Which Pattern of Knife is Best for a New Whittler?

^I'm looking to see if he wants to further his interest in wood working...so I figure a pocket knife that can also be used for whittling is a safe bet. That way if it doesn't take, he still has a useful tool that he can use for other things. That Flex Cut tool is nice, but more than a little out of my price range. I have plenty of ways to keep blades sharp until he can teach himself how to sharpen freehand using a stone (since I have yet to perfect that method myself, and neither of us are a fan of pull-through carbide sharpeners).

On the subject of sharpening, which sort of angle is best for this kind of work? I prefer to sharpen all of my knives to 40 degrees inclusive. The Lansky sharpener I use also has a setting for 50 degrees inclusive. Not the best selection...but that's what I'm limited to. One of these days I'll shell out for a Sharpmaker, but for now I'm satisfied with this.

After considering everyone's input, I think I've decided on the Yellow composite whittler that I posted above. I think he'll get some fine use out of that. If he really does turn out to enjoy the hobby, I'll pick him up the 565, or a Congress with some more blade options for his birthday in a few months so that he can really start to experiment and see what he likes. But to start, I think that this should be fine. Thanks to everyone who everyone who steered me towards a decision and taught me a bit about whittling! I'll post a pic of him with the goods on Christmas morning.
 
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Traditional but not a slipjoint?

Opinel make locking blades in small sizes.
Excellent for small hands and safe
The blade holds an edge very well

Scandinavian whittling fixed blade knives 3" and less to 2"
Short and curved shaped well for carving
A longer wooden handle easy to hold than a slip joint
some have guards on the handles
 
Major Chord,

I can't speak for the other guys, but when I set my knives up for whittling, I generally set my blades up for 20 degrees inclusive. I use a Victorinox Deluxe Tinker and Case Small Amber Bone Texas Jack, and when I sharpen up the small blades, I hold them almost flat to the stone. Surprisingly, I don't see much edge rolling or chipping with those edges, as long as I pay attention to how I use them.
 
If you have a stone for sharpening, the easiest method I've found to keep a consistent 20 degree +/- bevel is to: as you pull the blade towards you (like trying to slice a piece off the stone), hold the blade like there is a dime under the spine/back edge. That angle will give you a good edge for any general pocket knife use. Of course, there are plenty of other methods that will work just as well. Best of luck to your new whittler...
 
Nixelplix said:
This one looks good to me (RR375):

RR375.jpg


Rough Rider also makes a congress whittler, but the main blade looks a little narrow to me:

rr457.jpg


I have this little whittler they make, it's a great little knife, but again, I think the main blade is too narrow for whittling:

rr409.jpg
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i have these patterns from Rough Rider.
use the one at the top of the image.
i also have a congress whittler with a sheepsfoot primary like the middle knife
the primary blade on the lower knife is not really strong enough imho to do much whittling.
the small blades can snap easily if put to the test.
but i have to say the fit & finish is excellent and the bone and stag handles are nice for sure.

buzz
 
StuntDouble said:
Major Chord,

I can't speak for the other guys, but when I set my knives up for whittling, I generally set my blades up for 20 degrees inclusive. I use a Victorinox Deluxe Tinker and Case Small Amber Bone Texas Jack, and when I sharpen up the small blades, I hold them almost flat to the stone. Surprisingly, I don't see much edge rolling or chipping with those edges, as long as I pay attention to how I use them.
Click to expand...

Big Barn said:
If you have a stone for sharpening, the easiest method I've found to keep a consistent 20 degree +/- bevel is to: as you pull the blade towards you (like trying to slice a piece off the stone), hold the blade like there is a dime under the spine/back edge. That angle will give you a good edge for any general pocket knife use. Of course, there are plenty of other methods that will work just as well. Best of luck to your new whittler...
Click to expand...

Okay...the smallest I can do on my sharpening system (Lansky Turn Box Crock Stick Sharpener) is 40 degrees inclusive, so it looks like we'll be turning to a stone to get anything close to 20 inclusive. Which is fine...I've been meaning to learn how to perfect my method anyway, and it'll be good for him to learn while he's still young. While we do that though, and practice on some cheap, $1 Walmart knives, 40 degrees will have to do. I imagine that as long as it's sharp, it will work...
 
Sharp will work, but sharper works better. ;) My designated whittling knives don't get used for general chores because I have the edges thinned down to the point where they are a bit delicate. Edge angles run around 15 to 20 degrees included, and they don't get used on anything but wood. 40 degrees included is what I sharpen the sheepsfoot blade on a stockman to, because I use it for rough work and need a more durable edge.
 
Major Chord said:
I imagine that as long as it's sharp, it will work...
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Yes and no. The thicker the edge or blade the more of a glancing cut the blade will make. This can be frustrating at best and discouraging in worse case.

RR's are just excellent for getting that nice lean edge as the blades are thin and the steel is not impossible to work with for that extra sharp edge. I recently tried a Lansky 17 degree (34 inclusive but that's only a guess as I am not familiar with Lansky) on a thick edge Queen. I finally got it sharp but it's really not so good an angle for whittling.

Once you get a propper angle all you'll ever really need is a good strop. In fact, I strop quite often while whittling and that works fine for me.
 
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On whittling knives, 20 deg. inclusive.
Get him into the habit of carrying around a pocket stone whenever he has a knife in his pocket, i think he'll be fine with some practice.
Get yourself a stone too, and practice with the $1 knives. File the serrations off and go to town on em with the stone. Practice and time are what had me popping hairs with a stone honed edge in about a year.
You can also practice on the unglazed ring on the bottom of a ceramic mug or plate.
 
FLymon said:
If doubling as an actual pocket knife is not a concern, and you still need a Rough Rider:

7neYI.jpg


Search for it using "Rough Rider 565"
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I just had to get one of these, but somehow I wasn't expecting the scale of it. The closed length is 5 1/8", with a max closed width of 1 1/8". It's quite a handful.
 
I know it isn't a folder, but I Love my short mora for whittling. It is inexpensive and whittles like a champ.
 
By noon today he had already whizzed through some of the book and whittled himself this spoon. Thanks for all the help guys, he certainly loves it. :D

gedc0050i.jpg
 
Major Chord said:
By noon today he had already whizzed through some of the book and whittled himself this spoon. Thanks for all the help guys, he certainly loves it. :D

gedc0050i.jpg
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Great picture! Seeing this kind of interest from a generation that prefers electronics/game consoles/text messaging over more traditional pursuits warms my heart!
 
yablanowitz said:
I actually find longer blades something of a hinderence for most whittling. The vast majority of this was done with a blade under 1 1/2" long.

DSCF1077.jpg
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MY GOODNESS.... the classic "ball in the cage" is impressive. But that much unbroken chain is absolutely incredible. I wonder if anyone here has any idea how long that takes to carve, even for an experienced carver. Wow. Nicely done, Jack.

I have only done some hobby whittling, and since it is rough stuff, my large and medium stockman knives have done all the work for a few decades. But if I were going to get serious, I would use my S&M whittler, which was built for that purpose.

I like the idea of starting out with a RR. That way he can do all the fun things that 11 year old boys do to tools when learning to use them. And if it winds up lost or broken, you certainly aren't out a fortune.

Robert
 
thatotherguy said:
Give him a pat on the back and say good job from me, he did well.
What'd you end up getting for a sharpener?
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Will do! I haven't picked him up anything yet...for the time being I'll let him learn how to hone his edge on the bottom of a coffee mug, or touch it up myself with my Lansky system. His birthday's coming up in February...so I'll tend to that then, most likely.
 
Resurrected for the new whittlers reading, and for updates as the OP sees fit.
Plus, it's just a cool blast from the past IMO.
op- how's he coming along?
 
If he really gets into whittling, please buy him a carving glove for protection. You can get them at any WoodCrafter or Wood Werks store. Actually I prefer a fish cleaning mesh glove, they actually provide a little more protection & you can get them in smaller sizes. This type you can get at most camp/hunt/fish stores. Also, on the sharpening stone front - bigger/longer is better. 6"-7" is best & make sure it is two-sided, one med & one fine. If stones have to wait, you can get several grits of sandpaper & any FLAT surface - google 'Scary Sharp method'. Since your boy is handy, you can make a strop by using an old leather belt by glueing it rough side up on a 2"x2"x12" piece of wood. Stroping compound (I use the green) just rub it into the leather - just lay the blade flat & instead of using a slicing motion like sharpening, push the knife away from you & stop at the end of each stroke, lift the knife & reverse direction. This should get you both going...
 
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