Buzzard Stick

Good looking start. What do U have in mind to do with the split behind the head?

nice piece of work. good to see a unusual subject matter looking forward to seeing it finished

MJC4 said:

Good looking start. What do U have in mind to do with the split behind the head?

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I haven't thought that far ahead yet. The root wraps around the side that you don't see in the picture and it's really solid. The carving isn't intended to be a handle, just a decoration on the top. I guess I could fill it. If you are familiar with Nancy Tuttle's work, this is supposed to be in that vein.

It is great when you can take advantage of the natural shape of a stick to incorporate our creations. Nice job.

Thanks All, stay tuned for details as I figure out how I'm going to finish it up. One of my sons saw it last night and I got the impression he would really like to have it when I am finished.

I like it, the fact is it seems well proportioned and the way the beak overhangs the shank is a bonus to many people limit this which spoils the look

its just personnel preference

Thanks Cobalt! I wish it hadn't turned so dark - it lost the contrast it originally had.

Well done! That is a very unquiet stick Rodnogdog.

Thanks CV3. I still have to put a finish on it.

Havnt you got a control switch on your wood burner?

just use a stiff brush on it, it will remove some of the carbon and sunlight will fade it in time and it will look better when used a lot like most things

Yes, my burner has excellent control and I always strive to avoid scorching the wood. It's the wood that turned dark when the oil was applied. This piece was collected from a creek bank and was colored by the soil, water and tannins from the decaying bark. It had dark stains on it in some areas and when I put the linseed oil on it, the whole root end of the stick turned very dark. In hind sight, I should have just put polyurethane on it without the linseed oil. Lesson learned on this one.

I like it dark. Nice job. I have had similar results from linseed oil. I had it turn a medium colored aspen stick black. Since then I have learned a valuable lesson from several members here, do a test piece. Or at a minimum a small area of the piece that can be sanded off. Anyway as I said I like the dark effect makes the vulture look more sinister!

CV3 said:

Well done! That is a very unquiet stick Rodnogdog.

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"Unquiet", that made me laugh. Thanks Randy! Unless I had cut his head off, that's the only thing that stick could have been.