man to pick up those speedy packages.  Snail mail
(seventeen boxes!) will go out tomorrow on my way to work.

Many of you have probably been wondering, "What's the hold up?!"  Well,
as was to be expected, a couple of our participants ran into problems and
were a little late.  The final print arrived last week, but my working
space is very tiny and I couldn't lay out all of the stacks at once for
the sorting... and then, hey, life is busy!  My own schedule delayed
things a bit and kept the living room nice and cluttered for a few extra
days.  Then on Sunday night -- despite the best laid plans -- I ran out
of tape.  Such are the trifles of organizing an endeavor like this.

Anyway, I think you will find that all of the waiting to be worth it. 
This exchange has been a grand success and contains many handsome prints.
 Thanks to all of you who participated.  I hope all of the newbies who
took part were able to learn a great deal by jumping headlong into a
fairly large edition.  

For those of you wondering what all of the hullabaloo is about, you will
soon be able to see the results online as soon as Dave gets the chance to
upload them to the website.

So, just a few more days now and all of the "oohs" and "aahs" can begin!


Mise le meas,
James Mundie, Philadelphia USA

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From: Jack Reisland <reislandj001@hawaii.rr.com>
Date: Tue, 02 Mar 1999 11:12:43 +0000
Subject: [Baren 3320] Re: wood prep 

John Amoss wrote:
> I was wondering if anyone uses scrapers to give their blocks a nice finish?

My experience also suggests that a scraper is a much quicker and cleaner
method to surface wood, and results in a surface that is very similar to a
finely planed finish, as the burr on the scaper is actually cutting the wood
surface. Although the scraper is easier to learn to use than hand planing a
board to the same glassy finish, it cannot be thought of as a substitute for
planing. A scraper can only be used to finish a reletively smooth board, one
that has been planed either by hand or machine, or surface sander. Given the
small amount of wood that is removed with the scraper, to smooth a rough
board with it would take a very long time (and result in lots of blisters).
Also, it does take some practice to learn to use a scraper, and a bit more
practice to learn to properly sharpen one so that it holds an edge for any
length of time (maybe I'll learn that some day).

In answer to Jean, the main difference between a Western plane and Japanese
plane is that the Japanese plane, like Japanese saws, cut by being pulled
toward the user, instead of being pushed. Also, the Japanese plane has a much
heavier (thicker) blade than most American planes, and the blade is sharpened
at a smaller (sharper) angle, about 37-38 degrees for soft wood as opposed to
about 45 degrees for a western plane. This makes the blade much sharper, which
enables it to cut difficult grain with less tear-out, and leaves a glassy
smooth finish with no need for finish scraping, but it also makes it harder to
properly adjust the plane in the first place.

Anyway, good ideas! Some things still can't be replicated by machines.

Jack Reisland

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From: amoss@mindspring.com (John Amoss)
Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 16:56:57 -0500 (EST)
Subject: [Baren 3321] St. James 

James wrote:
>It took me until four in the morning...

Let's hear it for Mr. Mundie, Thanks for the effort!

Eventhough it sounds like an ordeal, I would be happy to volunteer and try
to fill James's shoes as coordinator for [Baren] Exchange 2000- unless
someone wants to fight me for the position...

I figure that way, due to rotation, I won't have to bother until the year 2028!

- -John

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From: David Bull <davebull@woodblock.com>
Date: Wed, 03 Mar 1999 11:47:01 +0900
Subject: [Baren 3322] Update ... 

Just a quick note about an update ...

The 'Who is Baren' page has been updated with some thumbnails from
Lynita Shimizu, and I think I've finally got the bugs out of the slide
show ...

http://www.woodblock.com/forum/who.html

Dave

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From: Wanda Robertson <robertson@canby.com>
Date: Tue, 02 Mar 1999 19:23:36 -0700
Subject: [Baren 3323] Re: At long last... here come the prints! 

James G Mundie wrote:
> This exchange has been a grand success and contains many handsome prints.

I'm sure that I speak for all of us late-comers to Baren:

I can hardly wait to see what this group has produced. And I sure hope
this becomes a yearly event. I hope to participate in the next one!

Wanda

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From: "Bea Gold" <bnjgold@ix.netcom.com>
Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 19:54:59 -0800
Subject: [Baren 3324] Re: Update ...  

Thank you, David for the update - I loved looking at everyone's work and
trying to identify people after reading their messages for the past few
weeks - is there a place to read about the print exchange?  Did no one on
Baren know Frans Masereel's work?

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From: April Vollmer/John Yamaguchi <jy6@columbia.edu>
Date: Wed, 3 Mar 1999 00:22:02 -0400
Subject: [Baren 3325] Melodrama 

Just kidding with the Pity and Scorn! I like to be melodramatic sometimes!
Great responses on the maru bake and the shark stretching. It is practical
information that his hard to come by! I love to hear what the Japanese
craftsmen are thinking about, too (like the whole-shark vs useful part of
shark debate). Thank you so much!

Now I suppose I ought to re-burn some of my older brushes, since we're
talking about it!

April Vollmer

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From: "Gregory D. Valentine" <gvalen@linfield.edu>
Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 20:16:16 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [Baren 3326] slide show 

  Dave, that's really wonderful.... it's great to set images and faces to
names, and whets my appetite for more (after all, it's a little difficult
to discuss images with only words.)     --GV

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From: Wanda Robertson <robertson@canby.com>
Date: Tue, 02 Mar 1999 20:22:11 -0700
Subject: [Baren 3327] Re: Update ... 

Hi Bea,

I know of Frans Masereels works - just returned a book about him to the
library. I loved the ones he did of flocks of flying birds outside his
studio windows. Full of vigorous energy - very strong images.

Oooooh! Lynita, I love your prints! Particulary the "Common Grackles"
The birds may be common but your print certainly isn't!

Thanks Dave! You are the glue that holds us together.

I loved hearing about what kind of computer stuff everyone uses. I use a
Mac clone (Powerbase 180) with a Microtek E-3 scanner, and a HP 550c
printer. I would like to get a newer printer, but am waiting for my
prices to be met! I now have a new digital camera (Toshiba PDR M1) which
I am learning to use.  I don't have a web page up yet - but plan to do
that this year for sure! Have fiddled around with "Personal Page" and
with Claris, but still not sure I have it right!

Wanda

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From: Graham Scholes <gscholes@home.com>
Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 20:33:05 -0800
Subject: [Baren 3328] Re: slide show 

Gregory wrote....
>  it's a little difficult to discuss images with only words.)

Try to discuss colour with only words.  That's a challenge.

Graham

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From: agatha <agatha@uswest.net>
Date: Tue, 02 Mar 1999 21:50:43 -0800
Subject: [Baren 3329] Re: Update ... 

David Bull wrote:
> The 'Who is Baren' page has been updated with some thumbnails from
> Lynita Shimizu

wow.  now i feel really bad about my skill level in woodcuts.  someday,
maybe i can aspire to all of your heights.  very beautiful work.

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End of Baren Digest V6 #469
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