I sawed a log cookie, dried it in my experimental kiln (nonworking freezer), and carved a donation for a Wounded Warrior auction using 1/4 EM for roughing and 1/16 BN for finishing.

I wasn't sure what to expect since my first carving was in Design and Makes 'in an oval' option, which made for a smooth backdrop to the other subject. This time I just chose the 'subject only' option, which leaves an area outside of the subject cut by the roughing EM.

Is there a way to get a smoother roughing base that is left over without changing bits?

Also I had one error message in ShopBot 3 in the execution, a Parameter Error: Parameter Value Below Range for VS--Setting to Lower Limit (.05)! to which I chose 'OK' and the program continued. What was that? (My guess is Variable Speed, but how to alter??)

I cleaned up (some fuzzies and such) with Dremel tips, did a hand chamfer on the profile edge, and after oohing and ahhing after Cowboy's 3D finishes and consulting Flexner's finishing book, improvised with what I had on hand, 2 coats of Minwax Poly Wipe (I'll try Arm-R-Seal some day).

I was scratching my head as to how to make the subject stand out from the grain rings of the log cookie, so tried painting stained Briwax on the subjects with small/fine paint brushes and a hair blow dryer to melt the wax to help the subjects stand out. Then every thing finished with clear paste wax. I still plan to finish buffing this on a buffing wheel (lathe).

If I do a 3D log cookie again, I might try to CNC chamfer the profile outline, though the uneven hand chamfer is prolly ok for the 'rustic' look. Comments and suggestions welcome.

Barrel racer cookie 128kb.jpg