Whittle a Ball in a Cage
Whittling is a relaxing hobby in which you pare small shavings of wood from a blank to create or fashion an object. Most whittling tends to be for small toys or objects and not sculpture. A good beginner's whittling project is a "Ball in a cage." This toy will amaze your friends and they will exclaim "How did you get the ball in there!?"
Contents
Steps
With Hand Tools
- Start with a small block of soft wood (pine, basswood or balsa) 1" wide by 1" tall, 4" long.
- Mark on the wood with a pencil the trace lines as shown in the image. Notice that the circle overlaps the edge lines a little.
- Chisel cavities on both sides of the outlined ball.
- Turn the block over and repeat.
- What you're doing is chiseling from the outside in until you have only a sliver remaining in the center, as shown.
- Cut the slivers from the ends of the block.
- Carefully whittle the slivers from the ball until it can roll freely within the frame.
With Power Tools
- Lay out the area for the ball in the center of the blank and shade the portions of the wood to be removed.
- Drill a hole through the wood in each shaded area on two sides. There should be four holes total.
- Use a coping saw to cut the shaded areas away. (WARNING: Do not put any part of your body in the way of a sharp blade as depicted here. Use a clamp instead.)
- The blank is now ready to carve. Continue with the procedure as described above.
- Make the first cuts in each corner of the ball.
- Cut across each side of the ball.
- Cut along the length of the ball (you can use a 60 deg. V-tool to save time). WARNING: never push a chisel towards your other hand, as shown here and the next picture. Hold or clamp it so that you are pushing the chisel away from any part of your body.
- Now begin paring small pieces away, shaping the ball. A straight chisel will make it easier to cut on the end grain but a knife will work fine.
- After each side of the ball has been roughed out, pare the cage bars. Continue paring material in smaller pieces as the ball takes shape.
- Do the final paring once the ball has taken shape and is almost ready to break free of the cage.
- Use a knife to score the ball away from the cage and do any cleanup on the break areas. You can sand or finish to your liking. That's it. You now have a ball in a cage to amaze your friends with!
Tips
- Basswood (Linden) or balsa wood are the best carving woods because of their close grain and softness.
- Using a straight chisel will provide more control and make it easier to cut on the end grain of the ball.
- You can carve more than one ball in a cage or have a cage with more than 4 posts. Be creative and have fun!
- When the ball breaks free, bevel the insides of the cage a little to make it roll more easily.
Warnings
- Carving tools and knives should be kept sharp to avoid forcing them through the wood (and into your hand). Always wear carving gloves!
- For detail work, use a scalpel or a disposable Xacto knife. But this is only for detail work, not the main cuts. The blades are too sharp, and you WILL cut yourself if you use them for the main cuts.
- Always cut away from you. Always be aware of where the knife is going and where your fingers and thumbs are!
Things You'll Need
- Wood
- Carving knife or good pocket knife
- (Optional: Straight chisel, drill, 60 V-tool, sandpaper, finish)
- Carving Gloves
