Thread: A few questions on whittling

Hi Allen,
Most Carvers & Whittlers use a fair bit of " Jelutong ". It is a softish Wood with next to no grain.
It was used for Pattern Making.
So if you ask around, you may find some.
As for Knives, you can Google Pfeil Knives, & then you copy their shape, by using old used 1in. Hacksaw Blades.
They are HSS. For the Handle, I just drew around the Tang & carved a bit out of each piece, & used Loctite 401, & then jam it in a vice. I always sign & date them, sand & scrape the Handle to the desired size.

hi Allen, i was just asking similar questions a few days ago, The info i received from other members - particularly Whittling was that Jelutong is very easy to carve . 'like butter' is often how its described and is widely used by woodcarvers. Other timbers include English Lime -the equivalent to Basswood, poplar and willow. Pfeil make some nice chisels.knives but i went with Flexcut beginners palm knife and chisel set from Carbatec and a flexcut leather strop and compound set to keep the tools sharp. I particularly liked this knife/chisel combo because it gave a good starting combination for whittling/carving for the price. Can always expand on it later. You will probably need to seek out a specialist timber supply for these unless you can find poplar or willow trees in your area that might need a bit of a 'prune'. Hope it helps

As Woodmama said get a hold of some Jelutong to try, usually sold at Carbatec, I also have a set of flexcut knifes which I find pretty good. Don't waist your time
on MDF. Western Red Cedar is pretty soft too.

The above is all good advice but I'll add some bits... Good whittling wood that can be found in most southern states are silver birch, poplar and willow. Usually this sort of carving only requires wood of a maximum dimention of about 50 mm x 50 mm (the length can be much more as in walking staves etc). This means you can get good working stuff from a bough of any of these species.

As for tools, Flexcut and Phiel make excellent knives but there are alternatives. If you have or can get a decent 2 or 3 bladed pocket knife it can be converted to a number of caving tools by re-shaping the blades, which then fold into the handle. This is a lot easier and more convenient to cart around than a box or roll of separate knives.

I can post a WIP of how to do this if it interests you.

thank you guys. I was oringinally thinking of going to bunnings and have a look at their wood, would they sell any of the above mentioned woods, like Jelutong? I was looking at pocket knives today as well, and thinking that could be a great tool to begin with, i already have a variety of v tools and such in the shed that i'll have to sharpen due to not in use or look after that well from my late granddad.

Whittling, i would like to know how you can convert the pocket knives into carving tools, but i dont think i will, haha

Allen, no Bunnings dont sell any of these timbers...i wish they wood - it would make life a lot easier!. dont even waste your time with the bunnings pine - even though pine is a softwood, its too grainy and difficult . You will need to go to a specialist timber supplier or try and find the wood like Whittling has suggested. Places like carbatec etc sell the knives/chisels/gouges etc you can use. Check out youube for sharpening video's etc to get your tools back in order...its not too hard to do at all...can even just use different grits of sandpaper to get a good edge and then hone/polish the edge with stropping compound.

thank you, would bunnings sell any other type suitable??

Allen
What is Scandinavian Carving?
Cheers
ASISAY

Hello Whittling!,
I would be very greatfull for you to show a WIP on adapting a pocket knife for carving.
To be able to have a tool so readily available would be brilliant.
I could sit on a beach and carve driftwood. Or pick up bits in the bush and test them out.
regards, Ned

Saisay, i believe its pretty much the same as flat plane carving. Should of went with with that, sorry

Hi Whittling,
I agree with Ned, I would love to see how to convert a pocket knife into a good carving knife. I have a beautiful old one I used for skinning rabbits years ago, that now just sits in a draw. Also, I was so impressed by your poplar staves on a previous post that I went out and found some great branches from a row of huge poplars growing beside the road. It is stunning wood, the colours are fantastic - from pinks to oranges to whites. Thanks for the inspiration! Looking forward to converting my old favourite pocket knife to a carving knife.
Thanks,
Featherwood.

Ok guys, I'll post something in a new thread.

Mora (Sweden) may be better known for their 'Equus' series of bent/crooked farrier's knives (eg #171, #188),
they do make some wood carving knives as well.