WoodworkingPlaneteverything related to wood and woodworking

The great thing about woodturning is that almost any kind of wood works… scraps from other projects, logs from your backyard, or anything really.

But one of the best ways to get started is with ready made blanks.  You can make bowls from any wood, but wood bowl blanks are the best option because you can buy them in specific sizes that are pre-cut and ready to go on your lathe.

Also, you can find all kinds of wood bowl blanks.  You are limited if you only use local woods, but you can find woods from all over the world if you get ready made blanks (everything from maple to walnut to cocobolo to ebony).

It can be hard finding wood bowl blanks locally, though.  If there is a large wood supplier then you may be able to work something out.  But most areas don’t have such places.

Woodworking specialty stores are the best option, such as Woodcraft or Rockler.  If you have one of these stores in your area, you can go there and look at all the blanks and pick one out.  But they have an even bigger stock with more variety if you shop online.

The only downside to these blanks is that they don’t usually have bark, so you can’t have that “natural edge” look if that is your favorite style.  But still, if you enjoy woodturning, then do yourself a favor and try some nice wood bowl blanks for your next projects.

Chainsaw wood carving is something that has always interested me, but something I’ve never really tried to do.  I remember going to the county fair when I was younger, and there was always one guy carving things with a chainsaw.

If you are skilled, you can make some really cool looking things with very intricate details.  But obviously, you do need skill and practice so you don’t carve yourself with the chainsaw too!

If chainsaw wood carving is something then you are interested in, then you will probably want some help.  It would be best to get some hands-on training with a more experienced person that has done this.

But if that is not an option, there are books and videos that will give you a good idea of what to do (and how to do it safely).  You could just go experimenting with a chainsaw and some scrap logs, but you might want to find out more details first, such as:

• What kind of chainsaw is the best to use for carving?
• What other kinds of tools do you need?
• What type of wood is best?
• Wood finishing and other details

If you want some information about chainsaw wood carving, I’d recommend doing a quick search online and getting a cheap guide or video to walk you through some important lessons.