beginner in stone

["George Graham" <georgergraham@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Dear Sheila,

I am a sculptor in western NY. I've been working in the monument and stone
repair business to pay bills for the last 20 years, and would be happy to
walk you through the process.

The first and most important thing to know is what kind of stone are you
working with? You said it was marble, but to be sure,do this test. Take a
bastard file of even a sharp knife and try to remove some stone. Work in an
area that won't be seen. Like a back corner , or in the area you plan to
work on anyway. If you can difinetly remove stone with these tools then you
can move forward. If your file is flatten out and ruined, then you have a
hard stone, like granite, which would require the services of a
professional.

Assuming that you have a soft stone, you can work on it with very simple
tools. What you will need the most is a lot of time and paticence.
To need the proper tools to do hand work, so go to a sculptor tool site of
the net and get a small point, claw , and flat chisel. For you , I'd use a 1
or 1.5 pound hammer. A dust mask and eye protection is a must.

A box to sit on, an umbrella for shade, and pack a lunch!
Carving and cutting stone is very simple process that starts with the number
on rule, your tools must be sharp!!!!!. When they get dull , stop and
resharpen!!!!. Always carve away from what you want to save. Use you hammer
gently. You don't need to be swinging from your shoulder. This sounds trite,
but its all in the wrist! If your chisels are sharp, the they will bit right
in with very little effort. I keep my flat chisels sharp enough to trim my
fingernails. Sharp tools let you carve with much less effort and unwanted
mistakes.

It would be great if you can get a piece of the same kind of stone for you
to learn on first.

I need to back up here and ask some more questions .

Are you hoping to just resharpen the lettering? Are the letters V-sunk into
the stone , or are they raised above the surface? Is the surface your
looking at smooth or very rough? Are you thinking of removing a panel with
old lettering? Have you made a rubbing of the old lettering so you can
duplicate it ? Is the stone white vermont marble, and is the monument a tall
thin headstone, or a more solid monument, 6 or 8 inches thick? Will the
cemetary allow you to work on site, They are very aware of liabilty issues.

You have asked a very simple question, which cannot be answered simply.
Hope to hear from you,
George Graham