What is a traditional knife for a carpenter?

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Bryan.H

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Nov 23, 2005
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Greetings all, A very good friend of mine has recently finished his apprenticeship as a cabinet maker/ carpenter. (as opposed to a generic 'builder', this young bloke can make a fine piece of furniture with hand made dovetail joints..that kind of carpenter). I'd like to get him a fine folding knife as a gift for his achievement in gaining his trade, but also one which would be an appropriate carry everyday useful tool, of good quality. My question is; Is there a traditional folding knife that was favoured by old school carpenters/ craftsmen in wood, or if not, what knife would be most appropriate?

I'd appreciate any opinion the gentlemen here could suggest.
Thanks in advance,


P.s. To clarify, there are 'electricians' folders, the classic three bladed stockman, mariners jack knives of various kinds, and so on. Is there a specific design of folder favoured by wood workers? I know of the whittler, are there other types? Are there any wood working craftsmen or artisans here in this forum who favour a specific design of folder? Thanks again.
 
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Bryan,There are alotta patterns,suited for a carpenter.
Alot of times,a carpenter would choose what blades he likes & size of the knife.
Is he a big guy ? If so,a 4" stockman,or Jack.Smaller hands I'd suggest a Queen 48 whittler.
A coping blade,is handy,as is a pen,and or a sheepfoot.
There is alot of choices.Old time jacks,sometimes called a Carpenter's jacknife,were real nice,with a sheepfoot main blade & a secondary smaller pen.GEC makes a 3" or so jack,alot like this,but with a warncliffe main & pen secondary,a thick handle & good quality.
You def. have some choices.
I hope this is a start to help,
-Vince
 
I have heard that the Congress pattern is very popular with carpenters. This pattern is made by Boker, Case, GEC and Eye brand.

God Bless
 
I was into carpentry and cabinetmaking back in college. I did it on the side for pocket cash and was always needing a pocket knife handy. Back then I carried an Old Timer 8OT.

The congress pattern would be a good one as would a whittler.

If it were me, I would want CV steel or something else easy to sharpen. That Queen whittler is a beauty though, even if it is D2 steel. Supposed to be tougher to sharpen but once you have it sharp, it stays that way for a while.
 
I've built houses, and made fine furniture, and a straight edged, pointed blade was always the most useful. A large wharncliffe, or coping or sheepfoot blade would be my first choice.
I always found a swell center, balloon too small for everything but the most intricate carving. An old Sheepfoot (larger than recent production), or a large wharncliffe, like the German-made Bulldogs was best, IMO. Case's seahorse is O.K. if you don't mind stainless.
 
I personally prefer a 4" stockman, for the usefull smaller coping blade (the bigger sheepfoot blades are just too fat for me), although a sheepfoot this size, on a 3 1/4" jack, would be nice, and about as big as I'd go:

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I also carry a gunstock jack with spear and pen blades. I use both quite often, although the stockman is my favorite. One thing I have to say is I can't stand stiff springed knives while working. If it's too much of a chore to open 'em, then I might as well pull out the old utility razor. I can't tell you how many times I've needed the knife while I was holding something that needed trimming, and had to gingerly hold the knife with whatever fingers I still had available for grasping to open it, or even open the knife with my teeth. (It works, really! Just grasp the blade between thumb and forefinger, usually with thumb in nail pull, hold the knife body in your front teeth, and pull the blade open!:thumbup::D ). It's been a lifesaver on numerous occassions, and neither method would work with a nail breaker.

Eric
 
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For Finish work I like a stockman for fine tuning material.

Having the three different blades to choose from is really nice to have all in one knife.
 
I was a carpenter for 40 yrs and always like a wharncliff blade with a good point on it........why?.....removing splinters! That is really true. Most carpenters carry a utility knife on the job as it has replaceable blades and you go thru them rapidly. Carpenters can be awfully hard on knives...emergency screwdriver, prybar, spackling blade, etc:eek:. If you get him one other than a wharncliff....make it sturdy!:p
 
My cousin and his dad my uncle are the carpenters in our family, they both carry Old Timer folding hunters the single blade liner lock versions.
 
I would go with a Half Congress.

The main use of a knife is for mark-up.
In stead of using a pencil you use a knife to cut a much finer line.
Also the line 'peels' when you get to the knife mark, and you can have very accurate cutting.

The best blade for this is a large sheepsfoot that can be run agains the edge of the rule.
A larger sheepsfoot is also easy to pinch open.

I favor a 1/2 Congress that has a larger sheepsfoot and a sharp pen knife that will take out splinters and sharpen pencils.
The straight blade of the sheepsfoot is very easy to sharpen.

I would recomend a Queen 1/2 Congress in D2 steel, which holds a very good working edge for a long time.
It is 4" long and is a comfortable working length
The two blades are on a single spring, which means it is much narrower in the pocket and is light and easy to carry in your pocket
It is now availiable in Maple wood

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This is what I use when doing carpentry.
 
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If he is building furniture or doing finish/trim work, a Frost Mora is a great blade for fine cuts and marking dovetails.
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If he is doing rough framing, a nice stockman or a vic tinker. While framing I backpocket carried a Schrade 194OT and front right pocket a Vic SAK tinker.
 
I'll third or forth or whatever it's up to now, the marking knife idea. Just so you have an idea, a SAK actually works great as a marking knife, the nice thin blade profile gives it a nice thin edge and makes it easy to follow a rule precisely. SAKs aren't really traditional per se, but it gives you an idea of a good blade profile. Warnclifs work well to, or at least thin bladed ones. For the way I mark I prefer the drop or spear type blades like the SAKs but that's just me, anyone's mileage may very.

I guess I'd say that some style and blade shape things are pretty particular to the worker. If there is some way you could take a look at what he's using now, or ask roundabout questions to feel him out on blade shape etc, you might get something he'll really appreciate the use of. Just a thought.

And a smaller blade for splinters is a godsend, that ain't no lie.

Syn
 
I just happened to see a couple of knives on a website the other day when I was looking for a gardening knife for my wife. Both were cheap, so may not be suitable for what you're looking for.

I never gave it much thought before, but these were advertised as a

Woodworkers Knife:
Hawkbill blade does seem like a good idea for marking
06d0710s1.jpg

06d0710s2.jpg


Japanese Carpenter's Knife:
06d0701s3.jpg
 
Thanks so much for all the replies! I like the Wharncliffe design,
jr67w-lam&pen.jpg

and this Joseph Rodgers one has a smaller blade for digging out splinters! Great suggestions everyone, I really appreciate the very good advice. Have a Happy Easter!

I like the quality of the folders made by the 'Littlemesters of Sheffield', so I'm looking into a Wharncliffe design made by these guys, through Australasian Knife Collectors mail-order, and I know a good local leatherworker who can make a pouch for it. Thanks again for the great advice!
 
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I did siding for a Summer once and a little carprentry was involved. My carry knife at the time was the Old Timer 8OT. It just loved hard work.
 
late to the party, but my grandfather always carried a case 3 blade stockman.
when I was doing construction, a SAK camper or huntsman was always in my front pocket and a Buck 110 in my back pocket. (I know, SAKs aren't traditional, but it's what I carried) If I hadn't found that SAK early on, I'd have gone with a trapper.
 
Every carpenter i ever knew carried a 4 inch case or old timer stockman pattern,at least here in my part of kentucky.
 
My daddy was a carpenter for 55 years, all he ever carried was a Case trapper. Grandfather was a carpenter for 60 years and all he carried was a Case jackknife.
 
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