Whittling knives and hardwoods?

[dosageML]

Hello,
I'm asking if anyone has experience carving various hardness-es of woods with various carving knives...?
I just got a Flexcut KN12

and am suddenly wondering if, even though these seem to be known as a step up from Beaver Craft, if Beaver Craft may be better for harder woods.
The bevel looks wider on the Flexcut, but I'd almost rather trade an iota of sharpness for longer lasting edge. The bevel looks a little narrower on the Beaver Craft

well... the pictures don't tell so much as my Flexcut in person... the bevel looks way wider in person.

I recently carved an owl letter opener (roughly hewn!) recently on some wood that's no hardrock maple but no basswood, either. It was local, invasive weed tree called Chinaberry that is sometimes used like a po boy mahogany. I did this with a box cutter in about 45 minutes as a first try:

I got hooked, but could use a little guidance. I really don't want to spend time in the woods and bring $5 blocks of basswood I bought on Amazon. I want to carve the free wood around me. Now, some of the wood (here in Florida or wherever) is softer green, but I'll still, likely be experimenting to figure out what works the best and is plentiful. We sure have a lot of these Florida red maples or Florida sugar maples. Lots of oak.
I got some spruce at Home Depot that seemed ok, but again I want to pick wood up around me outdoors.
There's cherry laurels around a lot... the pines aren't too good green.
I like that Chinaberry but I'll have to see if the owl is too easily broken when 100% dry.

Any advice about carving random woods with various knives is appreciated.
Thanks!
Jeff

 

[Old Biker]

My choice of knives for whittling hardwoods,whether out in the woods or at home, would be these Sloyd knives from Pinewood forge.

If I was out in the woods and didn't have them with me then I would use my Boker carvers congress, Because I always carry it in my pocket.

I don't have an opinion on your two knives because I don't own either one. I do know that the harder the wood the sharper I want my blade. I'll strop it often to keep it sharp. Those Sloyd knives are very thin behind the edge and very sharp. They have held up fine carving dried Birch and Black locust. Also the smooth handles help prevent blisters.

O.B.

 

[dirc]

get one of these mora 122 - imho they're great for woodcarving

 

[dosageML]

Thanks to both replies so far... had my eye on that Mora, dirc, since I like straight or shhep foot edge...
And thanks for the two recommendations new to me from Old Biker... I can get a Boker "Congress" that says High Carbon Stainless or 440c for pretty cheap, but the ones that say "Carver's Congress" are about 3 times the price... they do seem to say Carbon Steel (not stainless) so maybe that's why; they're 1095 or something? And those Pinewood Forge ones are of interest. I guess you get hat you pay for, as I paid less than half that for the Flexcut, but if I spend time carving it's worth the best I can muster. Of course I know I'm rubbing elbows with folks here who can buy super steel folders for $300 rather casually, hehe...

 

[eveled]

Don’t over look saws files and rasps and even drills to get the General shape. The artistry comes in at the end. No point in wearing yourself and your tools out doing the really rough stuff.

Be careful with wood you find make certain it is not already starting to decay, the dust can be extremely hazardous.

When I was a kid I enjoyed making totem poles out of 1inch branches. Some became back scratchers. Walking sticks are fun to carve too, and especially easy to carry on hikes.

In most cases I found it easier to carve the green wood then as it dried it seemed to get harder to carve.

 

[dosageML]

Don’t over look saws files and rasps and even drills to get the General shape. The artistry comes in at the end. No point in wearing yourself and your tools out doing the really rough stuff.

Be careful with wood you find make certain it is not already starting to decay, the dust can be extremely hazardous.

When I was a kid I enjoyed making totem poles out of 1inch branches. Some became back scratchers. Walking sticks are fun to carve too, and especially easy to carry on hikes.

In most cases I found it easier to carve the green wood then as it dried it seemed to get harder to carve.

hehe OH yeah -- you better believe I quickly made several back scratchers and laid them around the house. Got tired of losing them and buying them across the street at the flea market. I'm a hygenic guy and all, but I have dogs that hop in bed and evebn without fleas I get a back itch more often than I can find a scratcher. Not as limber as I used to be either!
I for sure will utilize some rasps and saws etc., but the wife and I both plan on-the-fly stick projects in the woods with whatever we have strapped to out waist or in a pocket. that's why I was wondering about people's experience with native woods with different little carving knife blades and how long they'll hold an edge (or even damage). I really think green Chinaberry might be a super thing, here.
Got a 4 3/8" blade bushcraft knife in 1095 that helps get thru some bulk before the more delicate Flexcut etc.; works like a giant roughing whittler to get started on larger, found wood pieces for me (of course I'm just talking through a couple days of tests since my two knives came). I did the owl with a dang drywall knife. Talk about not worrying about a blade!
Even for the price of a Beaver Craft or even Flexcut I can afford to experiment, so I'll just get to it.
Not sure I want to experiment too harshly & treat a Pinewood Forge or a Boker Carver's Congress (the true carver model in carbon steel) like a beater when I do get one. Though Old Biker says he carved pretty hard wood with 'em... maybe mine is backward thinking. You do tend to get what you pay for.

 

[jfk1110]

Your letter opener looks pretty good! I got this flexcut with the intention of doing more carving! Just never happens as much as I'd like! All the.different blades are definitely handy though! Good luck with your endeavor!

 

[BitingSarcasm]

I have the same Flexcut Whittling Jack that jfk110 has, and it has been a lot of fun. The tools on it are not as good as a fixed unitask blade, but it is an excellent way to try out a couple of different tools that I might never have tried. The 90 degree scorps in particular change how I look at the possibilities of a piece of wood. I have other fixed Flexcuts, and they work nicely. The one piece of advice I have with them is to strop them instead of using a stone. It's easier for me to get the sharpness I want without overdoing it.

As for random wood, I do that every hike. Most of the time I can't even identify the species since I only go for downed wood. I usually use a big knife--BK9, BK 4, or HI Kukri, to rough in. Any detail work I do with a Cold Steel Mini-Tuff, which is an excellent carver and far more useful than it's size would suggest. I'll grab it over my Flexcuts sometimes even if I'm in my shop. It's fun, but the problem with found wood is splitting. It has to be seriously dry before you can remove a bunch of bark and not have it fall apart later. For walking sticks I will cut longer than I want or need in order to have sacrificial ends to remove checking. Oil or treat it as early as possible but leave the end open if it's not a permeable coating, it leaves an escape route for the water. Every species is different, and that's part of the fun.

 

[Old Biker]

Thanks to both replies so far... had my eye on that Mora, dirc, since I like straight or shhep foot edge...
And thanks for the two recommendations new to me from Old Biker... I can get a Boker "Congress" that says High Carbon Stainless or 440c for pretty cheap, but the ones that say "Carver's Congress" are about 3 times the price... they do seem to say Carbon Steel (not stainless) so maybe that's why; they're 1095 or something? And those Pinewood Forge ones are of interest. I guess you get hat you pay for, as I paid less than half that for the Flexcut, but if I spend time carving it's worth the best I can muster. Of course I know I'm rubbing elbows with folks here who can buy super steel folders for $300 rather casually, hehe...

The Boker Carvers Congress is made form 1095 steel. It also has four different blade shapes. Most congress style knives duplicate at least one blade shape sometimes two. The thing to know about Boker knives. If it says on the tang, Solingen Germany. It was made in Solingen Germany. If it says Made in Germany. It was assembled in Germany, but the parts came from some place else. (Probably China.) Then they also have a factory in Argentina and one in China. The Boker Carvers Congress is made in Solingen Germany. The Boker congress knives that you can get for less than half as much, are made somewhere else. And that is the biggest reason for the price difference.

You already have the Flexcut. Give it a try see how it works for you. I would leave the bevel as it came. If you find it chips to easily, you can change it next time you sharpen it. I actually thinned the bevels on my Boker to about 15 degrees per side.

O.B.

 

[eveled]

Don’t be afraid to modify a blade to make it more whittler friendly.

Look for hidden wharncliff or coping blade shapes. Just shortening them helps.