Eagle Project 2

I previously submitted instructions for making a Small Wooden Eagle. This is a follow-on project. My first wooden eagle was 8.5" wide. This one is 10.5" wide, but it is the same pattern. This is not a professional pattern, so it is freely available as part of the Small Wooden Eagle instructions.

SAFETY

These instructions require power tools. PLEASE BE SAFE. No final product is worth an injury. Remember, SAFETY FIRST.

Band Saw or scroll saw

Belt sander

Router with 1/2" round-over cutter

Wood burning tool

Rotary tool for engraving

Carbon paper

Craft paint

Top coat (optional)

As mentioned in the introduction, I used a pattern which I previously included in Small Wooden Eagle instructions. You can download that pattern for free or use any other pattern you like.

To enlarge the pattern, I used Inkscape. I chose 10.5" width because it fit a piece of wood which I wanted to use as the background.

I prepared the eagle using oak and walnut. I have not included those steps in these instructions. For those instructions, please see instructions for Small Wooden Eagle. This eagle is a little bit larger, but it is the same pattern.

I choose a piece of high-quality pine for the background because it was available in my garage. Using the eagle shape, I drew a pattern for the background and adjusted it a few times. After cutting the background on a band saw and sanding the edge on a belt sander, I made marks 1/2" from the edge all around in order to see how much space was available for words. Then I rounded the top and bottom of the edge on as router using a 1/2" round-over cutter. Then lots of hand sanding to make the edge presentable.

I printed the words and adjusted them on the background using the eagle as a guide. When I was satisfied with the words, I used carbon paper and pencil to transfer the words to the background. The last two photos above show the pattern on the wood.

I wood burned the words onto the background. The first photo above shows the wood burning complete with the eagle set in place. The eagle is not attached.

The wood burning did not look as good as I hoped, so I decided to engrave the words into the other side of the same background. I transferred the words using carbon paper and pencil. The last photo, above, shows engraving with my Dremel.

I used paint to make engraved letters stand out more. Lots of sanding was required. I did not apply a top coat.

Since both sides are final sides, I attached the eagle temporarily with double-sided tape, rather than glue. For display, I set it onto a stand designed to hold a small frame