A Bobble Head Santa is a novelty carving project that is similar to the humorous bobble head doll figures.

The carving part of this project is in two parts, the head and the body with the connecting assembly attaching the two part with a spring.  The body portion was carved out of a three inch tall by an inch and half square basswood block.  The head was carved out of a two inch tall by an inch and half square block of basswood.

The spring is made by wrapping stainless wire around an appropriate size bolt or spike nail and leaving a wire tail at both ends of the spring portion.  The wire tail on each end is used to insert into an appropriate hole in the two parts of the figure, the head and the body.  The photos below show the original painted Bobble Head Santa beside a carved Santa head, a Santa body, a block with a drawn outline of body part, a coil of stainless steel wire, bolt around which the spring is wound and a previously rolled spring.

Once a spring of appropriate length is made by wrapping the stainless steel wire around a bolt or nail, a hole is whittled in the bottom of the head and the middle of shoulders at the neck area of the body to receive each end of the spring.  The wire tail is inserted into a pilot hole formed by using an ice pick awl like a drill.  The wire tail and a couple of twists of the spring should fit into the whittled hole in a practice assembly.  When satisfied with the test assembly, remove the spring, mix up a small amount of five minute epoxy, apply to the head portion spring hole and seat the spring into the hole. Be sure to stand the Santa head upside down so that the epoxy will remain in the hole around the two twist of the spring while epoxy sets up.  Allow the epoxy to set up before mixing up another small amount of epoxy for the spring hole in the neck area, apply epoxy to hole and then insert the other end of the spring into that hole.  Line up the head and spring with the body portion to satisfaction and then allow the epoxy to set up.  Following the epoxy set up the entire Santa can now be painted with finish of choice.  The photo below shows the original painted Santa with the glued up unpainted Santa bobble head.

Bobble Head carvings are fun to do so have some fun carving your own.