The E-Sylum:  Volume 7, Number 51, December 19, 2004, Article 10

KANSAS HOBO NICKEL CARVER FEATURED IN ARTICLE

  On December 18, the Associated Press published an article
  about a rare breed of engraver - a modern-day Hobo Nickel
  carver, Bob Finlay: 

  "In the 1980s, Finlay took on the hobby of engraving. It 
  started with guns and later turned to knives.

  He said he spent 100 to 200 hours on one knife. Looking at
  the jewel-encrusted daggers with ornate carvings, it's easy
  to see why he has embraced nickels.

  The coins take him an average of 10 to 12 hours, and he has
  finished about 50 so far.

  On a recent evening, Finlay was taking background metal out
  of a nickel, one of 10 he was carving for a collector. A 
  hobo holding a pick ax along railroad tracks was already 
  visible.

  Finlay's glasses were pressed up against a microscope 
  focused on the nickel, as his thick fingers finessed what 
  he called a miniature jackhammer, a small tool powered by 
  compressed air that delivers rapid strokes into the metal.

  Cake crumbs rested on the table below Finlay's mouth. 
  Working in the evenings and on weekends, it's not unusual 
  for him to skip a meal.

  "It's nothing if I work 10 hours straight, or 11, 12," he 
  said.

  The Original Hobo Nickel Society has nicknamed Finlay "The
  Excavator" for his propensity to dig deep into the nickel. 
  He does it to make the subject stand out. One of the things
  that makes him unique is his ability to make those small, 
  full-figure hobos. Nobody else has done that.

  "I like to make things more 3D than 2D," Finlay said. "Most
  people have never seen a nickel, one that's been carved, 
  and it's fun to carve something that they haven't seen."

  Full Story

  Wayne Homren, Editor

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