1 00:00:00,866 --> 00:00:02,533 (jaunty music) 2 00:00:05,266 --> 00:00:07,300 - Welcome to "The Volunteer Woodworker". 3 00:00:07,300 --> 00:00:09,333 I'm your host Charles Brock. 4 00:00:09,333 --> 00:00:12,133 Come with me as we drive the back roads, 5 00:00:12,133 --> 00:00:16,033 bringing you the story of America's finest woodworkers. 6 00:00:16,033 --> 00:00:18,566 (jaunty music) 7 00:00:25,700 --> 00:00:29,100 (jaunty music continues) 8 00:00:34,933 --> 00:00:38,700 We are going to Memphis, Tennessee to meet Kerry Smith. 9 00:00:40,633 --> 00:00:45,566 Kerry found himself in need of healing, so he returned 10 00:00:46,933 --> 00:00:50,733 to carving birds like duck decoys, eagles and owls, 11 00:00:52,066 --> 00:00:53,600 and he became an acclaimed master of the art. 12 00:00:55,000 --> 00:00:57,100 Let's meet Kerry Smith. 13 00:00:57,100 --> 00:00:59,633 (jaunty music) 14 00:01:02,166 --> 00:01:03,466 - [Narrator] "Volunteer Woodworker" 15 00:01:03,466 --> 00:01:04,766 is funded in part by. 16 00:01:05,900 --> 00:01:08,266 Since 1970, Whiteside Machine Company 17 00:01:08,266 --> 00:01:10,766 has been producing industrial grade router bits 18 00:01:10,766 --> 00:01:12,466 in Claremont, North Carolina. 19 00:01:12,466 --> 00:01:15,833 Whiteside makes carbide bits for edge forming, grooving 20 00:01:15,833 --> 00:01:17,700 and CNC application. 21 00:01:17,700 --> 00:01:20,500 Learn more at whitesiderouterbits.com. 22 00:01:22,066 --> 00:01:25,700 Real Milk Paint company makes VOC-free, non-toxic Milk Paint 23 00:01:25,700 --> 00:01:27,966 available in 56 colors. 24 00:01:27,966 --> 00:01:30,233 Milk Paint creates a matte wood finish 25 00:01:30,233 --> 00:01:32,500 that can be distressed for an antique look. 26 00:01:35,200 --> 00:01:37,766 Good Wood Nashville designs custom furniture 27 00:01:37,766 --> 00:01:40,366 and is a supplier of vintage hardwoods. 28 00:01:41,866 --> 00:01:44,566 Keri Price with Keller Williams Realty has been assisting 29 00:01:44,566 --> 00:01:48,766 middle Tennessee home buyers and sellers since 2013. 30 00:01:48,766 --> 00:01:50,333 Mayfield Hardwood Lumber. 31 00:01:51,766 --> 00:01:54,433 Supplying Appalachian hardwoods worldwide. 32 00:01:56,866 --> 00:01:58,366 Anna's Creative Lens. 33 00:02:02,766 --> 00:02:07,733 - Well, I'm eye-to-eye with what soon will be 34 00:02:08,533 --> 00:02:10,200 a duck, like a decoy. 35 00:02:10,200 --> 00:02:11,900 - Yes, it will. Yeah. - Kerry Smith. 36 00:02:11,900 --> 00:02:14,833 - Hi Chuck. - Yeah. Thank you. 37 00:02:14,833 --> 00:02:17,400 This is just marvelous. 38 00:02:17,400 --> 00:02:21,000 And look at your great work back there. 39 00:02:21,000 --> 00:02:23,133 I saw pictures of your work. 40 00:02:23,133 --> 00:02:25,400 In fact, you sent me some pictures. 41 00:02:25,400 --> 00:02:27,100 I opened them up 42 00:02:27,100 --> 00:02:31,833 and I said, this guy has got to be on the show. 43 00:02:31,833 --> 00:02:32,900 - Well, thank you. - Yeah. 44 00:02:32,900 --> 00:02:34,766 - Thank you. - What artistry. 45 00:02:34,766 --> 00:02:39,500 - Thank you so much. It certainly is a calling, Chuck. 46 00:02:39,500 --> 00:02:42,033 I think you and I talked about this earlier 47 00:02:42,033 --> 00:02:45,433 of how artists are just called 48 00:02:45,433 --> 00:02:50,966 into this wonderful craft that we have. 49 00:02:50,966 --> 00:02:55,900 And it started for me back in 1982 is when it started. 50 00:02:57,000 --> 00:02:59,966 I walked into a shop in Gatlinburg 51 00:02:59,966 --> 00:03:03,600 and there was a duck that was there. 52 00:03:03,600 --> 00:03:08,566 Not unlike this guy. This is a canvasback, it's a Drake. 53 00:03:09,333 --> 00:03:11,500 And I was hooked. 54 00:03:11,500 --> 00:03:15,433 I was just enamored with it and stayed there, 55 00:03:15,433 --> 00:03:17,600 I probably stayed in the shop for about an hour 56 00:03:17,600 --> 00:03:21,300 or so, just looking at the bird, holding it. 57 00:03:21,300 --> 00:03:25,766 And I said to myself, there, I wanna learn how to do that. 58 00:03:27,000 --> 00:03:31,933 And so I go home, I start getting knives 59 00:03:32,833 --> 00:03:35,366 and I start ordering books. 60 00:03:35,366 --> 00:03:38,066 And that's how it all began. 61 00:03:38,066 --> 00:03:41,400 And that's been 43 years ago, I think. 62 00:03:41,400 --> 00:03:44,533 - So you were completely immersed all of a sudden- 63 00:03:44,533 --> 00:03:45,766 - Yes. 64 00:03:45,766 --> 00:03:49,633 - In this art that became your passion. 65 00:03:49,633 --> 00:03:51,300 - Right. And it did. 66 00:03:51,300 --> 00:03:53,033 So much so, as a matter of fact 67 00:03:53,033 --> 00:03:58,033 that it at one point where most people have dogs 68 00:03:58,800 --> 00:04:00,500 and cats as pets, 69 00:04:00,500 --> 00:04:04,933 well, we had an aviary in our backyard that was filled 70 00:04:04,933 --> 00:04:09,166 with ducks, with canvasbacks and other kind of ducks. 71 00:04:09,166 --> 00:04:11,133 And I would go out there 72 00:04:11,133 --> 00:04:15,666 and that became almost a teacher for me. 73 00:04:15,666 --> 00:04:18,600 It was being able to be close to those ducks. 74 00:04:18,600 --> 00:04:22,366 I would get into a barrel down inside of that pen. 75 00:04:22,366 --> 00:04:25,400 So the ducks were just eye level with me. 76 00:04:25,400 --> 00:04:29,200 And I had a little pool that was there, a little pond. 77 00:04:31,600 --> 00:04:32,966 And I would walk into the pen of course, 78 00:04:32,966 --> 00:04:35,133 and with my height, I would scare them 79 00:04:35,133 --> 00:04:37,333 and they would go to the back of the pen. 80 00:04:37,333 --> 00:04:40,066 But then I would get down inside of a barrel 81 00:04:40,066 --> 00:04:41,633 and the ducks would just pile in 82 00:04:41,633 --> 00:04:45,600 and just be like, this far from me. 83 00:04:45,600 --> 00:04:49,566 And I learned so much, just being able to watch them. 84 00:04:49,566 --> 00:04:51,566 - So you started studying, 85 00:04:51,566 --> 00:04:54,233 you immersed yourself in everything ducks. 86 00:04:54,233 --> 00:04:55,666 - Everything that I could get. 87 00:04:55,666 --> 00:04:57,600 I was quacky so to speak. 88 00:04:57,600 --> 00:05:02,400 You know, I just, I was just immersed in them 89 00:05:02,400 --> 00:05:07,000 and I don't know what, now I did grow up hunting ducks, 90 00:05:07,000 --> 00:05:11,800 but that kind of changed when they became my pets. 91 00:05:11,800 --> 00:05:16,000 And in the aviary that we had, the ducks would swim 92 00:05:16,000 --> 00:05:18,633 around and I would learn. 93 00:05:18,633 --> 00:05:20,633 Now, I didn't take a lot of pictures, 94 00:05:20,633 --> 00:05:23,500 but in my mind I would learn, you know, 95 00:05:23,500 --> 00:05:24,966 just their personalities. 96 00:05:24,966 --> 00:05:26,533 And believe it or not, 97 00:05:26,533 --> 00:05:30,300 every duck has its own personality. 98 00:05:30,300 --> 00:05:32,633 It will respond to different things. 99 00:05:32,633 --> 00:05:35,733 And so that's a part of the creating. 100 00:05:35,733 --> 00:05:40,533 I want to create that duck so that it has some of those 101 00:05:40,533 --> 00:05:43,866 things that I saw, some of the traits that I saw. 102 00:05:43,866 --> 00:05:46,966 So the duck, the decoy is not just a decoy, 103 00:05:48,200 --> 00:05:49,900 it has personality. 104 00:05:49,900 --> 00:05:51,266 - It does. 105 00:05:51,266 --> 00:05:55,500 And few people know this, but all bird carving 106 00:05:57,600 --> 00:05:59,766 came from the tradition 107 00:05:59,766 --> 00:06:04,066 of carving decoys back in the middle 1800's. 108 00:06:04,066 --> 00:06:07,366 That's where all of the art came from for carving 109 00:06:07,366 --> 00:06:09,466 and creating birds today. 110 00:06:09,466 --> 00:06:11,500 - And so there was utility at that time. 111 00:06:11,500 --> 00:06:14,266 - There was. - Now are yours, 112 00:06:14,266 --> 00:06:16,133 as beautiful as they are, 113 00:06:16,133 --> 00:06:19,433 do they end up being decoys floating on a pond? 114 00:06:19,433 --> 00:06:24,400 - Well, I do create some decoys that can be used hunting. 115 00:06:26,566 --> 00:06:29,566 But the funny thing about that, I probably have created, 116 00:06:29,566 --> 00:06:33,433 I don't know, 30 to 35 pair of 117 00:06:34,333 --> 00:06:36,233 male and female mallards. 118 00:06:37,633 --> 00:06:41,500 And I have yet to have anyone to put them in the water 119 00:06:41,500 --> 00:06:44,066 to hunt over them because they're just, 120 00:06:44,066 --> 00:06:46,333 they're beautiful works of art. 121 00:06:46,333 --> 00:06:48,033 - [Chuck] So they end up on the coffee table 122 00:06:48,033 --> 00:06:49,733 or on the credenza 123 00:06:49,733 --> 00:06:52,000 or, yeah. - Yeah, yeah. 124 00:06:52,000 --> 00:06:53,966 - That, that's great. 125 00:06:53,966 --> 00:06:58,566 Now, when you were immersed in your studies, 126 00:06:58,566 --> 00:07:01,166 you got into a barrel? 127 00:07:01,166 --> 00:07:02,700 - I did. 128 00:07:02,700 --> 00:07:05,400 I would crawl down in it so that I could get eye level. 129 00:07:05,400 --> 00:07:09,600 As a matter of fact, a pair of the canvasbacks that I had, 130 00:07:09,600 --> 00:07:14,400 they loved, loved earthworms. 131 00:07:14,400 --> 00:07:17,500 And so I would walk out of my house and they would watch me 132 00:07:17,500 --> 00:07:20,700 and I would go dig earthworms. 133 00:07:20,700 --> 00:07:23,900 And while the other ducks were getting away, 134 00:07:23,900 --> 00:07:26,766 the canvasbacks would come to the edge of the aviary 135 00:07:26,766 --> 00:07:31,066 and wait for me to get in the barrel to feed them earth. 136 00:07:31,066 --> 00:07:34,033 They would eat earthworms from my fingers. 137 00:07:34,033 --> 00:07:36,300 - Yeah. - That's a great study. 138 00:07:36,300 --> 00:07:40,233 - Kerry, you've been immersed in the water before 139 00:07:40,233 --> 00:07:42,166 and it was inspiring also. 140 00:07:42,166 --> 00:07:43,200 Can you tell us about that? 141 00:07:43,200 --> 00:07:43,966 - Certainly. 142 00:07:45,300 --> 00:07:50,000 I'm an ordained minister and spent time in Montana 143 00:07:51,833 --> 00:07:55,233 as a new church planter along with my wife Karen, 144 00:07:56,700 --> 00:07:59,166 and have been a new church starting strategist as well. 145 00:08:00,333 --> 00:08:04,333 I believe that all of us as artists 146 00:08:04,333 --> 00:08:07,266 have that gift of strategy. 147 00:08:07,266 --> 00:08:09,500 In other words, we look at something 148 00:08:09,500 --> 00:08:14,000 and our mind automatically goes to how do we create 149 00:08:14,000 --> 00:08:16,400 that which we have just seen? 150 00:08:16,400 --> 00:08:20,433 - And then you had some, life always has adversity, 151 00:08:20,433 --> 00:08:24,000 but then you had some real adversity. 152 00:08:24,000 --> 00:08:28,966 And tell us about that and how duck carving his helped. 153 00:08:30,233 --> 00:08:31,066 - Sure. 154 00:08:31,066 --> 00:08:32,933 Well, yeah. 155 00:08:32,933 --> 00:08:35,933 Life does give us our challenges 156 00:08:36,900 --> 00:08:40,266 and I have injured my back 157 00:08:40,266 --> 00:08:44,333 and have had 35 surgeries and procedures. 158 00:08:44,333 --> 00:08:47,233 - Wow. - And that has always 159 00:08:47,233 --> 00:08:48,600 hindered my ability. 160 00:08:48,600 --> 00:08:51,200 I couldn't go as fast as I would like to. 161 00:08:51,200 --> 00:08:54,433 I couldn't sit down for as long as I would like to. 162 00:08:55,966 --> 00:08:58,700 But it has always been a constant, 163 00:08:58,700 --> 00:09:00,700 even there, there was a time 164 00:09:03,233 --> 00:09:07,033 that I was lying on my back in bed after a surgery 165 00:09:07,033 --> 00:09:09,633 and I had a duck in my hand 166 00:09:09,633 --> 00:09:12,266 and I was literally with a knife carving 167 00:09:12,266 --> 00:09:15,066 that duck while I was lying back. 168 00:09:16,600 --> 00:09:20,000 And shavings were all over my chest and all over the bed. 169 00:09:21,366 --> 00:09:26,100 But that he helped me to get through that adversity. 170 00:09:27,000 --> 00:09:28,033 - That was your place to go? 171 00:09:28,033 --> 00:09:29,100 - My place to go. Yes. 172 00:09:29,100 --> 00:09:30,833 Yeah. - Isn't it interesting 173 00:09:30,833 --> 00:09:35,800 how the art that one pursues is also the therapy 174 00:09:36,433 --> 00:09:38,700 that they need? 175 00:09:38,700 --> 00:09:41,766 - Exactly. It really, really is. 176 00:09:41,766 --> 00:09:44,766 This is not your work. - Right, right. 177 00:09:45,833 --> 00:09:47,500 But this is a study- - Darn it. 178 00:09:47,500 --> 00:09:48,866 - It's a study bird. 179 00:09:48,866 --> 00:09:53,066 It is, it is a way to, to be able to envision how 180 00:09:53,066 --> 00:09:56,166 to find that bird in the piece of wood. 181 00:09:56,166 --> 00:09:57,866 - Yes. - And make it look 182 00:09:57,866 --> 00:09:59,866 and almost feel real. 183 00:09:59,866 --> 00:10:03,166 - I loved your analogy just then about finding that bird in 184 00:10:03,166 --> 00:10:06,166 that piece of wood, 'cause that's almost what it is. 185 00:10:06,166 --> 00:10:10,533 It's finding that bird inside of that wood. 186 00:10:10,533 --> 00:10:12,866 I know that that bird is in there. 187 00:10:12,866 --> 00:10:17,833 I can almost see that bird in that piece of wood. 188 00:10:18,966 --> 00:10:21,533 I really, in my mind's eye, I can see 189 00:10:21,533 --> 00:10:24,633 before I get there, what I want to do. 190 00:10:24,633 --> 00:10:27,500 And I will begin removing the wood to get there. 191 00:10:27,500 --> 00:10:30,566 This is a little hen, green wing teal. 192 00:10:30,566 --> 00:10:35,566 And if I was carving a hen green wing teal, this would be 193 00:10:37,300 --> 00:10:39,200 so important to me. 194 00:10:39,200 --> 00:10:42,100 First of all, it's important for the colors. 195 00:10:42,100 --> 00:10:46,066 Now the anatomy as such, it is not 196 00:10:46,066 --> 00:10:48,800 as important from a taxidermy bird. 197 00:10:48,800 --> 00:10:51,266 Taxidermy is an art form. 198 00:10:51,266 --> 00:10:56,200 And sometimes that artist is mounting a bird with an idea 199 00:10:57,566 --> 00:11:00,633 that the anatomy is correct in his mind's eye. 200 00:11:02,133 --> 00:11:05,466 - Well, you know, it, first impression is it's all 201 00:11:05,466 --> 00:11:07,366 brown, but it's not. 202 00:11:07,366 --> 00:11:09,033 - Right. - There are a lot 203 00:11:09,033 --> 00:11:12,766 of different shades of- - Yes, there are. 204 00:11:12,766 --> 00:11:13,600 - That go into that. - Yeah. 205 00:11:13,600 --> 00:11:14,900 Yes. 206 00:11:14,900 --> 00:11:17,000 And in the, there are carving competitions 207 00:11:17,000 --> 00:11:19,100 that happen around the United States, 208 00:11:19,100 --> 00:11:20,733 and there's the world championship 209 00:11:20,733 --> 00:11:24,466 that happens in Ocean City, Maryland in April. 210 00:11:24,466 --> 00:11:28,366 And oftentimes a hen will 211 00:11:28,366 --> 00:11:33,333 beat all of those colorful Drakes to win best of show. 212 00:11:34,666 --> 00:11:38,733 The reason is, in order to get one to look right, 213 00:11:40,133 --> 00:11:44,333 you've got to spend the time to paint those feathers. 214 00:11:44,333 --> 00:11:48,466 - Wow. - And that is no easy process. 215 00:11:48,466 --> 00:11:51,833 And it, you know, that's, that's probably four 216 00:11:51,833 --> 00:11:56,766 or five different colors for each, for each feather. 217 00:11:57,733 --> 00:11:59,233 Four or five different colors. 218 00:11:59,233 --> 00:12:01,233 And also, if you notice the speculum, 219 00:12:01,233 --> 00:12:04,400 which is the colorful part to a duck, 220 00:12:05,400 --> 00:12:07,600 look at the green that's there. 221 00:12:07,600 --> 00:12:09,233 - I didn't even know that was there. 222 00:12:09,233 --> 00:12:10,766 - Yeah. - Yeah. 223 00:12:10,766 --> 00:12:14,066 - That green is just, you know, when I think of carving one, 224 00:12:14,066 --> 00:12:17,600 I want to be able to highlight that green that's there. 225 00:12:17,600 --> 00:12:19,366 It's a green winged teal. 226 00:12:19,366 --> 00:12:22,100 Well, I wanna make sure that that green 227 00:12:22,100 --> 00:12:24,600 is shown in the carving that I do. 228 00:12:24,600 --> 00:12:27,166 (jaunty music) 229 00:12:33,600 --> 00:12:37,000 (jaunty music continues) 230 00:12:43,400 --> 00:12:46,766 (jaunty music continues) 231 00:12:53,400 --> 00:12:56,733 (jaunty music continues) 232 00:12:58,566 --> 00:13:01,700 - Well, Kerry, we've got this Tupelo Gum, 233 00:13:01,700 --> 00:13:06,333 which seems like it's the perfect material. 234 00:13:06,333 --> 00:13:09,733 And what do we do next to get a bird out of this? 235 00:13:09,733 --> 00:13:11,833 - We start with a pattern 236 00:13:11,833 --> 00:13:14,133 that will have two different views to it, 237 00:13:14,133 --> 00:13:18,033 the overview and then the side view. 238 00:13:18,033 --> 00:13:19,400 And let's pretend for a second 239 00:13:19,400 --> 00:13:21,600 that this block was actually big enough to 240 00:13:21,600 --> 00:13:24,000 where we could draw those two. 241 00:13:24,000 --> 00:13:26,133 But you can kind of tell here. 242 00:13:26,133 --> 00:13:27,300 - Yeah. It's a profile. 243 00:13:27,300 --> 00:13:28,666 - Yeah, it's a profile of the duck. 244 00:13:28,666 --> 00:13:31,033 And let's say that that wood was a little higher, 245 00:13:31,033 --> 00:13:33,400 so it could do be one piece. 246 00:13:33,400 --> 00:13:34,833 - Right. - The block of wood 247 00:13:34,833 --> 00:13:36,600 that that came out of was big enough 248 00:13:36,600 --> 00:13:37,800 for the head and the body. 249 00:13:37,800 --> 00:13:41,733 A lot of times I will carve the head 250 00:13:41,733 --> 00:13:44,800 and the body separately. 251 00:13:44,800 --> 00:13:48,433 And the purpose for that is that I can just sit 252 00:13:48,433 --> 00:13:51,333 and focus on the detail of 253 00:13:51,333 --> 00:13:54,700 that particular bird's face. 254 00:13:54,700 --> 00:13:59,633 I believe that you find liveliness, life in wood when you 255 00:14:03,600 --> 00:14:08,066 can copy the face of your subject. 256 00:14:09,066 --> 00:14:12,100 So we will do the side view 257 00:14:12,100 --> 00:14:15,066 and then we would do the top. 258 00:14:15,066 --> 00:14:16,900 - Yep. - And I would trace them 259 00:14:16,900 --> 00:14:18,433 off with a pencil 260 00:14:18,433 --> 00:14:22,966 and then get on the band saw and turn the band bandsaw on 261 00:14:22,966 --> 00:14:26,000 and cut out that block of wood. 262 00:14:26,000 --> 00:14:29,466 - And so from there, there's a lot of work. 263 00:14:29,466 --> 00:14:33,966 - There is a lot of work, and the tools are just many. 264 00:14:33,966 --> 00:14:36,033 But I've often said that, 265 00:14:37,433 --> 00:14:40,500 that this is the most important tool that I have. 266 00:14:40,500 --> 00:14:44,333 I bought it in 1984, I think. 267 00:14:44,333 --> 00:14:46,466 A Cajun carver had made it. 268 00:14:46,466 --> 00:14:48,033 And I've often said that if the shop, 269 00:14:48,033 --> 00:14:52,600 if my shop ever burned down, I'm going in to get this knife. 270 00:14:52,600 --> 00:14:54,200 - Wow. - Because it just, 271 00:14:54,200 --> 00:14:56,966 I mean, it is so sharp. 272 00:14:56,966 --> 00:14:58,300 You can see how it just. 273 00:14:59,733 --> 00:15:00,466 - Yeah. 274 00:15:02,366 --> 00:15:04,933 And those are nice cuts too. 275 00:15:04,933 --> 00:15:07,200 I mean there, the idea I guess is 276 00:15:07,200 --> 00:15:08,833 to be very clean when you cut. 277 00:15:08,833 --> 00:15:10,133 - Yeah. 278 00:15:10,133 --> 00:15:12,233 Well, it's, you, it's one of those things 279 00:15:12,233 --> 00:15:14,500 that you learn to do over time 280 00:15:14,500 --> 00:15:19,466 and you can see how it just. 281 00:15:19,466 --> 00:15:20,266 - [Chuck] Yeah. 282 00:15:21,666 --> 00:15:26,000 - And whereas a lot of people will use electric tools 283 00:15:26,000 --> 00:15:29,200 to get to the place of 284 00:15:29,200 --> 00:15:31,966 where they can start doing this, 285 00:15:31,966 --> 00:15:34,600 sanding and creating feathers. 286 00:15:36,833 --> 00:15:39,666 It does not necessarily save time. 287 00:15:39,666 --> 00:15:43,233 The problem is with those nice, electric tools, 288 00:15:43,233 --> 00:15:45,433 with those fancy bits in them, 289 00:15:47,566 --> 00:15:51,033 they end up taking too much wood off. 290 00:15:51,033 --> 00:15:54,233 And lo and behold, you've got a really nice piece 291 00:15:54,233 --> 00:15:56,600 of firewood if you're not careful. 292 00:15:56,600 --> 00:15:57,900 (Chuck laughing) 293 00:15:57,900 --> 00:16:00,966 - But Kerry, now we need to make it look alive. 294 00:16:00,966 --> 00:16:04,433 And that's what gets me about your work. 295 00:16:04,433 --> 00:16:07,833 It looks alive, it looks like it's fixing to fly away. 296 00:16:07,833 --> 00:16:10,233 - Well, I wish I could say to you 297 00:16:10,233 --> 00:16:15,200 that this is something that is done overnight, but it's not. 298 00:16:16,533 --> 00:16:20,200 It takes a lot of time to take that block of wood 299 00:16:20,200 --> 00:16:24,466 that you have carved and or that you've cut out. 300 00:16:24,466 --> 00:16:28,800 It takes a lot of time to go from that cutout 301 00:16:28,800 --> 00:16:32,700 to a place where the bird looks alive 302 00:16:32,700 --> 00:16:36,200 and it has to be done simply and slowly. 303 00:16:36,200 --> 00:16:39,466 And it, and I think it was Michelangelo that said 304 00:16:40,533 --> 00:16:45,400 that you cut once and look twice. 305 00:16:47,266 --> 00:16:50,133 That applies here. 306 00:16:50,133 --> 00:16:53,866 It's a matter of looking and understanding. 307 00:16:53,866 --> 00:16:58,833 Once again, I spoke earlier about the aviary that I had. 308 00:16:59,900 --> 00:17:02,633 Well, I need to know if I'm going 309 00:17:02,633 --> 00:17:05,866 to be carving, like this is a little bufflehead. 310 00:17:05,866 --> 00:17:09,333 If I'm going to be carving that bufflehead, what is it 311 00:17:09,333 --> 00:17:11,466 that makes that bufflehead unique? 312 00:17:13,033 --> 00:17:17,033 Sometimes I'll even do a clay model of that particular bird. 313 00:17:18,166 --> 00:17:22,233 And because the reason I do clay, 314 00:17:22,233 --> 00:17:25,933 you can always put clay on a model 315 00:17:25,933 --> 00:17:27,900 and take clay off. 316 00:17:27,900 --> 00:17:31,133 But if you use wood 317 00:17:31,133 --> 00:17:33,800 and you have questions about what you're doing, 318 00:17:33,800 --> 00:17:37,000 and you take that wood off, once again, 319 00:17:37,000 --> 00:17:39,266 you got a nice piece of firewood. 320 00:17:39,266 --> 00:17:40,666 (Chuck chuckling) 321 00:17:40,666 --> 00:17:45,066 - Can you show us how you make it look so real? 322 00:17:46,000 --> 00:17:46,700 - Mm-hmm. - All right. 323 00:17:46,700 --> 00:17:49,166 (jaunty music) 324 00:17:56,566 --> 00:17:59,933 (jaunty music continues) 325 00:18:06,400 --> 00:18:09,800 (jaunty music continues) 326 00:18:16,533 --> 00:18:19,900 (jaunty music continues) 327 00:18:28,633 --> 00:18:32,366 - So one of the painful lessons that I have learned 328 00:18:34,500 --> 00:18:38,833 in carving has been that whatever I draw, 329 00:18:38,833 --> 00:18:40,400 I end up carving. 330 00:18:42,233 --> 00:18:47,200 Now that's good if I'm a perfect draw-er, but I'm not. 331 00:18:48,666 --> 00:18:53,333 So if you were to look at an unfinished bird of mine, 332 00:18:54,633 --> 00:18:57,733 it's just about black from all of the drawing 333 00:18:57,733 --> 00:19:01,733 and erasing that I do to that actual bird. 334 00:19:02,933 --> 00:19:07,433 So what I'm doing on this block of wood 335 00:19:08,566 --> 00:19:11,000 is I wanted to give you an idea of 336 00:19:12,866 --> 00:19:15,566 what it means to 337 00:19:15,566 --> 00:19:19,166 create a feather. 338 00:19:19,166 --> 00:19:21,233 Just one simple feather. 339 00:19:24,066 --> 00:19:26,900 And if you notice, I've got a little split in 340 00:19:26,900 --> 00:19:28,333 that feather right there. 341 00:19:30,166 --> 00:19:32,966 I'm gonna put a little split in that feather right there. 342 00:19:38,266 --> 00:19:42,000 And then on all birds, 343 00:19:42,000 --> 00:19:46,966 there are many different shapes of feathers, 344 00:19:48,300 --> 00:19:52,266 all different shapes with different functions, 345 00:19:53,466 --> 00:19:56,466 which is quite unique for all birds. 346 00:19:57,933 --> 00:20:02,333 So what I've done is I've created several different kinds 347 00:20:06,433 --> 00:20:08,166 of feathers that are here. 348 00:20:10,433 --> 00:20:14,033 And I'm gonna show you what I do 349 00:20:14,033 --> 00:20:17,400 when I create the feather. 350 00:20:20,533 --> 00:20:24,166 I'm probably not gonna be able to get as close 351 00:20:24,166 --> 00:20:28,133 to all of the lines that I will pack in 352 00:20:29,166 --> 00:20:30,933 for the sake of time, 353 00:20:32,900 --> 00:20:37,900 but you'll have an idea. 354 00:20:39,366 --> 00:20:43,133 So the tool I'm gonna use now is a micro motor tool. 355 00:20:45,100 --> 00:20:47,566 And the micro motor tool 356 00:20:47,566 --> 00:20:51,833 does about 50,000 RPMs. 357 00:20:51,833 --> 00:20:56,766 So when I use the micro motor tool, 358 00:21:00,366 --> 00:21:05,300 I will outline the feather with the bit that I'm using. 359 00:21:05,300 --> 00:21:09,800 And if you notice the bit, it looks like a flame. 360 00:21:09,800 --> 00:21:14,133 And so this therefore is called a flame bit. 361 00:21:15,133 --> 00:21:18,900 So what I do, 362 00:21:18,900 --> 00:21:20,466 if this was a duck, 363 00:21:22,766 --> 00:21:23,766 I would come in 364 00:21:25,866 --> 00:21:28,566 and if your teeth start to hurt in the midst of this, 365 00:21:31,800 --> 00:21:34,600 because this is the same kind of tool a dentist uses. 366 00:21:37,600 --> 00:21:40,066 All right, I'm gonna stop right there with that one. 367 00:21:41,933 --> 00:21:45,266 And then what I do is I create almost like a stepping 368 00:21:47,133 --> 00:21:52,066 deal where it, where each feather kind 369 00:21:52,066 --> 00:21:55,200 of steps down a little lower than the previous feather. 370 00:21:56,133 --> 00:21:57,800 And the way that I create that, 371 00:22:00,466 --> 00:22:02,066 because I lay it down on the side 372 00:22:07,533 --> 00:22:12,500 and I remove the wood that is next to 373 00:22:13,566 --> 00:22:15,300 the feather that I've just cut in. 374 00:22:17,166 --> 00:22:19,666 And cutting in a feather is the term I use. 375 00:22:22,633 --> 00:22:27,100 So then after I've cut those, 376 00:22:28,566 --> 00:22:30,900 those two or three feathers out, 377 00:22:30,900 --> 00:22:32,966 I will then begin to sand them. 378 00:22:36,666 --> 00:22:41,366 And whereas I would usually go up 379 00:22:41,366 --> 00:22:46,266 to 800 for the sake of time, I'm just gonna do, 380 00:22:46,266 --> 00:22:48,233 I'm just gonna go to 240. 381 00:22:48,233 --> 00:22:49,533 I think that will be okay. 382 00:22:51,466 --> 00:22:56,166 And what I do is sand 383 00:22:56,166 --> 00:22:57,333 on the edge. 384 00:23:03,033 --> 00:23:05,566 And you can imagine what this is like for the entire, 385 00:23:05,566 --> 00:23:08,366 doing the entire bird this way. 386 00:23:13,500 --> 00:23:15,300 And you have to do the entire bird. 387 00:23:16,566 --> 00:23:17,600 If you don't, 388 00:23:19,833 --> 00:23:21,866 it just doesn't look right. 389 00:23:23,133 --> 00:23:25,966 Things that I do is I always draw a quill line 390 00:23:25,966 --> 00:23:27,333 down the middle of the feather. 391 00:23:27,333 --> 00:23:28,800 Even if it's round, 392 00:23:32,500 --> 00:23:36,800 I may not necessarily, every feather on a duck by the way, 393 00:23:36,800 --> 00:23:40,266 has a quill. 394 00:23:40,266 --> 00:23:42,533 Or most feathers on a duck have quills. 395 00:23:49,433 --> 00:23:51,900 And I will use my burning tool 396 00:23:54,233 --> 00:23:57,100 and I will lay it on the side after I have done the work. 397 00:23:58,033 --> 00:24:00,033 Sometimes I have created 398 00:24:03,300 --> 00:24:06,900 small, little rough edges 399 00:24:08,066 --> 00:24:12,066 and the the burning tool 400 00:24:16,966 --> 00:24:19,133 will help to smooth those down. 401 00:24:20,400 --> 00:24:23,433 But it's ever so fine, you can barely see 'em. 402 00:24:25,066 --> 00:24:27,266 Then after I get the quill burned in, 403 00:24:29,033 --> 00:24:31,633 I begin the process 404 00:24:33,200 --> 00:24:37,900 of burning actual lines and then draw, 405 00:24:37,900 --> 00:24:39,433 join me this time next week 406 00:24:39,433 --> 00:24:41,966 when I'll still be working on this one feather. 407 00:24:41,966 --> 00:24:46,933 - I guess what you're trying to do is find the perfect bird 408 00:24:47,733 --> 00:24:49,100 in this block of wood. 409 00:24:49,100 --> 00:24:53,033 And Kerry Smith, you do a great job of finding it. 410 00:24:53,033 --> 00:24:55,933 - Gosh, thank you. I really do appreciate that. 411 00:24:57,300 --> 00:24:59,433 - I'm gonna be heading down the road to find a story 412 00:24:59,433 --> 00:25:01,900 of another great woodworker. 413 00:25:01,900 --> 00:25:05,333 See you next time on "The Volunteer Woodworker". 414 00:25:05,333 --> 00:25:07,900 (jaunty music) 415 00:25:14,433 --> 00:25:17,833 (jaunty music continues) 416 00:25:24,666 --> 00:25:27,600 - [Narrator] Volunteer Woodworker is funded in part by. 417 00:25:27,600 --> 00:25:30,600 Since 1970, Whiteside Machine Company 418 00:25:30,600 --> 00:25:33,100 has been producing industrial grade router bits 419 00:25:33,100 --> 00:25:34,866 in Claremont, North Carolina. 420 00:25:34,866 --> 00:25:38,200 Whiteside makes carbide bits for edge forming, grooving 421 00:25:38,200 --> 00:25:40,100 and CNC application. 422 00:25:40,100 --> 00:25:42,900 Learn more at whitesiderouterbits.com. 423 00:25:44,233 --> 00:25:47,433 Real Milk Paint Company makes VOC- free, non-toxic 424 00:25:47,433 --> 00:25:50,366 milk paint available in 56 colors. 425 00:25:50,366 --> 00:25:52,600 Milk Paint creates a matte wood finish 426 00:25:52,600 --> 00:25:54,900 that can be distressed for an antique look. 427 00:25:57,900 --> 00:26:00,133 Good Wood Nashville designs custom furniture 428 00:26:00,133 --> 00:26:02,633 and is a supplier of vintage hardwoods. 429 00:26:04,100 --> 00:26:06,833 Keri Price with Keller Williams Realty has been assisting 430 00:26:06,833 --> 00:26:10,966 middle Tennessee home buyers and sellers since 2013. 431 00:26:10,966 --> 00:26:12,633 Mayfield Hardwood Lumber. 432 00:26:14,100 --> 00:26:16,766 Supplying Appalachian hardwoods worldwide. 433 00:26:18,800 --> 00:26:21,333 Anna's Creative Lens. 434 00:26:21,333 --> 00:26:24,800 Crafters of resin on wood decorative arts. 435 00:26:24,800 --> 00:26:27,800 Visit CharlesBrockchairmaker.com for all you need 436 00:26:27,800 --> 00:26:29,700 to know about woodworking. 437 00:26:29,700 --> 00:26:32,066 If you'd like to learn even more, 438 00:26:32,066 --> 00:26:35,100 free classes and a variety of subjects are available 439 00:26:35,100 --> 00:26:38,600 for streaming from CharlesBrockchairmaker.com. 440 00:26:38,600 --> 00:26:41,166 (bright music) 441 00:26:43,266 --> 00:26:45,100 (upbeat music)