Alternative to Traditional Wood Burning Tools
Wood burning tools are rare. Let’s face it. However, if you know where to look, you can find them everywhere. This article will take a look at what types of wood burning tools are necessary to complete even the most basic of sets and how to find alternatives and replacements that work just as good at half the cost.
Wood burning was developed at the dawn of time as a means to communicate. The technique is essentially just burning, or etching, images – later languages – into a type of material. That material was usually leather, but later became wood. As such, wood burning was developed. And that’s it. There really isn’t much to it beyond the basic idea of etching something into wood using fire.
With that in mind, it should come as no surprise that the basic tools necessary to complete a successful wood burning project is something hot – for example a soldering iron, and wood, for example, a block of wood. However, there are kits for those so inclined. These kits include a few more items which help get you off to a good start. This kit may also include a book of instruction on how-to get your first wood burning experiment off to good start.
So, what if you don’t have or can’t get access to a soldering iron? Well, don’t worry. Instead of using a soldering iron, why not use what our ancestors used? Fire. That’s right, fire. Simply light a fire, hold a piece of wood to it, char it a little, and use the charred tip of that piece of wood to engrave words, symbols or images into your canvas. Of course, using a charred stick will get you no where near the exacting precision of a soldering iron, however, you will at least make a mark.
Now, what if you haven’t got a block of wood or leather canvas? Easy! Cut down a tree or kill an animal with skin. Sure, this may sound a bit barbaric – after all, trees are sacred, but I assure you, no one will be hurt, except possibly yourself if you don’t cut it properly, when you cut down a tree. Skinning an animal is fine and shouldn’t bother a thing. However, this is what our ancestors did. They cut down trees and killed animals for their skin – granted, what they were doing wasn’t for fun as a hobby, but rather as a means to stay alive…. but think of what you’ll be doing as keeping their spirit alive!
Or you could save yourself the trouble and not get into wood burning at all.