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One of the pleasures of working in this craft, is the great folks you meet. The following links are suppliers to whom I am eternally grateful, Carvers and craftsmen in related trades, and hopefully friends in them all. Give them a visit if you are curious about how I do, what I do and the folks that inspire me.

Remtek - Microscribe and large volume Spatial Digitizers

Remtek offers not only a wide variety of digitizing instruments but also some of the most customer oriented service I've ever seen. If you are considering a Microscribe digitizer or large area digitizer Remtek can handle your needs and give you an honest evaluation of how to get your project done as affordably as possible.

United Artworks

Andrew Werby has assembled a collection of software and solutions that is valuable resource. Typically the prices are 10% below retail on hardware and software. A trip through this site will probably introduce you to a few products in the CNC world you have not seen before. The descriptions of the products do not come across as sales pitches, but rather concise no BS reviews. After reading his description of just a few products you can see that there are no hidden agendas on this site. If you are considering a purchase of a CNC mill, router, Rhino or CAM software talk to Andrew Werby before you purchase.

Rhino 3-D cad

Robert McNeel and Associates has brought forth a cad program that is quickly gaining the most devoted group of users around. This following comes from simply being the best 3-D cad software without reservation. It is a NURBS surface generation software that has the best user interface and easiest learning curve of anything on the market. I have tens of thousands of dollars of software sitting on the shelf with expired registration since I discovered Rhino.

The Rhino newsgroup is the most effective support forum I have ever seen. If you have a question, posting it on this forum will usually result in multiple solutions in just minutes. the developers that actually write this program frequent the forum daily. If you are considering purchasing Rhino, visit this newsgroup and you will see what I mean. On the McNeel site you can go to the Rhino support page and click on " newsgroup" to find it.

Mecsoft - Visual Mill

Visual Mill has brought highly capable CNC programming into the realm of the small shop. Visual Mill is capable of most anything you can ask of it. At about ten thousand dollars less than the other comparable CAM software , it is much easier to use and it works transparently with Rhino files. Post processors are readily available for most any controller. In the odd chance you have created your own controller or scavenged an " antique" one, the post process generator makes it easy to create any post processor that you might need.

DiamondWillow.com

Gene Bremmer collects these diamond willows from a marsh at his home in minnesota and dries them ready for work .There is no sense of purpose greater than finishing a project that has a great usefulness to it. The beauty of the diamond willow without ornamentation is fantastic, but with the simplest of decoration these walking sticks make enduring and loved gifts. Gene offers finished walking sticks as well as material to do your own with.

Heath Satow- - Publicsculpture.com

Heath's site says more than I can ever try to, but suffice it to say that if you have a possible future need for original public area sculpture, municipal or corporate, you should bookmark his site. A careful tour through his portfolio exhibits that Heath's design and execution has a modern/eclectic flair to it that is unique to his work alone.

Greg Wilkerson - Native American carvings

Greg Wilkerson's native american carving collection is one that has stemmed from a deep admiration of and respect for the culture and History. His wood carving seems to be a driving force in his life rather than a driven force. From shields to spirits, Greg's work reflects his focus, natural talent and creative designs. His Indian busts would be a great addition to anyone's collection.

Crazy Cat Gifts - Unique jewelry and gifts

A collection of unusual and beautiful jewelry as well as carved and inlaid gift/jewelry boxes. The quality is great while the prices are a very nice surprise. A very impressive collection of "movable part" jewelry. From poison rings to armour jewelry a very nice section on Celtic designs. Quick service even makes this the perfect spot for last minute or across the country gifts. Over a hundred thousand strong, their satisfied customers still get direct response from the owners personally.

Nedra's Pyrography and Sawdust Connection

Fine art pyrography is a very challenging artistic endeavor, but as you will see if you tour the portrait section of Nedra and Alan Denison's site, they have got it wired. From portraits of movie stars to commissioned portraits for individuals, they can produce anything you might dream up, and more. Nedra's first book on pyrography was very well received, but she is even more exited about the second one being released this fall. They also offer a unique collection of original patterns and artwork for Pyrography and carving as well as original woodcarvings, scroll saw work and artwork. Specialty tools for the wood burning craft are available as well as classes. A quick trip through their web site will reveal a true talent not only in their wood and art related crafts, but the rare ability to mary several different disciplines seamlessly into a business that reflects their love for their work.

Mike Komik

Hand made tools that are customized to your own preferences are the best way to improve your final quality and comfort while carving. Mike's custom tools are individually crafted to your exact needs. They are a great value considering that you get exactly what you need instead of what was on the shelf. I look at the stock knives as investment quality for the sake of the source and the product as well as very efficient tools also. His site is also a great source of quality Northwest Carvings as well as really nice tools also.