Any spoon carvers/wood carvers, turners here?

[Cuchilo]

My latest turning ...

Finial for the top of a mates house

 

[raleighnut]

Whats the bit in the middle ? A follower ? The bit on the end is also interesting .

I think the bit 'in the middle' is a 'steady' and the end has a fixed tool for simple parallel turning (posts etc) as it is very difficult to turn a long section of wood straight with a chisel, up to a foot or even eighteen inches is relatively easy but 3-4 foot is a pain ( the trick I was taught was to use a very finely set Block Plane freehand at a 30 or so degree angle but that was on a 4 foot taper)

 

[Randomnerd]

@Hill Wimp @woodenspoons
Do you use one of those hook knives to hollow the bowl part of the spoon? I'm about to make some working (rough) carving/whittling knives and thought I would have a go at a hook knife as well. I'm after some dimensions and edge geometry information.

Thanks.

Have a look at Del Stubbs’ knives at Pinewood Forge. His are the best I’ve ever used. For an efficient knife, I want the bowl profile and edge profile to match. Best way for finishing cuts at any rate. Any curved blade will do the roughing out and wasting of bowl chips.
Nic Westermann makes lovely knives, and a swan necked gouge, which I use for removing waste quickly.
There’s a lot of chatter about compound curves vs open sweep curves. An open, continuous sweep is better for spoon bowls imo.
Edge should be single bevel, with outside grind. Needs to hold a very good edge, as honing is your preferred way to keep an edge. Stubbs knives are linished to mirror and very durable steel. Cheaper knives are softer, but easier to get a good finish on. Mora 164 is great for £17, but has a secondary bevel, which gets in the way when you carve. The back of the knife should be finished so as to be continuously curved.
Hth

 

[Globalti]

Anybody who is interested in making things will enjoy this video of people casting alloy cooking pots in Nigeria. The skill and resourcefulness of the guys is amazing, using casting techniques that have existed in West Africe for centuries:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dlGDhgYw65A

 

[Hill Wimp]

@Hill Wimp @woodenspoons
Do you use one of those hook knives to hollow the bowl part of the spoon? I'm about to make some working (rough) carving/whittling knives and thought I would have a go at a hook knife as well. I'm after some dimensions and edge geometry information.

Thanks.

I do, mine is a Robin Wood one. When I did my spoon carving day course the instructor was really interested to use my Robin Wood as apparently is different to a lot of others. @woodenspoons would probably know why.

 

[Randomnerd]

I do, mine is a Robin Wood one. When I did my spoon carving day course the instructor was really interested to use my Robin Wood as apparently is different to a lot of others. @woodenspoons would probably know why.

Robin makes two kinds, I believe. The more interesting one is his compound curve shape, where the curve radius gets tighter around the knife. This is a good shape for all spoon bowl carving throughout the process.
The woodman’s lore however, states that they who die with the most tools wins. Knife n+1, in effect.

 

[Hugh Manatee]

Thanks everyone, for the advice. I'm going to use this thread to show my very beginner progress, (or lack of it)! First off, I need a knife to whittle with. I am going to use 3mm steel as I have big hands. Things aren't yet looking too promising after 10 minutes with an angle grinder.

 

[Randomnerd]

Remember you will be using the blade in your hand at times with close detail work, or for certain cuts. The ideal whittler wants only one sharp edge, with everything else smoothed over, or you will soon get sick of using it.
Are you keeping the steel cooled as you cut? Tool steel?

 

[Hugh Manatee]

Remember you will be using the blade in your hand at times with close detail work, or for certain cuts. The ideal whittler wants only one sharp edge, with everything else smoothed over, or you will soon get sick of using it.
Are you keeping the steel cooled as you cut? Tool steel?

I'm keeping everything small and neat. Steel is O1 and is in an annealed state for working. I'll harden it once I have the bevels ground and the handles roughed out. I think I'll help the handles stay in place with a single brass pin as I struggle to get the handle hole (there has to be a better name for it than that!) the perfect fit. Tomorrow, the work bench will be set up in the kitchen, (more to shock the visiting MiL than anything else) and I'll get busy with the files.

 

[Randomnerd]

Heat the handle, drill a pilot hole too small and burn it in. Remove, epoxy, and back in. You can get quit a tang in that way. You will need another knife to carve the handle on the one you’re making though

 

[Dave7]

Does this count .
Its a new golf trophy for our society. Its a wooden spoon mounted on a k ob. The brass plate has FUG etched on it.
It is awarded to the player who comes last (i am the proud holder in its first month)
FUG stands for f****** Usless Golfer.
On the back is a guiness with 19 above it.....to say "should have just stayed at the 19th hole"
The cat......short for cat-astrophy
Alas I cannot claim to be its maker ......only its first ever holder.

 

[Hugh Manatee]

I have made some progress on the carving knives and am making a start on the spoon knife. There some very handy videos on the Robin Wood site. I am going for a fairly open hook bevelled on one side only using a chisel grind. I'll let you know any progress.

Slightly out of focus but you can see my homemade bevel jig! Endless filing isn't a bad workout actually.

 

[Hugh Manatee]

I know it's been blooming ages but I have had to work on a couple full sized bushcraft knives. The carving knives are finished! I'm just applying some Tung oil and they'll be ready for a photo.

 

[Hugh Manatee]

Here's a first look at my prototype carving knives. They aren't perfect but they will be put to use so I will see if I need to make any changes.

Maybe I need to move the blade up a bit? So that the back of the blade is closer to the top of the handle. The brass is there to cover the tang hole. I don't have a lathe so cannot use the tailstock to drill a hole. There is a brass pin through the handle and tang to allow for a more secure fit. The handles are shaped to be handed. They fit well into my hand and are comfortable to hold. I'll put an edge on them and see how they carve. Blade length is around 70mm.

 

[raleighnut]

Here's a first look at my prototype carving knives. They aren't perfect but they will be put to use so I will see if I need to make any changes.

View attachment 461277

Maybe I need to move the blade up a bit? So that the back of the blade is closer to the top of the handle. The brass is there to cover the tang hole. I don't have a lathe so cannot use the tailstock to drill a hole. There is a brass pin through the handle and tang to allow for a more secure fit. The handles are shaped to be handed. They fit well into my hand and are comfortable to hold. I'll put an edge on them and see how they carve. Blade length is around 70mm.

I'd go for a through blade and split riveted handle,