A Stopped Chamfer With Lamb’s Tongues
Recently, Dave Richards had the task of modeling lamb’s tongues on a Moxon-style vise.
Oct 30, 2019
Stopped chamfers are a classic detail in fine woodworking. The ends of the chamfers can be finished in a number of different ways. One of those is the lamb’s tongue which typically consists of a cyma-curved surface. Recently I had the task of modeling lamb’s tongues on a Moxon-style vise.
I think both Tim and I have in the past shown a method that involves drawing a “cutter” and intersecting it with the faces of the part. That method is good to know for many modeling tasks but this time, I’m going to use a different method that is faster and easier. I’m using the Classic Bezier Curve tool from Fredo6’s Bezier Spline extension to draw the cyma curve. Then I’ll use his Curviloft extension to quickly create the faces. Note: If you are installing Curviloft make sure you also install the required LibFredo6 support files.
Comments
Dave,
Thanks for sharing this method on stopped chamfers again using the Bezier and Curviloft plugins. I loaded both, and followed the steps you showed in the video. It worked out fine.
Just a question about the Bezier spline plugin. At 2:55 in the video, before exiting the Bezier plugin, you made a small correction to spline curve. If you had already left the plugin and later wanted to modify the curve of the spline, does it allow you to do that, or do you need to start the spline over again.
Yes it does allow you to edit the curve after you've created as long as you haven't modified it. Right click on the curve and select BZ - Edit Classic Bezier curve from the Context menu.
Also note that you can change the shape of the curve by moving the orange lines between control points. You can add control points if you find you need more by double clicking on the orange line. Or double click on an existing control point to remove it. Watch the screen tips and the message line at the bottom left of the window.
Happy to hear the process worked for you.
-Dave
Dave,
Thanks for explaining how to modify the the curve using the BZ extension.
Fredo's Bezier Spline extension tool pallet provides options showing 18 icons - a bit intimidating. Which ones are most useful for woodworking ? Why use this extension over the SketchUp team bezier tool ?
You covered Bezier.rb in your March 28 2010 blogpost but the youtube video is no longer accessible. Perhaps for a future blogpost, you can cover the topic of drawing curves in more depth again.
-Mortimer_Tenon
"Fredo's Bezier Spline extension tool pallet provides options showing 18 icons - a bit intimidating."
There are a number of different curve-drawing tools and some other features included in Fredo's BZ_Spline extension set. Admittedly I don't use all of them frequently. One of the other curve tools I do find useful is the Catmull Spline. It's handy when you know the locations of points that fall on the curve.
"Which ones are most useful for woodworking ?"
For me the Bezier curves are most often used. Catmull Splines once in awhile and on rare occasions other curve tools.
"Why use this extension over the SketchUp team bezier tool ?"
The one from the SketchUp team, while good requires that you know how many control points you'll want before you start to draw the curve. I don't always know how many I'll want until I start drawing it. And Fredo's extension gives you the option to edit the curve after it's in place. I frequently start by plopping in a rough curve and then fine tune it afterward.
"Perhaps for a future blogpost, you can cover the topic of drawing curves in more depth again."
Excellent suggestion. I'll do that. Thanks.
d
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