I'm a whittling fool!

WadeF

WadeF

Joined
Apr 12, 2000
Messages
2,116
Someone recently made a topic about whittling so I decided to check out some of the books some people recommended. I always wanted to learn to whittle and carve wood. I don't consider myself much of an artist, but I figure I could learn to do some simple things for fun.

So I got one of the books and read about what kind of knife blades they recommend. I decided to call upon my Queen Large Stockman with D2 steel. I bought this knife with the desire to use it. However, I never really found a use for it as I always carried a BM710, or something along those lines. Now I have something I can use it for!

So I proceeded to tune up the blades according to the author's recommendations. I reprofiled the already thin spey blade and put a 30 degree micro bevel on it. I then reworked the large clip point blade. I polished each one up and stropped them to get them as sharp as I could.

Here are some pictures of my first attempts. Who thought, a rooster carved from a simple Y branch. These guys still need some finishing touches and paint. I've yet to get a tail to come out like the pictures in the book, but the ragged and crappy job I did with them gives them a more natural look I think.

So far I haven't cut myself, but I'm afraid one of these times I'll slip and it won't be pretty! Especially if it's with that scalple of a spey blade.

Here are my first 3 roosters and the Queen large stockman:

whittle01.jpg


Carved out of beech wood, I think (fresh cutting from my over grown tree):

whittle02.jpg


Another one from the assumed beech tree, this wood carves up pretty nice:

whittle03.jpg


This was my first go at it with some Norway Maple. I cut out a Y from a branch that I had pruned several days prior, so the wood was some what dried out and made for some tough work. The tail piece is so hard I'm having trouble doing much with it, I may try wetting it a bit and letting it re-dry partially:

whittle04.jpg
 
Wow, my grand father made a small bird. I still have it. Wow. I wanna get into that. LOOK WHAT YOU DID TO ME!? :D
 
When I first saw your roosters, I had to fight the urge to do the chicken dance in my lounge room. Couple of scotch and cokes and some whittled chooks will do this to me.
Cool whittling WadeF, dig your work.
 
Don't forget a wharncliffe, that was originally designed for carving.Woods should be fine grained and not too hard. Soft maple, tulip wood ,black tupelo,basswood and any of the fruit woods like apple. Keep your knives VERY sharp!
 
Looking good. Keep it up. Whittling is a dying art but I don't know why, it is such a good pastime. When you going to try a Ball-in-cage or a Chain? :D
I have some scars from some of my slips, but nothing too bad.
 
Those are your FIRST attempts? Wow, I think you have a natural ability there Wade! Excellent work!

I am lucky if I can whittle a nice toothpick... :D
 
Damn...Wade and I thought you were being sarcastic in your other post in the "where to find Queen Slips" thread, when you mentioned whittling roosters. I remembered (from previous posts) that you carried a BM 710 so I figured you were just poking fun at us lowly slipjoint carriers.

Nice work...those slips are nice and that D2 cuts pretty good.

JT
 
Duffin444 said:
Wow, that is pretty good! Damn, now I may have to give that a go. :rolleyes: Have any tips? :D

-Duffin
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Go to Amazon.com and order "Whittling Twigs and Branches" by Chris Lubkemann.

You'd be surprised how easy it is, as long as you can sharpen a knife well. :)
 
Pretty cool Wade. My Grandpops whittled , whittlin' reminds me of a simpler , better time when our world wasnt ruled by Tv and the PC... lol.
 
Nice work Wade!

And all this time I thought you was a Straight Razor Face Shaving Fool! :D
 
Wow! This forum is suddenly inundated with posts about whittling and carving. WadeF, I highly recommend getting some hand protection. The Kevlar weave gloves work great to prevent incisions but won't stop a stab wound. The leather thumb and finger guards work well too, as does the tape. All these things are readily available from evryone who sells carving supplies. Don't wait (like I did) until you get a serious hand injury to start learning about safety.

You're doing some great stuff. Whittling has to be one of the great hobbies. It's something you will be able to do forever. Happy whittling.
 
PhilL said:
Nice work Wade!

And all this time I thought you was a Straight Razor Face Shaving Fool! :D
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I still am a straight razor face shaving fool too! :)
 
mycroftt said:
WadeF, I highly recommend getting some hand protection. The Kevlar weave gloves work breat to prevent incisions but won't stop a stab wound.
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I have seen some of these things and you're right. I'd feel more comfortable if I had some protective gear. :) I make my living typing on the computer and I can't afford to lose the use of a digit. :)
 
mycroftt said:
Wow! This forum is suddenly inundated with posts about whittling and carving. WadeF, I highly recommend getting some hand protection. The Kevlar weave gloves work breat to prevent incisions but won't stop a stab wound.
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I just took the plunge and ordered a big mess of safety gear from LeeValley. I ordered Kevlar gloves and some other gloves that are supposed to be cut and stab proof. Got a leather apron, friction tape, etc. I'll have a variety of things to try to see what works best. :)
 
Ordering all that gear is fine and dandy, I know lots of old carvers who never had safety gear and still have all of their fingers. Make sure you still sit down and carve!
 
This is really interesting! I also make a living typing on a computer, so I've been wondering how I could protect my fingers while whittling. Just went to Lee Valley's web site, and saw the protection-related products.

They have Kevlar gloves, and puncture-resistant gloves, apparently for different applications. Now, I'm not sure what would be more likely to occur while whittling - a "cut" wound, or a "stab" wound. The 2 different glove types are apparently optimized for dealing only one of the 2 possibilities... :confused:
 
edb said:
They have Kevlar gloves, and puncture-resistant gloves, apparently for different applications. Now, I'm not sure what would be more likely to occur while whittling - a "cut" wound, or a "stab" wound. The 2 different glove types are apparently optimized for dealing only one of the 2 possibilities... :confused:
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I got a pair of each. What you could do is wear them both! :P J/k. I thought the one pair protected against stabs and cuts.
 
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