pocketknife for carving

D

Dozerangel

Joined
May 16, 2013
Messages
4
I am looking to buy a good american made knife for carving. I know there are specialty knives for that but would like a traditional pocket knife that will keep a good edge. I need to know what I need to know in order to make a smart buy...what model for the correct metal hardness etc. Any help would be appreciated.
 
What are you going to be carving? For soft woods, the steel alloy and heat treatment really aren't all that important. Handle comfort in your own hand and how well you can control the blade are more important by far. If you get something with blades that are already ground thin, it will save you time thinning them out. Hard to sharpen super steels mean a lot of extra work to get a suitable woodcarving edge for very little gain in use. You'll want a very thin edge, and you'll want to touch it up (most folks do so by stropping) often to get good, clean cuts. I like plain old 1095 from Schrade USA or GEC myself, although I've done a lot of carving with my old Case 6308 splitback with CV blades as well.
 
Thanks Jack. I am just starting out and am working with bass wood now. I am hoping to get to the point that I can carve and finish some walnut pistol grips though. ~Laurel
 
I'll second what Jack said about the 1095 carbon steel blades. I would find an old carbon blade knife that you don't mind thinning the blade down dramatically. Use caution when thinning and do not get the blade hot enough to ruin the HT. A flat ground blade that is about 1/8 thick at the spine of the blade would be great. Get it razor sharp and then get a good strop with either green or gold compound to keep it as sharp as you can while using it. I strop my carvers about every 30 minutes of carving to keep them sharp. A good warncliff blade thinned down and sharpened razor sharp will make an excellent carver. Check out this thread for some great tips and projects started by Mr. Yablanowitz! http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/838442-Whatcha-whittlin-these-days Great hobby and stress reliever.

Blessings,

Omar
 
Lots of options available. Might want to narrow things down a bit. What type of blade shape do you like to use for whittling? What sized knife do you want?

I personally like to use a wharncliffe blade. Here's my favorite whittling pocketknife, though I prefer to use a sloyd knife if I'm sitting around at home.

winchestercongresspen5.jpg


- Christian
 
I'm with Christian, I prefer my sloyd knife to a slip joint, but don't always have the sloyd knife with me. I prefer a barlow and like the pen blade, but also use a half congress pattern. I also have several old and very over sharpened slip joint that are perfect for modifying the blades for whittling.


-Xander
 
I guess I don't really know what I prefer yet. Sounds as though thus may be a trial and error period. I guess my 4 boys can always use the knives I don't like. Lots of useful information though and I did research some of the metals, companies, etc.(until 3am, lol). Luckily I have a huge old fashion hardware store just down the road so I can at least handle plenty and get an idea of what fits. Any more info anyone has to get me started is well appreciated. I guess I have to look up what a strop is now..I am guessing a finish sharpener? Maybe leather? Thanks again everyone
 
One knife I was drawn to was the Case CV medium stockman with punch. Any thoughts, positive or negative toward that?
 
I don't have the Case medium stockman with the punch, but do really like the Case 63032 medium stockman (with clip, pen, and sheepsfoot) for all around EDC and whittling. Great knife!
 
Trial and error period is exactly right. Some of our whittlers here use and love knives that I wouldn't even consider using. Some like a straight edge for almost everything, others prefer a pen blade with some curve at the tip. I even use a hawkbill at times. We can make suggestions and tell you what we like, but only you can decide what works for you. Basswood is soft and easy to work with, so even soft steel on a cheap knife will work just fine. I know you said you were looking for American made, but at this point in the process, for the sake of your wallet, consider imports. Rough Rider has been producing some old patterns, giving new people a chance to try those patterns at a small fraction of the cost of tracking down originals. Once you find the size and pattern you want, one that works well for you, then you can see about finding a more expensive version.
 
Dozerangel said:
One knife I was drawn to was the Case CV medium stockman with punch. Any thoughts, positive or negative toward that?
Click to expand...

I'm curious about that one myself. I look at that punch and wonder if it could be honed to a needle like point for getting into tight spots, or if it's really only good for, well, punching holes in things. I hope you get an answer!

I'm not much of a whittler, but enjoy goofing around with it. I lucked into an old USA Schrade stockman with the tip broken off the main blade that I reprofiled into a wharncliffe -- so I've got the sheepsfoot for roughing things in, the narrow-pointed wharncliffe for tight spots, and a deep-bellied spey that...uh, theoretically ought to be good for whittling out, say, the bowl of a spoon. (Haven't tried it yet.)

The old Schrades are infamously hard steel (hence the broken tip on mine) but from what I've heard a good thin blade is more important than hard steel, when it comes to whittling. With my low skill level, as long as the knife feels comfortable in my hand and has a nice variety of blade shapes with thin grinds, I can get along with it. Maybe if I was better at it, I'd be fussier, though.

Best of luck!
--Mark
 
For an inexpensive yet very good option, get a USA-made Schrade/Old Timer 8OT. The 1095 steel used in those is some of the best EVER, and the price tag is likely going to be under $30. The stockman pattern has a very useful blade selection, and makes an excellent carving knife. The 8OT is large enough, also, that your hand won't fatigue as quickly as if you used a knife with a smaller frame.

Otherwise, look at a carbon steel stockman from Boker, or one with CV steel from Case.
 
I prefer a Wharncliffe blade myself for whittling - and I also like a locking knife or fixed blade. I've had slippies "slip" on me one too many times. :eek:

The new Spyderco Bradley Air fits this bill nicely - in addition to being an all-around great knife. It is a bit on the small side, but has M4 steel, thin flat ground wharncliffe blade and is very light and nimble.

TedP
 
phillipsted said:
I prefer a Wharncliffe blade myself for whittling - and I also like a locking knife or fixed blade. I've had slippies "slip" on me one too many times. :eek:

The new Spyderco Bradley Air fits this bill nicely - in addition to being an all-around great knife. It is a bit on the small side, but has M4 steel, thin flat ground wharncliffe blade and is very light and nimble.

TedP
Click to expand...
That one may be a nice choice for some, but alas it doesn't fit the bill as far as a "traditional" knife goes. One-handed space-age liner-lock blade-hole pocket-clip jobbies aren't what we focus on, around these parts. ;)
 
Lot's of good advice.

I'm a total hack when it comes to carving and whittling, but will toss out a few observations I've not yet seen...

I strongly prefer a flat (i.e. old Ulsters & Schrades) or flat/convex (i.e. Opinel) ground blade for working with wood. I really don't care for hollow ground blades (i.e. Buck). Hollow ground blades can be tamed somewhat by aggressive thinning of the spine, but why bother? Better to just start with a blade that is flat or convexed, imo.

In terms of steel, IMO, one way to think about steels is ease of sharpening. As this relates to carving, the question is do you want a steel that will hold it's edge for a long time but then require careful work with a diamond stone to get back to sharp? Or, do you want a steel that will loose its edge a bit quicker but that will respond quickly to a strop or pocket stone to come back to sharp quickly?

Carbon steel is in the latter camp, as are some forms of stainless. I can't bring back 440C easily. I can handle Bucks 420HC (just don't like their grinds at all though), Case SS, Victorinox Inox (stubborn wire edge), and of course, carbon.

It's Little League season so I get to spend a lot of time sitting in the shade watching my kid strike out Timmy and whittling to pass the time. This is what I generally carry. I use the pen blade on the LM Micra for detail work. I'm a hack though.


Opinel #8 Drop-point EDC by Pinnah, on Flickr
 
I know you specified slipjoints, but I strongly suggest picking up a dedicated carving knife like the Mora 122 or 126. It'll arrive sharp and ready to go, which is more than you can say for most slipjoints. Use and study it; compare how a proper woodcarving geometry and edge compares to what you'd find on an EDC. It will give you a good baseline reference when you end up tuning up your own slipjoints to whittle. At ~ $15, it won't break the bank.

- Christian
 
Dozerangel said:
I guess I have to look up what a strop is now..I am guessing a finish sharpener? Maybe leather? Thanks again everyone
Click to expand...

Think of an old time barber stropping a razor on that big flat piece of leather.

Ya got it.

If you do some reading on the maintenance Forum, you'll find all sorts of information about sharpening and strops.
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php/794-Maintenance-Tinkering-amp-Embellishment

Dozerangel said:
I guess my 4 boys can always use the knives I don't like.
Click to expand...

You will get their vote for Dad of the Year. That's for sure.:D
 
knarfeng said:
Think of an old time barber stropping a razor on that big flat piece of leather.
Click to expand...

I have used tons of strops and they all have a great purpose but I have been sticking with an old barbers strop for a few years now. There is a reason barbers could shave your face after they made a few swipes :)



Mine is two piece, horse hide and linen. They are more difficult to learn but once you get the feel and more "the sound" oh my they are a force to be reckoned with :)

BTW, I know you want an American but for the price of a happy meal you can have a razor blade in a nice wooden handle with an opinel.

I have done lots of carving all that matters is the right size blade for the job and that they are THIN and SHARP :)

Kevin
 
I'd suggest a bench or handle strop. Nothing wrong with the hanging variety, but for whittling you'd want something more portable.

joonassharpen9923.jpg

Image by Schwert

- Christian
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top