Scientific American, Volume XXIV., No. 12, March 18, 1871 | Page 5

It will often happen that the thumb-nail will get broken, or is too weak to stand the work; in these cases, or, in fact, in any case, a good substitute or artificial thumb-nail may be made of gutta-percha, thus: A piece of thin sheet gutta-percha is put into warm water, and, while soft, is wrapped around the end of the thumb up to the first joint. It is then pressed with the hand, so as to fit and take the shape of the thumb and nail. This cannot be done at one heating, but will have to be put into the hot water again, and the end pinched and squeezed into form to the shape of the nail, and to fit easily upon the thumb. When this gets hard, it may be trimmed into perfect form with a penknife. This artificial nail will answer the purpose admirably if properly made; and even when the natural nail is good, the gutta-percha will serve to save it from injury. Good figuring may also be done by using the blank end of the steel comb with a rag folded over its edge. We have also used a piece of gutta-percha to take out the lights. This should be square-ended, about one inch wide, and three or four inches long, and will do successful work of a certain class, but not of the best. Many grainers use a piece of thin horn, in shape something like a spatula, about three or four inches long and three quarters of an inch wide, with rounded ends, and quite flexible. With this tool the figure is cut or scooped out--a sort of quick, side-long motion, very difficult to describe, and requiring a very considerable amount of practice before it can be worked with any success. There is, however, the same objection to this tool as may be urged against the gutta-percha for figuring, namely, that neither of them take the color clean away, but leave an accumulation of color on the edge of the figure, which is fatal to good work; and therefore we cannot honestly recommend the use of any method but the wiping out with the thumb-nail or its substitute. When the figure is wiped out it will require to be softened. By softening, we mean the imitation of those half shades seen upon and about the figures in the real wood. Between and around the lights or figure in oak, there is always a lighter tint of color; this is imitated by doubling a piece of rag into a small roll, and with the side of this the grain is partially wiped away, but not to the extent of taking off the whole of the grain. A recent but most admirable system of graining oak, by means of over-combing, is worked exactly the reverse of any of the foregoing methods; that is to say, the figure is first wiped out, and the combing or grain is done afterwards, when the graining color is dry, in this wise: The graining color is mixed somewhat thinner than for ordinary graining, and is brushed over the work sparingly, leaving it just sufficiently strong to show a clear distinction between the ground and the color. The light or figure is then softened by drawing the end of a flat hog-hair fitch, or a small thin mottler, across each figure, and slightly softening with the badger-hair softener. The figure is broken up a little with fine lines across it in parts, such as may be seen in the real wood; but previous to wiping out the figure, streaks of light should be wiped out and softened on one side of the panel or across the stiles, in imitation of the reflective lights seen in oak. The color should also be partially wiped off the rails or stiles at their junction; this tends to define the joint. The color is now let to dry hard, when it will be ready for over-combing--that is, combing or graining over the figure (hence its name), and this will have to be done somewhat differently to the ordinary combing. As thus: The color is rubbed in as before, and combed solely with the gutta-percha combs, but these are specially cut for the purpose; they are best about 2 in. wide. The first must be cut with teeth about three-sixteenths of an inch in width, the next one-eighth, and the third about one-sixteenth. The broad-toothed comb is first used, and must be drawn down the panel, with a wavy motion, in short or long curls; either will answer our purpose now. The next size of comb is then drawn straight down--the straighter the better. This has the effect of breaking the wavy combing into short and long straight bits, similar to the pores or grain