Woodcarving 101 & Scouting

Hmmm? Do those two things go together? You betcha!

I’ve had two particular videos (well 3 actually) in mind as a good way to introduce woodcarving basics, and also as a good way to recognize scouting as a character building activity.

Today is the day to get these posted. My email just brought me pictures of one of our grandchildren in a Cub Scout group. I have great memories (over 5 decades old) of some wonderful time spent in Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts. Our scouting organizations, both boys and girls, are dedicated to teaching wide varieties of skills and solid social values. Want a good character building experience for your children? Try scouting.

Lynn Doughty from Out West Woodcarving also has a grandson in scouting. Seeing the need to provide some instruction material for boys wanting to pursue the Woodcarving Merit Badge, Lynn put together two videos about making a neckerchief slide. Neckerchiefs are a standard part of scouting uniforms and every scout I’ve known likes to have distinctive slides for their neckerchiefs. The great thing about these two videos is that they form a very good introduction to carving. Lynn starts with safety, showing how to protect yourself from the inevitable small accidents that happen with all sharp tools. He then demonstrates the concepts of cutting with and against grain. These are basics that all new carvers need to understand and Lynn does them with ample detail and patience.

This next video turned out far better than I expected. I discovered that Bill Burch has carved 50,000 slides for Bolo ties, an alternative to the scouting neckerchief. I went to this video expecting to see some of those slides and maybe learn how they are made.

Didn’t happen. Instead, I found a very special story. Enjoy.