MASTER SERGEANT is a commission carving that was presented as a gift by a loving wife and son to  Air Force Master Sergeant Dan J. Williams as a retirement gift.  Even though the carving is of a Civil War Union Soldier, yet some artist license was taken to include personal symbols to have significance to the recipient.

MASTER SERGEANT began as a four inch square by thirteen inches tall block of basswood and is finished with artist oil paint thinned with boiled linseed oil.  Carving tools made by Everett Cutsinger were used during the carving process along with a Ralph E. Long knife with a scimitar shaped blade.  The photographs that follow are of progressive stages of the carving process as a visual study.  “A picture is worth a thousand words,” is a maxim that can speak for itself as do these photographs.

The next series of photographs will show how carving tools and the scimitar  knife blade aid in making certain cuts during the carving process.  A wood burner was used for the lettering and outlining of the sergeant stripes and Air Force insignia.

The first seven photographs above show various cuts being made by a scimitar knife blade that is able to reach into difficult areas.  A scimitar blade shape has the cutting edge curving up to meet the con-caved back edge of the blade at the tip.  The last photograph above is showing the use of a number nine gouge to open up the area of the inside corner of the eye to create an eye mound in which to carve the eye lids and eyes.  The next series of photographs will show how a number six gouge is used to shape the winged bottom  of the nostrils, shape the top and bottom of the mustache and a small number seven gouge being  used to carve the junction of the nostril and beginning of smile line.

The next series of photographs will show the use of a small gouge of a number five, six or seven  being used to outline-cut the lock mechanism of the rifle, the medallion  and the neck of the canteen.

The final series of photographs will show the face carved to basic form, facial drawings and details of faced carved.  This is a progressive visual study of letting the photographs tell the story.  So learn a lot by observing which is a big part of the carving process by seeing the project before, during and after it has been carved.