Speedball Speedy-Carve Block Printing Carving Block, Rectangle, Pink, 3 x 4 Inches (6-Pack), Linoleum for Printmaking

I grew up using Speedball for all my printmaking projects. For more detailed cuts I prefer to use a harder linoleum that's a little easier to control, but soft linoleum like this is perfect for large color blocks or for teaching. The smooth consistency of the linoleum makes it easier to get started and to more clearly carve away the sections you want. It's close to an eraser's cconsistency and takes very little pressure to slide the carving tool in. When I teach kids to make printing blocks and learn about negative space I use a soft linoleum like this. Speedball's always been a great reliable brand in my book.

Speedball Speedy-Carve Block Printing Carving Block, Rectangle, Pink, 3 x 4 Inches (6-Pack), Linoleum for PrintmakingI love block printing, especially on my little line-o-scribe press. While I usually use traditional linoleum mounted block for its crispness and solidity, sometimes I don't want to put in the extra time, effort, and hand strain. Speedy-Carve is perfect for those cases. It's effortless to carve, inexpensive, and easy to store. The buttery substrate also makes a much less frustrating project for beginners, but you can still use your regular linoleum tools on it. It makes a pretty good print, too. My main problem with it is that I have to make up the thickness of the missing block on my press. If you're using a baren instead of a press, no problem. But if you want a type-height block, then you have to mount it or build up the height. In the end, still a big time saver. Also great for hand-cut rubber stamps!

I will use any speedball product that comes my way. I’m never let down by their quality. These are no exception. I prefer carving on blocks, but these little rubber numbers are great for little designs and stamp making. They carve well and hold up.

I've been wanting to try carving rubber stamps for a while, so I was pleased to finally have the chance. I bought a basic Speedball linoleum carving set to use with these and it seems to be working pretty well.So far, I've just worked on pretty basic shapes: circles, rectangles, etc. I'm still a little intimidated to try something more complex. The rubber carves pretty easily. I saw a tip online that said to move the block rather than the tool if possible and that has been very helpful.I've had a few issues when I get to a corner of the the rubber piece not coming off the way I want it to. I'm not sure if that's me or the block itself. It takes practice to get the correct pressure and angle, but these little blocks don't make you feel like you're wasting material. I look forward to continuing my experimentation.

Unfortunately I don't have easy access to a printer or I could have tried their method of transferring designs from a freshly made image with a warm iron. I did it by transferring a hand-drawn design the old fashioned way by rubbing by hand.I got a really nice cut line with the finest Speed ball V-gouge which surprised me. Previously I had only seen ragged edges made by other people on these blocks, possibly with less than the brand new blade I used. I used the V-gouge on a push stroke--they recommend using a bench hook which is easy to buy or make. I also used a fresh X-acto and snap-off blade knife on a pull stroke with good results. The key here is a sharp blade which may involve sharpening.With close supervision and safety instruction, this might be effective with responsible upper elementary age students and up. This size and the one bigger would be good for printed cards and lots of other projects. For bookmarks, I would suggest buying much larger blocks and cutting them to size before giving them to the students. They could even print fabric with the proper inks or media.This is a more sophisticated art project at an economical price--including the fact that the second side can create a second image for either another image or a second registered color for the first.

This has been a wonderful way to make stamps. I've had linoleum blocks from Speedball in the past and they never disappoint. They make so many incredible items for printmaking purposes. This is no exception. They are easy to carve and then use and even adhere to a wood handle if wanted.

The first time I tried printmaking was in high school and I loved the process and result. In college I furthered my printmaking skills with some pretty expensive equipment. My professor even said she taught just to have access to the pricey presses and etching equipment. However, my true love has always been the simple hand carved printmaking. These rubber carving blocks are perfect for beginners to tip their toes in to the printmaking world. They are easy to carve and give you a solid print. Still one of my favorite products.At the time of this review the Speedball Speedy-Carve Block Printing Carving Block, Rectangle, Pink, 3 x 4 Inches (6-Pack), Linoleum for Printmaking was listed for $18.99 which is a fair price for their quality product.

I've been using this exact type of Speedball carving blocks to learn how to carve stamps for the past few months. I started off with the Speedball beginner's kit, and instantly fell in love with the hobby. They seemed to be well-regarded online, and were within my budget, so I've been sticking with these carving blocks. So, you can imagine my enthusiasm to receive these for free.While I haven't tried any others to compare them to, I find these to be really easy to work with. Using my wooden Speedball linoleum cutter, I can carve through these blocks with ease. I have some wrist + fine motor skills issues and haven't struggled much with this hobby.I usually use the 4x6 carving blocks, so these smaller ones were interesting to try. Typically, I just carve random little things into my blocks, such as the flower in the picture that I added. So, I don't really do like whole pictures. For my use, I felt like I was wasting much more of the carving block with these ones. After I cut it out, there's not really much left to work with. Whereas with the larger ones, I can cut out a few stamps in each block. That's just me though.

Début linogravure

Smooth & quick transaction, item as described. Would purchase from again

The brand name was what sold me at first, I assume that this was good value because of the brand. If you are purchasing from a local retailer the cost works out to the same. There is no savings even though you are getting 6 sheets.I will say that speedy carve is good material, it’s just over priced. Especially on Amazon.I received the product quickly, each slab was sealed. I noticed that they were that were smaller than I expected. I noticed there was some weight to it, but nothing significant. It’s a soft cut, doesn’t crumble. Had no issues with performance or delivery.My main issues cost and product size. Each sheet of rubber slight bigger than a playing card. What you pay for in price, you don’t really see in material.Purchase an off brand carving material and received better value when it comes to size of each sheet, quantity of sheets , quality of materials.Competitor offered quantity at a decent price - reasonable under $40. Firmer carving material, when sheet is halved I can get 2 of the speedy carves.