Tracing A Pattern By Hand

[watersnake]

Hi guys,

Is there anywhere on the site that I can look at to get advise on using tracing paper to trace fine details for figure carving , also any tips would be great to hear. I am finding the ball point stylus lines are to thick and ugly looking

Thank you

[mlapaglia]

Try using an ultra thin pen. Get a Pilot Precise V5 extra fine. It is super fine and perfect for fine lines. Use an old one if you do not want ink on the transfer sheet. You can get them at any office max/depot. Its what I use.

[watersnake]

Try using an ultra thin pen. Get a Pilot Precise V5 extra fine. It is super fine and perfect for fine lines. Use an old one if you do not want ink on the transfer sheet. You can get them at any office max/depot. Its what I u

Thank you very much for that advice and I will get one of those pens

Yes I tried that pen and it works thank you

[mlapaglia]

Try using an ultra thin pen. Get a Pilot Precise V5 extra fine. It is super fine and perfect for fine lines. Use an old one if you do not want ink on the transfer sheet. You can get them at any office max/depot. Its what I u

Thank you very much for that advice and I will get one of those pens

Yes I tried that pen and it works thank you

You are welcome. Glad to be of help.

Michael

[WyomingSlick]

The fine point pen is a fine idea as many ball tracing stylus tools are too big for tracing small figures.

I would also advise that you learn to trace lightly, only just enough to have a visible guideline. This is particularly true when it comes to the dotted lines used in many patterns that are used to define muscles and other details which are not cut with the swivel knife. Little dashes that are done too deep are hell to smooth out on small details. As you gain in experiance, you may wish to leave them out entirely and only refer to the original pattern when using your figure beveling tools. If you use a craftaid, you will also want to just press the dotted sections in lightly for the same reason.

Another reason for tracing lightly is that it is easier to correct any tracing mistakes. Nothing looks stranger than an animal with one leg thicker, or thinner, than the other leg. After tracing, and before carving, take some time to evauate the traced design carefully and make any corrections as needed. Once you have cut an error into the design....well..that is what you are usually stuck with - an error.

Edited November 16, 2011 by WyomingSlick

[watersnake]

The fine point pen is a fine idea as many ball tracing stylus tools are too big for tracing small figures.

I would also advise that you learn to trace lightly, only just enough to have a visible guideline. This is particularly true when it comes to the dotted lines used in many patterns that are used to define muscles and other details which are not cut with the swivel knife. Little dashes that are done too deep are hell to smooth out on small details. As you gain in experiance, you may wish to leave them out entirely and only refer to the original pattern when using your figure beveling tools. If you use a craftaid, you will also want to just press the dotted sections in lightly for the same reason.

Another reason for tracing lightly is that it is easier to correct any tracing mistakes. Nothing looks stranger than an animal with one leg thicker, or thinner, than the other leg. After tracing, and before carving, take some time to evauate the traced design carefully and make any corrections as needed. Once you have cut an error into the design....well..that is what you are usually stuck with - an error.

Thank you kindly for that advice..