# Bowl Carving tools



## mountain_man (Dec 18, 2013)

My wife wants to try her hand at bowl carving. Is there a good starter set of tools out there somewhere for the hobbyist? Can some of you recommend what she needs to start?


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## acowboy (Nov 20, 2013)

Lathe
Lathe turning tools
Various grades of sandpaper
Knowledge on using a lathe, watch as many videos on operation,and use of a lathe. Books will help also, there are many safety factors on usage.
And of course the wood, need to have some knowledge on finishes, there is a lot to learn about a lathe operation.
Amazon, eBay, and even HF has some tools for the beginner. 
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## Hammer1 (Aug 1, 2010)

I take it you mean hand carved, not lathe turned. There are numerous approaches possible. Methods can be regional, native American methods, Appalachian methods, European methods, etc. It would help to know if there is a particular style she is interested in replicating. All the work can be done with one simple tool. like a crooked knife or a carving gouge. These only remove small amounts of wood at a time but are fairly simple to use. Others will use heavier tools to form the blank and do the carving, axes, draw knives, curved hand adzes, scorps as well as carving gouges and ordinary whittling knives. Some of these are much more difficult to use and require a bit of strength and lots of practice. 

For a beginner, a pair of Kevlar carving gloves, a crooked knife, a sharpening stone and a block of wood will be enough to get started. The work can be hand held and you just take your time. When you get into heavier stock removal and carving methods, you need ways to hold the work, other than by hand. You need a sturdy workbench with hold down clamps and vices or a shave horse, which she will have to make. This is an interesting video of splitting out a small log and carving a bowl with heavier tools, no crooked knife but he uses a wide sweep carving gouge at towards the end. Getting all the tools shown in this vid will be pretty expensive. This approach might be more than what she wants to do.


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## mountain_man (Dec 18, 2013)

Hammer1 said:


> I take it you mean hand carved, not lathe turned. There are numerous approaches possible. Methods can be regional, native American methods, Appalachian methods, European methods, etc. It would help to know if there is a particular style she is interested in replicating. All the work can be done with one simple tool. like a crooked knife or a carving gouge. These only remove small amounts of wood at a time but are fairly simple to use. Others will use heavier tools to form the blank and do the carving, axes, draw knives, curved hand adzes, scorps as well as carving gouges and ordinary whittling knives. Some of these are much more difficult to use and require a bit of strength and lots of practice.
> 
> For a beginner, a pair of Kevlar carving gloves, a crooked knife, a sharpening stone and a block of wood will be enough to get started. The work can be hand held and you just take your time. When you get into heavier stock removal and carving methods, you need ways to hold the work, other than by hand. You need a sturdy workbench with hold down clamps and vices or a shave horse, which she will have to make. This is an interesting video of splitting out a small log and carving a bowl with heavier tools, no crooked knife but he uses a wide sweep carving gouge at towards the end. Getting all the tools shown in this vid will be pretty expensive. This approach might be more than what she wants to do.
> Carving a Wooden Bowl: Green Wood and Hand Tools - YouTube


This is more of what she wants to do. She likes the more natural shapes that you can create with this style vs round bowls when using a lathe.


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## acowboy (Nov 20, 2013)

:icon_redface:..whoops, sorry.


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