Best blade shape, steel and handle for wood carving?

M

mst

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Aug 6, 2014
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Sorry if this is a too obvious question, but I'm new here ^^

I'm looking for a knife to use with basic wood carving. I have a relatively stressful job that makes me sit behind a computer most of the day and would really like to take up some basic wood carving as a means to relax and take my mind off stuff.
I'm not planning to make art or super highly detailed statues, just anything from grabbing and stripping a piece of wood to carving it into some shapes.

I'm not sure I'd always do so at home, so I think my best bet would be a pocket sized folding knife. I've read into edc-sized knives a bit and especially blade shape materials.

What type of blade material would you consider optimal for cutting wood? I'd like it to be relatively low maintenance, so something like S30V looks like a fine choice.

As for blade length or shape, a drop point or spear point looks great. Maybe a tanto point would have its benefits since you could possibly use it as a chisel, but I'd like to limit the amount of tools I'd need to what I can fit in a pocket.

As for budget, I'm not really sure what to expect. Anything from $40 to $100 is an option.

I used to have a knife that was really similar to a Buck 110 that I loved and did a lot of cutting and carving with. I also had one of those french style knives with the round wooden handle, but the blade wasn't stainless steel and it would eventually rust after forgetting it in a wet jacket pocket...

From what I found so far, a Buck Alpha Hunter with Rosewood handle and S30V looks like a comfortable knife to hold and has a very good looking blade shape (with the correct material). I'd like to avoid swiss army knives because they're not comfortable to handle for a few hours.

Any thoughts on the blade shape or material that would be best for this type of use?
 
I recommended to someone the other day that they start at A.J. Russell...or someplace like that...because they may have a sort page for 'whittlers.' Might be a good place to see a variety in one place. I think you can do better than a Buck for a real whittler.
 
To be honest any folder will eventually have its limits. If you really get into whittling/carving look at some of the Flexcut knives.
 
This thread should be useful: http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1089873-Good-knife-for-whittling-and-carving

Image by evilgreg in that thread:

AXUhNZy.jpg



For carving/whittling, the most important aspect is handle comfort and control of the blade. You want a rather hand-filling design to maximum distribution of pressure around your hand rather than 'hot-spots', the handle should be relatively pliable and unabrasive, and the handle should afford a great deal of control over the blade (achieved via a non-circular handle, one where it is ~2x wider than it is thick to optimize indexing). The Tuff-lite (large or mini) offer this in a folding knife with a VERY secure lock. :thumbup:

You want an inexpensive stainless-steel that can take a fine (low micron) edge with ease - Cold Steels AUS-8 fits the bill :thumbup:
 
Though we may disagree on the use of the word choil ;) I agree with chiral.grolim above.

I'm a novice wood carver, having decided to take up whittling again a year ago last spring after not carving anything since I was a kid. I've got Moras, whittler pattern traditionals, expensive and lovely custom carving knives from three makers, and yet somehow I keep coming back to the inexpensive Cold Steel Tuff Lite and Mini Tuff Lite knives. They have a bunch of things going for them, IMO, including:

* They're inexpensive
* They're easy to sharpen
* They're really comfortable in hand (even more so if you wrap them up and make them look like some homemade prison shank like the one in red in the image earlier in the thread)
* The curve across the handle and spine makes them perfect for powerful lever cuts
* They have a really trustworthy lock mechanism

I generally use the prison shank style ones (para cord wrapped, then wrapped again over that in grip tape when I have the shape I want) but between the wrapped ones and the ones I left as folders, I probably do eighty-plus percent of all my carving with a Cold Steel Tuff Lite. I did this ball in a cage almost entirely with a Tuff Lite, for example:

3tbo2Ds.jpg


I have tried seven traditionals (five nice GECs), six custom carving knives from three makers (try Deepwoods Ventures, his knives are gorgeous), and I have all the Mora wood carving knives, but I always end up with my oddly shaped yet super comfy Tuff Lite in hand, it seems.

I suggest you find something that's comfortable to use to you--as chiral.grolim pointed out, even minor annoyances in handle ergos will wear on you. After cutting wood with a knife for two hours straight, the smallest hot spot can change your opinion of a knife. For example, I love my Tuff Lites for carving, but I wrap the handles and round the edges of the blade spine to make them just right . . .

If you don't want to try the Tuff Lite, my next suggestion would the the Mora 122 and 120 fixed blade knives, they're cheap and really pretty awesome as well.
 
Thank you for the very helpful replies! I'm a bit surprised at the very short and straight blades used for carving, but I suppose as with many tools, having only one is simply not going to cut it (no pun).
I remember that my old carving knife was an Opinel with carbon steel blade. It cut through softer wood like butter and was great at that, but the shape of the blade was less than perfect, and I still have two huge scars in my left thumb (through and through) to prove it's inpracticality with details.
That little tuff lite looks ok for it, just wish it had a rounder handle.

Again, thanks for the replies; this will nudge me in the right direction to select something at my knife store and perhaps a secondary for detail work at a crafts supply.
 
If you really want a ROUND (makes sense to me for whittling) handle and have a high tollerance for tinkering, some people modify Opinels into folding whiting/said working knives by filing the blade down into a wharncliffe style blade. They will be a bit tricky to get out due to the lack of the nail nick so you'll need to keep the joint lubed (Vaseline & hair dryer works well).

Look for posts by Mr Chips here.
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/817090-Opinel-mods/page5

I would stick with their Inox for this.
 
I like kiridashis for their low price, ease of sharpening and general handiness. I use them for whittling, leather work, opening boxes, just about anything you'd need a small sharp knife for. Get a little one to start as the bigger ones take some getting used to, and the white or blue steel versions are great.

21.jpg
 
This thread covers a lot of carving knives.

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1046919

Me and Greg and a few others discussed these style knives at length.

I love carving. I picked up a ladle that I'd been working on the other day, but with the leather work I have next to no time.

Favorites-

1. Drake

2. CS mini tuff light

3. Deepwoods Ventures

4. Modified Opinel

5. GEC Halfwhitt

6. Couple of dashis

Good luck. It's a very fun hobby!
 
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