# Cetacean



## Tremoside (Jul 17, 2013)

Hi Folks,

Time after time I have to release myself from computer work and heading back to the roots - or branches if you like.

Let me introduce you the Cetacean. The name comes from the overall form - especially the handle shape - and the grain orientation.

Year old dried oak fork. Carved without powertools or even without a vice. Bare hands and knees as a workshop.

90mm fork width, quite dense, 116 gramms finished. 1000 grit, 90°C linseed oil bath for 25 min. Beeswax touchups.









































Thanks for watching and have a nice weekend!

Tremo


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## ghost0311/8541 (Jan 6, 2013)

you made a good one there.


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## JTslinger (Jan 26, 2015)

Fantastic work!


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## Dayhiker (Mar 13, 2010)

Real beauty you carved there, mate! Very nice work.


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## d3moncow (Aug 29, 2014)

Looks amazing! The shape is very classy.


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## JohnKrakatoa (Nov 28, 2013)

Nice work once again!


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## tyrone8511 (May 2, 2014)

Awesome work and no power tools, nice 1. Elbow grease is definitely not lacking in your workshop I mean kneeshop. You make me look really bad even with power tools I don't produce anything as nice as that


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## flipgun (Nov 14, 2012)

You can always tell when someone knows what they are doing. It looks like this! NiceNiceNice.


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## Arber (Mar 30, 2013)

One of my favorite kinds of slingshots are the ones that are seemingly simplistic, yet are somehow complicated. Somewhat like modern art


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## honorary pie (Feb 12, 2015)

It looks small until you see it in your hand.... very cool,,,,,, suits the porpoise for sure!


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## Bob Fionda (Apr 6, 2011)

The shape reminds exactly what you said. It gives a feeling of solidity and force. Well done.


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## jazz (May 15, 2012)

love it!

jazz


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## Quercusuber (Nov 10, 2011)

My goodness!!!!!

What an OUTSTANDING piece of work!!! :bowdown: :bowdown: :bowdown:

All in the right place in this slingshot. Sobriety and excellence!!!!

Cheers ...Q


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## Samurai Samoht (Apr 6, 2013)

beautiful work!


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## Oahu1 (Apr 28, 2015)

Its a beauty, how old is the oak?


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## Tremoside (Jul 17, 2013)

Thank you very-very much my friends! Your words are inspiring and kind.

I'm glad you like this work and deeply respect you take time to share your thoughts.

You just made my day!

Tremo



Oahu1 said:


> Its a beauty, how old is the oak?


It was a fork harvest from a fallen branch (storm) a while ago, sorry but can't guess the age of the actual tree. The original diameter at the handle was 45mm and counted 20 rings.


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## Chuck Daehler (Mar 17, 2015)

I'm getting back to basics also...naturals, wood, no synthetics, smooth ergo forms etc.. Yours intrigues me as just a nice smooth functional (albeit gorgeous) "naked model" form. Nice goin'. And your dedication to just plain old "my dad did this" carving/sculpting without band saws and the like just makes it "home spun" and nice. Hats off amigo. Goes to show new folks to slingshotery that you don't need a fuil shop full of tools to make an excellent shooter you'll enjoy for life.

On board cuts however it's best to stabilize them with a hole drilled from the fork tip to the handle's midline to glue/insert a metal rod..steel or brass...so no breaks occur with the grain and pop you in the kisser.

A+ Slingshots does this on their board cuts for safety
http://nebula.wsimg.com/c18680f67d36a1a4ea35a4e1e6d45a55?AccessKeyId=22D1015FB898DEDBCA5A&disposition=0&alloworigin=1

and on page http://www.aplusslingshots.com/signature-series.html about half way down the page is the diagram.

You will need power tools for this...a drill press preferably a horizontal drill or make a jig to make sure trhe hole doesn't protrude from the fork or handle if it enters crooked.

If you get into lamination at some point you can make a frame in two halves, rout out or chisel a "V" shaped grove in one half in which to epoxy 2 steel or brass rods that similarly go from the fork tip to the midline of the handle. That way the forks can't break along the grain. There have been serious facial injuries due to board cuts breaking along the grain. Not wanting to be a nanny here but for the good of all reading this who are new to slingshot crafting. Boards are excellent material but reinforced.

Since Eucalyptus is so prevalent here and cheap and very durable/hard, I may make a board cut super ergo SS using two pieces of wood and do just what I described above, chiseling a V grove in one half and epoxying a couple steel rods in there to assure no breaks. Broken wood is pretty sharp and can rip off a cornea or modify your dental work or make your nose look really funny.


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## Can-Opener (May 11, 2013)

A departure from the virtual designs  I hope it is good for your hart and soul  It is a beauty


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## Piney Creek (Jun 18, 2015)

Simple grace and elegance that hides its quiet power. My compliments Sir. Regards Piney Creek


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## mr. green (Nov 3, 2012)

Beautiful. I love the shape. Thanks for sharing.


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## calinb (Apr 4, 2015)

Tremoside said:


> Year old dried oak fork.


Beautiful! How did you dry the oak, Mark? I have a fork from a wild plum tree that I removed from our property about two or three months ago. (The tree was too large and too close to our deck and house). I plan to use it to make my first natural someday. I read somewhere that it's good to seal the cut ends with wood glue, which I did, and simply let it sit and dry in a dry place at room temperature. Is my plan a good one? I only saved one fork (the best one) but I have some logs that I might be able to use for making boards and some board cuts too. I've read that wild plum is hard on tooling, however!



Tremoside said:


> Carved without powertools or even without a vice.


After reading Chuck's post here, I recalled a hand operated drill press in my grandfather's garage. It required both hands to work it (one hand to turn the crank and the other hand to lower the spindle). I inherited only a few of my grandfather's tools but sadly, I don't know what ever happened to it. I'd love to have a hand-powered drill press though!


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## flicks (Feb 16, 2013)

We need to go back to basics more often! Wow, what an outcome! I am really impressed by the range of your skills! 

Cetacean is a real beauty! Simple timeless elegance paired with an awesome wood! Fantastic! Thanks for sharing that with us, my friend!


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## BeMahoney (Jan 26, 2014)

This by far exceeds the joy of holding one - or another

cast alu prototype in my hands.. 

After meeting flicks today, seeing this still is a big pleasure!

 (although one or the other prototype has a great potential, imho!  )

Weeell done, Tremo!

kind regards,

Be

Edit:

I don´t really get that name.. is it like "Kardashian" in some way? 

(Then where´s that big moon rising??? :screwy: ) Hehehe!


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## Oahu1 (Apr 28, 2015)

Cetacean is a whale.


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## leon13 (Oct 4, 2012)

looks so cool


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## LBH2 (Jul 20, 2013)

Tremo&#8230;&#8230;beautiful/elegant. Very nice. LBH2


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## rockslinger (Nov 16, 2010)

Very nice job, it looks great! :wave:


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## Tremoside (Jul 17, 2013)

Chuck Daehler said:


> I'm getting back to basics also...naturals, wood, no synthetics, smooth ergo forms etc.. Yours intrigues me as just a nice smooth functional (albeit gorgeous) "naked model" form. Nice goin'. And your dedication to just plain old "my dad did this" carving/sculpting without band saws and the like just makes it "home spun" and nice. Hats off amigo. Goes to show new folks to slingshotery that you don't need a fuil shop full of tools to make an excellent shooter you'll enjoy for life.
> 
> On board cuts however it's best to stabilize them with a hole drilled from the fork tip to the handle's midline to glue/insert a metal rod..steel or brass...so no breaks occur with the grain and pop you in the kisser.
> 
> ...


Thank you very much Chuck! Making naturals and detailed boardcuts is really a good way to improve aesthetic skills. Also a lot of fun. Thank for the detailed post! Cheers, Tremo



Can-Opener said:


> A departure from the virtual designs I hope it is good for your hart and soul. It is a beauty.


Absolutely right my friend! Making a natural is meditation and helps to realign thoughts. Take care :wave:



Piney Creek said:


> Simple grace and elegance that hides its quiet power. My compliments Sir. Regards Piney Creek


Really appreciate your kindness!



mr. green said:


> Beautiful. I love the shape. Thanks for sharing.


Thank you very much!!!



calinb said:


> Tremoside said:
> 
> 
> > Year old dried oak fork.
> ...


Hi Cal, Fork was cut with longer endings, bark on of course. Ends sealed with beeswax. Usually I keep them inside a paper box for a couple months than palced at the shelf. Just check the fork time to time. It will change the sound when hitted.

Hand operated tools like drills and other stuff are amazing. My grandpa had a lot of them, but had to move a lot and many disappeared. Maybe one day I can get a couple old tools too.

Have fun! T



flicks said:


> We need to go back to basics more often! Wow, what an outcome! I am really impressed by the range of your skills!
> 
> Cetacean is a real beauty! Simple timeless elegance paired with an awesome wood! Fantastic! Thanks for sharing that with us, my friend!


Thank you for your visit Jens! It was a pleasure to see your trade with Nathan! Hope you're doin' well and shoot a lot. Greetings my friend!



BeMahoney said:


> This by far exceeds the joy of holding one - or another
> 
> cast alu prototype in my hands..
> 
> ...


Hey Be!  I know what you mean and thanks for saying ! Glad you had the chance to meet with Flicks and changed experience! Take care :wave:



Oahu1 said:


> Cetacean is a whale.


Thanks for stopping by! In my language we call a whale as a "cet" it's the shorter version of the cetacean and mostly used in literature in the Hungarian language.



leon13 said:


> looks so cool


Thanks Leon! :beer: Good to see you around!



LBH2 said:


> Tremo&#8230;&#8230;beautiful/elegant. Very nice. LBH2


Thank you very much my friend. Glad you like this shape!



rockslinger said:


> Very nice job, it looks great!


Hey Rocklsinger! Thanks a lot for visiting!

------------------------

Mates, I really appreciate your posts! Very inspiring and kind from you!

Have a nice day,

Tremo


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## Arnisador78 (Apr 10, 2013)

A proud piece.


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## Poiema (Jul 21, 2014)

Beautiful craftsmanship. Fresh and inspiring simplicity.


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## slingshotnew (Oct 29, 2014)

Molto bella!!

Inviato dal mio HUAWEI Y600-U20 utilizzando Tapatalk


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