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From the pages of Fine Woodworking Magazine
Carving an Egg and Dart Molding
With two gouges and a mallet, you can make this classic design
by Lee Grindinger
You can find dozens of versions of egg-and-dart molding. It's a terrific first or second molding for a cornice, and it's great for picture and door frames and on the lip of a table. I use two chisels to carve the version shown here: a 1/2-in. #6 gouge and a 3/8-in. #3 gouge.
On 3/4-in. stock, start by shaping an edge with a 1/2-in. radius roundover bit and leave a 1/8-in. step on the top. To lay out the pattern, set a compass at 1-1/8 in. and mark centerlines on the top face of the molding along the length of the stock. These marks represent the center of the eggs. Set your compass at 1/2 in. and draw full arcs centered on those marks. These arcs represent the collars around the eggs. To define the eggs, set your compass at 3/8 in. and mark either side of the same center point.
The mallet work for this molding is next. Set the #6 gouge vertically on the upper part of the molding, with one corner on the 3/8-in. mark and the other corner hovering over the center at the bottom of the arc. Give the chisel a swift blow and move on to the next egg. I normally work six eggs at a time. When you reach the last egg, turn the chisel around and go the other way to cut the remaining 3/8-in. marks. Change the angle on the chisel handle and chop out a 1/8-in.-deep groove that defines the edge of each egg. After that, very lightly strike the chisel (held vertically to the molding) to score the outside of the collar. Be careful not to break the thin collar.
Put away the mallet; the rest is handwork. Angle the chisel first left, then right, to cut the finished depth around the eggs. The chisel will leave a clean face on the collars, and you can rough out the eggs by angling the chisel from different directions. Use the same right-left series of cuts to finish the fragile collars, inside and out. Then use the corner of the same chisel to shape the darts, taking care to make them symmetrical. Switch to the #3 gouge to remove material around the dart and the lower edge of the collar. Clean out any chips with the #6 gouge and a toothbrush.
Lee Grindinger builds carved furniture in his shop in Livingston, 0Montana (Visit his Web site at www.furniturecarver.com).
Photos: William Duckworth
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Carving Techniques and Projects
In this video, you'll discover the basics of woodcarving, see how to carve an 18th-century scallop shell and gain an understanding of the production techniques of that era
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How to Carve Wood
Richard Bütz shows you the techniques you need for whittling, chip carving, wildlife carving, relief carving, lettering and architectural carving
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