Power carving with a dremel

Work in progress! will be updated over time …

If you’re totally new to this, check out this great video for learning to carve with dremel:
Power Carving a Wooden Bear with a Dremel – YouTube

What’s a dremel?

• Rotary tool – like a drill, but smaller, with a greater variety of bits.
• Easier to use with a flexshaft – you can buy both for $200
• How to use flexshaft – make sure dremel is hanging, and keep the flexshaft “hose” is as straight as possible, no bends in it.
• 1/8″ bits (not 1/4″ – that’s for drills)
• How to change bits

Dremel “bits” or “burrs”

Bits come in different shapes, textures and materials. Much cheaper to buy in sets, where possible, than as single ones.

Tungsten carbide harder than “high speed steel”, which will get blunt pretty quickly

Basic stages of carving

Cutting out the shape

We start by cutting off as much wood as possible, so there’s less to carve off. Generally this means using:

• a scroll saw (limited to 5cm deep timber)
• a bench-top bandsaw with a narrow blade (can cut larger pieces than scroll saw), eg PROXXON ~$800 or Ryobi $400
• a coping saw, that lets you turn corners and cut shapes.

I mostly use a scroll saw – that’s a whole other training 🙂 – but you can get free patterns on the web that you can print out and glue to your wood, and cut around, or you can make your own. Do a google image search and you’ll find anything.

Roughing out

Roughing out means cutting away the excess – if you’ve cut a dog or bird shape on the scroll saw, for example, you’ll want to round off the edges, as well as cut away the excess width at the head and tail, which are narrower than the body. We use rougher dremel bits for that, such as the Saburtooth or Kutzall, which cut a lot at once, but leave a very rough surface.
I bought these, for $83 – Kutzall Original Burr Kit for 1/8” Grinders – 4 Piece Coarse Kit | Carbatec. You’ll need to turn the dremel speed down a bit, try 15,000 to start with.

Interior cuts

e.g. between the legs of a dog
Mini Circular Saw Blade $10

IMPORTANT: Turn the dremel speed down to NO more than 15,000

Carving

I mostly use double-cut tungsten carbide bits ($23), which cut away a reasonable amount but still leave a fairly smooth surface. I also do a lot of “carving” with the sanding drums (listed under sanding, below).

Fine details (or engraving)

DRE105, 106 and 107 (around $16 for sets of 2)

T-shape burrs for undercuts $16 or better quality ones for $28

Sanding

• Buffing or polishing wheels $18
• Pieces Sanding Drum Kit $25
• 120-800 grid sandpaper, for hand sanding.

Finishing

I finish my carved pieces with orange oil (non toxic, good for kids), “board oil” (wax and oil), or Tung oil. There’s a million other options though.

Other

PPE

Half Facepiece Reusable Respirator Mask $30

Hand carving set

Ninonly Wood Carving Tools 18pcs Wood Carving Kits $46

Books

Power Carving Manual $33

Suggested buying list

(For the Ferny Grove women’s shed, in order of importance!)

• double-cut tungsten carbide bits ($23)
• Pieces Sanding Drum Kit $25
• DRE105, 106 and 107 (around $16 for sets of 2)
• T-shape burrs for undercuts $16 or better quality ones for $28
• Mini Circular Saw Blade $10

If we want a new dremel, I’d get this one with the free flexshaft for $200

The more expensive kutzall bits can wait until you see if people get into it. You don’t absolutely need them, they just make it a bit quicker to remove wood.

My dream list includes a mini bandsaw like PROXXON ~$800 or Ryobi $400 – they come as cheap as $150 but those are pretty cheap and nasty. They have a really narrow band so you can cut curves, unlike the big bandsaws we have that really only cut straight.

Tips

• Generally for carving set speed to 20–25k
• Don’t use gloves!!! The bits get caught in them and break the dremel and/or flexshaft!
• Some bits really bite into the wood and jump around … be careful whilst you’re learning to play with them.
• If you’re holding the dremel in your right hand, so with the bit to the left, it’s spinning in such a way that it cuts into the wood as you pull the dremel towards you, NOT away from you. Also, if you start with the bit at the far end of the wood you’re holding, it often “rolls” down the far side, away from you … so be careful.
• Sanding past 220 grit MIGHT make it harder for the finish to sink in! See: Sanding Past 220 – How Smooth Should You Go? – YouTube
• Wood has grain, and the bits will cut differently depending on the direction of the grain. You might find it cuts well one way but not the other – trying turning the wood the other way around.