I thought I had a thread here on my small olive. Guess I was mistaken.

Got this in fall some 2 years ago. As often, these larger olives are a nuisance in winter so you can get them affordably..

So in 2018:


After initial work on the blunt chop and some wiring in summer 2018:


Then, earlier this spring I decided to do some work on the deadwood

Rough cuts with a chainsaw:


Then the finer work with a carving tool:

Well, when you say big it IS big!
Nice woodwork, LB. I guess with some ramification this Olive will be a killer tree!
Difficult to get olives around here, but I am told they are slow growers, is that right?

I find they grow fast but thicken slowly?
This year the weather is iffy here though, swapping between 13 and 26c from day to day and I cannot get the olives to really pick up any growth.

How did you harden the woodwork after carving it?
Lime sulfur? Commercial wood hardener? Fire from a torch? Nothing?

Nothing at all. It is an olive after all. Olives have very hard wood when dried out.
I did use a small kitchen torch to burn away small fibers.

How do you go about designing the hollowing out? Did you just take a little out, step back, take a little out, and repeat for a long time?

i am about to start serious deadwood/carving with my 50 year boxwood. This is something I have never done before so I want to know how to design and how to carve before I start. A strange concept.

I first cut a line in the bark for the rough shape to be taken off. Looked at it from the right angle, made some adjustments. Then I used the chainsaw to cut that rought shape off. The rest was a lot of setting a line. Cleaning out. Looking from a distance and continuing.

During the carving I tried to follow the lines in the wood. THat way when it starts to crack, hopefully, the carving lines will coincide with the cracks. And I made some hollows of spots where branches were attached, again taking note of the shapes in the bark and underlying wood to set the shape. Working with ever finer tools.

I am planning on taking way more out though. But first the tree needs to accept this work. I feel that also here, taking away living wood, one should spread it over a few seasons.

I’m really onto carving videos if you don’t mind to share with us one of your work on the future... : )

Could be silent, just with the noise of the tools and the wood.. (fav.)
Could be tutorial style..
Could be pimped with music and effects..

Doesn’t matter, just carving

If I ever figure out how to make a decent video..

But this was several hours worth..

[quote="leatherback" post=50369Then I used the chainsaw to cut that rought shape off.

Working with ever finer tools.
.[/quote]

Around here, "chainsaw" means something for cutting a tree or limb a foot or larger in diameter, that is close to half a meter. I was thinking more in terms of chisels and Dremel tools, maybe a power drill to start off.

Does chainsaw mean something two feet or 2/3 meter long? I don't think I could do anything artistic with mine.