Questions & Comments

We have a comment from Bill on:

How Do I Know If My Knife Is Sharp?

Bill writes: ” ‘Thanks so much, Bob! I am most grateful for your answer! I can tell a difference already. Best of luck with your new blog.”

Thank you for your kind comments, Bill.  I’m glad I could help!

We also have a comment from Dean on:

Choosing The Right Carving Knife

Dean writes: “Well said Bob. I tell new carvers to avoid becoming a tool collector right way. Learn what type of carving interests you and acquire the best tools you can afford to pursue it.”

That’s so true, Dean.  One of the first things a carver should do before jumping right in is to decide what type of carving interests them the most.  Also, I never recommend buying tools in sets because more often than not you will get one or two tools in the set that you can really use and the rest you won’t ever use at all.  I always suggest buying the best tool (Knife) you can afford then build your collection little by little as you find the need for more tools.

Today we have a question from Roar Martinsen.  Roar asks:

“now it’s time for me to buy a finished knife i have long used a 3 $ knife bought on ebay.
I sharpened and adjusted the blade myself then I got a knife that was quite good, the blade on the knife is stright can you possibly tell a little about the pros and cons of straight and curved blade? I’ve seen it delivered concave and convexe blade maybe you have any advice to share?”

Thank you for your question, Roar.  There are three different types of blades…the straight blade, the convex blade and the concave blade.  Each one has its advantages and disadvantages, and are generally used for different purposes.  I will try to discuss and provide some information on each one as it pertains to wood carving below:

Typical Straight Blade

The most common blade type used for whittling and wood carving

Capable of making all necessary carving cuts

Pointed blade that gets into corners and tight areas well

Readily available by most knife makers

Typical Convex Blade

Commonly referred to as an upsweep blade

Makes easy slicing cuts

Capable of getting into areas a straight blade can’t often get into

Not as commonly available by most knife makers

Typical Wood Carving Concave Blade

Used mostly in spoon carving

Knives with this type of blade are often referred to as scoop or hook knives

Some may not consider the spoon carving hook knife blade as a concave blade because it is curved vertically (upwards) rather than horizontally (flat)

Harder to find…mostly only made by specialty knife makers

Typical Utility Knife With Concave Blade

Horizontally curved concave blades are commonly used as a utility knife such as a linoleum or paring knife.

I will be discussing more on knives in future blogs.  Meanwhile:

Always keep a sharp edge and keep on carvin’!

 

Let the chips fly!  Tell your carving friends about Wood Chip Chatter, and don’t forget to send in your questions

and comments so we can keep Wood Chip Chatter active and keep the conversations going!

One day an old man goes into a pharmacy.
He reaches into his pocket and takes out a small whiskey bottle and a teaspoon.
He pours from the bottle into the teaspoon and offers it to the pharmacist.
“Could you taste this for me, please?”
The pharmacist takes the teaspoon, puts it in his mouth, swills the liquid around and swallows it.
“Does that taste sweet to you?” asks the old man.
“No, not at all,” says the pharmacist.
“Oh that’s a relief,” says the old man.
“The doctor told me to come here and get my urine tested for sugar.”