# What Carving Tools Do You Recommend?



## Admin (Jan 4, 2010)

What tools would you recommend for someone just getting started who wanted to explore an interest in wood carving?


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## bigcouger (Jan 4, 2012)

I started with a set from wood craft cost about $25.00 they are made in Japan an I still use them, I use them on relief an in the round, you can't go wrong with them :thumbsup::thumbsup:


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## Dominick (May 2, 2011)

Well Ill start with this new forum. 
Thanks cricket. 
When I first got into woodworking, carving wasn't even a thought at that time. Carving came later on as I became familiar with my tools and the style I liked. 

Not sure if I know of anyone to just get into carving without any previous woodworking experience. I'm sure there are some. 

When I first started I had a cheap crappy set from some garage sale. I watched lots of videos. 
My first carving I did was drawn out freehand. 
I'm no artist, so this was a challenge. 

I prefer to use a pattern now. 
There's lots of different types of woodcarving.
I do relief carving.
So different chisels and knives are used for ones specific carving. 

My suggestion to anyone who wants to carve is to watch videos, look at pictures and talk to other carvers. 
Don't go buy cheap tools or you'll be struggling and you'll get discouraged. 
Buy good tools. 
I'm self taught and I'm always learning new things. 
Hope that helps a bit.


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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

The experience I've had with chisels is brand isn't all that important. I probably have a dozen or more different brands including Harbor Freight carpenter chisels and some they weren't proud enough to put their name on and all work about the same. Really the chisel I have that holds an edge the best is a homemade one made from a 6" jointer knife. If though the price of the chisels were especially cheap or packaged like these I would stay away from them. They are beyond frustrating to try to use. The carving teacher I had preferred Dastra or Frank Mitterier chisels. 

Then for sharpening I was taught to use natural Arkansas stones and keep them and use them in water rather than any kind of oil. The idea is using oil on a stone the particles of metal and oil mix together and fill the pores of the stone changing the texture of the stone and eventually make them less effective. Keeping the stones soaking in water causes the metal particles to rust out of the pores opening them up and re-newing them. It seems to work for me, the stones I bought in the late 1970's I still have and still use and are as good today as when I bought them. Finally after honing the chisels the final polish is to strop them on a piece of leather attached to a board and loaded down with a jewelers rouge.


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## BigJim (Sep 2, 2008)

I have several different brands of carving tools also, I started off with a set of Ramelson palm tools, I have Pfiel, Flexcut, Drake and several other brands now. I only buy as I need them, kinda like router bits, I don't buy a complete set as there will be some that will never be used. I really don't like the Pfiel tools as they are so thick but they do hold an edge well and cut well, I just don't like the thickness of some of their tools.

I have a set of the really cheap tools also, they are just collecting dust, they are just too frustrating to do anything with. Buy good tools, the cheap ones will ruin your carving experiences and more than likely will discourage you so much you will quit. 

Sharpening is another thing, there are so many ways to sharpen and as long as you get the results of a very very sharp tool it really doesn't matter how you go about it, as long as the tool isn't over heated. Some ways are fairly easy some are not easy to me. Once the tools are sharp all you need to do is hone them, unless the edges start to round or a blade is nicked. I too use a leather strop on wood with the jewelers rouge, then I finish polishing with tooth paste as it is about 8,000 grit. 

My test for sharpness is on my thumb nail, if the knife slides, it isn't sharp, if it holds to the nail at a good angle, then to me it is Sharp enough to be able to carve and leave the wood with a glossy look. A dull knife is not fun to carve with.


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## Brian T. (Dec 19, 2012)

Like anything else, you need to select the right tools for the job. That means that each style of carving (relief, flat-plane, caricature, scrimshaw, chip, in-the-round and so on) have different tools. Without making that decision, you can come close to buying wood carving tools which are essentially useless, no matter how much you paid for them. And, you get what you pay for. Exactly the same thing applies to stone carving.

For in-the-round, I have a variety of mostly Pfeil which I have picked up, one at a time, over the years. I have several pairs of skews and some knives for form-line relief carving. I explored the usefulness of crooked knives and now have a dozen, some in L & R pairs, with different sweeps.
For the rough shaping at the beginning, I have a Stubai carver's adze and a Baby Sitka from Kestrel Tool plus a few assorted hand saws.

It helps to "learn the wood". All that means is to use the same wood for years to learn what sorts of cuts are effective and what sorts of cuts lead to disaster with chunks popping off. Mostly western red cedar, birch is better for detail, yellow cedar is nice but hold no more fine detail than WRC. Pine and spruce are really low-end woods.

Maybe you want to specialize in carving Santas in cottonwood bark. Maybe you want to use basswood (northern is best, best supplier is Heineke.) It's up to you.

Most importantly, pick something. Buy individual tools as the need arises. Kits are fine but you will get stuck with a few that you never use.


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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

I finally found time to come up with a beginner chisel set. Like anything else this could vary depending on the different work a person might do. Of the 33 chisels I have these are the ones that get used the most and I didn't list the flat chisels. I use carpenter chisels for that purpose. With the plastic handles they will never wear out. 

The term sweep is the amount of curve the chisel has. The higher the number the more curved it is. Since most good chisels come from Europe I'm listing them in metric sizes. 

Sweep 3 14mm
Sweep 3 9mm ground as a skew left
Sweep 3 9mm ground as a skew right
Sweep 5 6mm
Sweep 5 22mm
Sweep 7 8mm
Sweep 8 10mm
Sweep 9 20mm
Sweep 11 2mm
Parting tool 20mm

Optional
Sweep 3 4mm
Sweep 3 6mm
Sweep 5 10mm
Sweep 11 1mm
Sweep 11 3mm

Then a good heavy mallet is important. If one is bought it should be made of iron wood. The one I use I turned myself on a lathe made of ash. To make it heavy I drilled a hole into the head of it and poured lead in it and capped it.


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## Brian T. (Dec 19, 2012)

Steve: good list. Are those from the London Pattern Book or the Pfeil list which is out by one step in the sweep patterns?
I'd add a 1/8 for outlining. Your 5/22 will be a big push, the mallet will work well.
Probably a fine detail knife for final touch-ups of nooks and crannies. A Flexcut KD14 works OK
or get a serious blade from an independent bladesmith like Old Stump/BrandantR.

My lead-core, 30oz mallet will be a bit much for beginners. Maybe a 12oz ShopFox is better with any gouges smaller than x/12. In either case, I often choke up on the mallet head for softer/smaller strikes.
Plus, if you're working in softer woods with smaller tools for smaller carvings, you don't need a mallet at all. If you whittle or do flat plane or characature, you need a few very good knives, no more.


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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

Robson Valley said:


> Steve: good list. Are those from the London Pattern Book or the Pfeil list which is out by one step in the sweep patterns?
> I'd add a 1/8 for outlining. Your 5/22 will be a big push, the mallet will work well.
> Probably a fine detail knife for final touch-ups of nooks and crannies. A Flexcut KD14 works OK
> or get a serious blade from an independent bladesmith like Old Stump/BrandantR.
> ...


When I was buying chisels it was before there was an internet and I never saw a pattern book or list. The list I made was comprised mostly from the Frank Mittermeier chisels I have. Is there really all that much difference in the sweeps? I could live with a little variation. When I took the carving classes the teacher I had put together a list of 15 chisels for me to get. While most all of what is on my list was ones he recommended a lot were so close alike I didn't use many of them.


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

When I first started carving my tools were pocket knives. It was a time about when I was in the Boy Scouts. I still have those knives...Case, and Old Timer. They are magnificent knives by the way, well worth whatever they cost today. So, I won't be trying to impress anyone with what I used to get started. 

IMO, a tool has to feel good in the hands. I believe a first set of carving tools are tools that can be used to do most any carving once you get comfortable using them. I would recommend a starter set that's very affordable. Among all my tools, I have two favorite sets. 

The first is a basic set, like this one. They hold an edge very well, and are easy to sharpen. The set is similar to other starter sets. Another set are palm tools like these. Likewise, they are very similar to other sets. The difference is in the handle and length. For some they just feel very natural in the hand. Once you get some use from the tools, you may want to purchase single tools, and if you think they are better because they cost more, go for it.


















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## Brian T. (Dec 19, 2012)

I like to begin with gouges with deep, U-shaped sweeps like 8 or 9 to get the basic shaping done with or without a mallet. Then a 5 to take down the bulk of the ridges left behind. Then a 2 or so (Pfeil = LPB #3) to get a relatively smooth surface. I'd only add the inbetween sweeps if I was doing tracery or lettering.

Handles: Among the many crooked knives and elbow adzes of the Pacific Northwest style wood carving tools, the general concept is to hold the handle in a fist grip. The tips of your second and third fingers should just touch the base swelling of your thumb. For me, that's a blank which begins as a 7/8" square. I investigated that concept with 1 1/8", 1", 7/8" and 3/4". After a couple of years fooling with it, I believe it. 
You can see these tools in the North Bay Forge and Kestrel Tool websites. Mostly, I began with Mora #171 Equus (or Diamond #271) hook knives meant for hoof trimming in the farrier's trade and reworked them into crooked knives for wood carving. I now have 12 of them in the sweeps I need.


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## Alan025 (Aug 28, 2014)

My list included:
A set of auriou.
Mallets
Hirsch
Flexcut
Carving knives
Advertising link removed


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