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wood carving


goodo123
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  • 2 years later...

Thought I'd resurrect this thread following a search.

I'm looking at trying to make my own beer tankard and also a kuksa out of wood.

What are the minimum tools I will need to do this? I've spent some time researching as I normally do when starting something new and it looks like I'll need a curved gouge and hook knife to hollow out the blank. Then I was thinking a small hatchet like gransfors or hultafors for the larger cutting work ( I'm getting one of these anyway for camping)

 

Any pointers on types/brands/sizes of gouge? Can you take fallen deadwood to use from common land as long as you're not clearing the place out? Do you need to use seasoned wood or is greenwood preferable?

 

Would a crappy old workmate be okay to start on?

 

Thanks :good:

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Thought I'd resurrect this thread following a search.

 

I'm looking at trying to make my own beer tankard and also a kuksa out of wood.

 

What are the minimum tools I will need to do this? I've spent some time researching as I normally do when starting something new and it looks like I'll need a curved gouge and hook knife to hollow out the blank. Then I was thinking a small hatchet like gransfors or hultafors for the larger cutting work ( I'm getting one of these anyway for camping)

 

Any pointers on types/brands/sizes of gouge? Can you take fallen deadwood to use from common land as long as you're not clearing the place out? Do you need to use seasoned wood or is greenwood preferable?

 

Would a crappy old workmate be okay to start on?

 

Thanks :good:

I used to pick up all sorts of old tools from car boot sales muddy, every now and then i'd find a gem. otherwise a lot of specialist gear can be found on the axminster tool centre website. green wood is easier to carve just be careful when drying it out. and finally, a b&d workmate is an essential piece of kit :lol:

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I used to pick up all sorts of old tools from car boot sales muddy, every now and then i'd find a gem. otherwise a lot of specialist gear can be found on the axminster tool centre website. green wood is easier to carve just be careful when drying it out. and finally, a b&d workmate is an essential piece of kit :lol:

 

Cheers for the reply Paddy I'll have a look. From what I've seen so far the gouges are like £20 plus a pop. What size/type would be a good starting point bearing in mind I'm only going to try making the tankard and kuksa so basically justt hollowing out?

 

I've seen the Mora hook knife which also looks like it might be of use.

 

With regards to drying does this have to be done before any oil/finish is applied I'm really pretty clueless on this subject at the moment.

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Have you thought about booking a course and getting some advice from them?

 

After watching Ray Mears do it I have always fancied carving a spoon :blush:

 

I hadn't really Dunkield. I normall like to just have a crack at teaching myself things with the help from the internets.

 

It would make sense but I always like to do the best I can on the smallest budget.

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Cheers for the reply Paddy I'll have a look. From what I've seen so far the gouges are like £20 plus a pop. What size/type would be a good starting point bearing in mind I'm only going to try making the tankard and kuksa so basically justt hollowing out?

 

I've seen the Mora hook knife which also looks like it might be of use.

 

With regards to drying does this have to be done before any oil/finish is applied I'm really pretty clueless on this subject at the moment.

I really don't know where to start with carving, I tend to use a chainsaw and grinder :lol: if it were me i'd diddle for middle with a gouge, a good length and swan neck I think would be ideal. the wood needs to be reasonably well seasoned before sealing or it'll sweat and peel the finish. what timber are you thinking of using? there used to be a company called north heigham sawmills near here which stocked just about every type known to man, such a shame they closed down.

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Thought I'd resurrect this thread following a search.

 

I'm looking at trying to make my own beer tankard and also a kuksa out of wood.

 

What are the minimum tools I will need to do this? I've spent some time researching as I normally do when starting something new and it looks like I'll need a curved gouge and hook knife to hollow out the blank. Then I was thinking a small hatchet like gransfors or hultafors for the larger cutting work ( I'm getting one of these anyway for camping)

 

Any pointers on types/brands/sizes of gouge? Can you take fallen deadwood to use from common land as long as you're not clearing the place out? Do you need to use seasoned wood or is greenwood preferable?

 

Would a crappy old workmate be okay to start on?

 

Thanks :good:

 

 

Try to start with lime or a similar easy wood. Fruit woods are also fairly even grain and can be soft enough .... as is Walnut. Avoid soft woods (such as pines/larches/firs) like the plague.

 

Many modern tools are not that great and even more are carp. Flexicut are OK for modern ones. Ashley Isles are fine. If you really want great tools, look out for old Addis tools which are simply superb regardless of which generation Addis made them.

 

You don't need much to start out.

 

A key trick is to learn how to keep them razor sharp..... I'd put more effort into this with some simple first tools along with making simple carvings for family and friends. Get some books for inspiration and go to look at some wood shows where carving is demonstrated along side competitions.

 

You may find Axminster powertool centre will do a day starter course which might be worth doing.

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Try to start with lime or a similar easy wood. Fruit woods are also fairly even grain and can be soft enough .... as is Walnut. Avoid soft woods (such as pines/larches/firs) like the plague.

 

Many modern tools are not that great and even more are carp. Flexicut are OK for modern ones. Ashley Isles are fine. If you really want great tools, look out for old Addis tools which are simply superb regardless of which generation Addis made them.

 

 

Swiss made from Buxton craft supplies are top notch too

 

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Try to start with lime or a similar easy wood. Fruit woods are also fairly even grain and can be soft enough .... as is Walnut. Avoid soft woods (such as pines/larches/firs) like the plague.

 

Many modern tools are not that great and even more are carp. Flexicut are OK for modern ones. Ashley Isles are fine. If you really want great tools, look out for old Addis tools which are simply superb regardless of which generation Addis made them.

 

 

Swiss made from Buxton craft supplies are top notch too

 

 

good call, they are good .... Pfeil is a good one.

 

http://www.pfeiltools.com/en/home.html

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There used to be a very good shop in Bakewell but I haven't been there for years so not even sure its still open .

I'm still using my grandfathers and great grand fathers, both were wood and stone carvers [Never call granddad a sculptor] for stocking guns but some of them are stating to get a bit short .

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There used to be a very good shop in Bakewell but I haven't been there for years so not even sure its still open .

I'm still using my grandfathers and great grand fathers, both were wood and stone carvers [Never call granddad a sculptor] for stocking guns but some of them are stating to get a bit short .

Sadly closed and gone

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There used to be a very good shop in Bakewell but I haven't been there for years so not even sure its still open .

I'm still using my grandfathers and great grand fathers, both were wood and stone carvers [Never call granddad a sculptor] for stocking guns but some of them are stating to get a bit short .

Was it called Craft supplies?

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Only from my experience the cheap stuff is cheap for a reason - that being said i have a set of dirt cheap ( those ebay chinese £12 for 12 tools type deals ) amongst a load of home made and mixed shop bought chisels small carving chisels and they are excellent so long as you have realistic expectations when they come you can just about take a shaving of some pine board with no precision or accuracy but try on some hard wood and the edge will turn and break- you will need to anneal re shape, harden and temper each tool then sharpen them and even then they won't hold an edge very long; that being said when you need to make yourself a little scraper of a tool to get in an awkward place if you have some cheap steel you can bend them and grind them until they are completely worn out without worrying that you are messing around with a perfectly good tool.

 

The more you pay for a tool they more they function out of the box, but you will pretty much still need to sharpen them properly to get the best from the edge

 

If you need to make a certain radius ed cut or a tool for another specialist purpose you may as well make one for which you will need some good steel, propane torch hammer, files and some either home made or bought handles to hand.

 

No tools are any good if you don't learn to sharpen them.

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