any whittlers out there?
any whittlers out there?
I decided to start whittling blocks of wood. Because why not? I want a hobby. Think I'm starting off with basswood or balsawood.
I'm thinking about using my wharncliffe k390 dragonfly for this. Feels like the right shape, size, toughness/edge retention.
Curious if others have this hobby and what they use in terms of length, shape, and steel.
I'm thinking about using my wharncliffe k390 dragonfly for this. Feels like the right shape, size, toughness/edge retention.
Curious if others have this hobby and what they use in terms of length, shape, and steel.
Last edited by sethwm on Thu May 26, 2022 12:26 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Re: any whittlers out there?
yablanowitz is the most accomplished whittler I've seen post on the forum...
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=90817
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=90817
So it goes.
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Re: any whittlers out there?
I have considered whittling before, Welsh style spoon carving was actually something I wanted to do, but never got into it. I would strongly prefer some sort of fixed blade for whittling and in my searching I found that Flexcut seems to make some great carving knives, but I can say for quite certain that your Dragonfly should work just fine.
"A knifeless man is a lifeless man."
-- Old Norse proverb
-- Old Norse proverb
Re: any whittlers out there?
I keep a block of wood on my work bench and in my desk at work and I'll occasionally use the knife that's on my to peel some off but it's not really what I call whittling. I kind of use it as a scale to see how sharp my knife is. Sometimes I'll take that block of wood out back and peel some wood while drinking a beer. It's just a way to relax for me. I have enough creativity to actually make something
Of all the things I've lost I miss my mind the most!
Re: any whittlers out there?
Ha! My wife just came by, saw the wharncliffe dfly on my desk and said "oh great this'll be perfect" and walked away with it. I have other dflys (20cv, vg10), but also am considering delica. Don't know if that'll be too big a blade. Maybe I should (re)purchase a k390 wharnie delica for this.
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Re: any whittlers out there?
I’ve been dabbling in spoon making for about 6 months off and on. I most recently used my k390 Stretch to hog off material on spoon blanks and it has worked great. I like the bigger knife for removing large amounts of material. So far I have then switched over to dedicated wood carving knives, particularly for the bowl portion of the spoon. I don’t have anything else to offer for advice, but next time I will try my k390 Dragonfly for a bit of finer work, just to see.
Re: any whittlers out there?
Was going to say the same thing. I’ve seen him whittling in person and it is nothing short of impressive! He has done some really remarkable pieces using only Spyderco knives and some were so great that the Spyderco Factory Outlet kept them and often displays the pieces in the showroom.Airlsee wrote: ↑Thu May 26, 2022 12:10 pmyablanowitz is the most accomplished whittler I've seen post on the forum...
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=90817
Any wood carvings I did were almost entirely with files and sand paper. I would use saws and a dremel for many of the large rough cuts but any detail work was done primarily with files and sand paper. Rarely ever using a carving knife or x-acto knife.
-Nick
Re: any whittlers out there?
I admit that my jaw dropped to the floor when I saw yablanowitz's post in the other thread ! I knew some cool stuff was possible, but this is really intricate !!
In the collection : Lots of different steels, in lots of different (and same) Spydercos.
Robin. Finally made an IG : ramo_knives
MNOSD member 004* aka Mr. N5s
Robin. Finally made an IG : ramo_knives
MNOSD member 004* aka Mr. N5s
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Re: any whittlers out there?
I also picked carving up over the past year. I think a Wharncliffe isn't the best blade shape for carving - you'll get more versatility from a knife with some belly to it.
For example, in softer wood, you can use a leaf-style blade to dig out a spoon bowl without having to use a hook knife. I can't do that with a straight blade. This technique is more difficult with harder, dense woods however.
Para 3 is a good folder for carving. Good sized handle to grip onto and you can choke up on it easily for finer work. The Para 3 spine would be better for carving than the dragonfly, since it's wider, and you can press on it for hard cuts or for more control.
That said, try it with your Dragonfly! (If it works ok for you I might try out a Wharncliffe.)
For example, in softer wood, you can use a leaf-style blade to dig out a spoon bowl without having to use a hook knife. I can't do that with a straight blade. This technique is more difficult with harder, dense woods however.
Para 3 is a good folder for carving. Good sized handle to grip onto and you can choke up on it easily for finer work. The Para 3 spine would be better for carving than the dragonfly, since it's wider, and you can press on it for hard cuts or for more control.
That said, try it with your Dragonfly! (If it works ok for you I might try out a Wharncliffe.)
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Re: any whittlers out there?
Here's a couple recent pieces.
I actually prefer a slip joint folder for carving.
I actually prefer a slip joint folder for carving.
Delica 4 VG10 - Dragonfly 2 K390 Warnnie - Chaparral CTS-XHP - Native 5 M4/Rex/45/4v - Para 3 CTS-BD1/Maaxamet/4V/20CV - Lil Native - Cruwear - Sage 5 S30V - Jester 4V
Re: any whittlers out there?
Lovely stuff, Bill.
-Marc (pocketing an S110V Native5 today)
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“When science changes its opinion, it didn’t lie to you. It learned more.”
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Re: any whittlers out there?
If y'all can whittle with a Dragonfly, it should work okay, at least for some things. Broad blades don't work well for getting into tight spots and aren't very manueverable. My big problem with it is there just isn't enough handle for me. I, too, tend to gravitate toward traditional slip joints for most of my whittling.
Although this got done almost entirely with a Nilakka.
Although this got done almost entirely with a Nilakka.
Re: any whittlers out there?
My brother has been carving these exact duplicates, or at least similar for many years.
Re: any whittlers out there?
Do you ever do a whittling project with just spydies? Which steels/shapes/models do you use?yablanowitz wrote: ↑Thu May 26, 2022 3:41 pmIf y'all can whittle with a Dragonfly, it should work okay, at least for some things. Broad blades don't work well for getting into tight spots and aren't very manueverable. My big problem with it is there just isn't enough handle for me. I, too, tend to gravitate toward traditional slip joints for most of my whittling.
Re: any whittlers out there?
LOL! Say I don't read my own threads without saying I don't read my own threads...
So it goes.
Re: any whittlers out there?
I was asking him in particular. I didn't see a response from him. What'd I miss?
Re: any whittlers out there?
Mushroom's post, and if you follow the link in the first response the knife is literally listed on the skull base, and he comments on knives several times in the thread linked.
So it goes.
Re: any whittlers out there?
i asked for some wood carving knives a couple years ago as a gift and got them. i haven't even opened the package yet. i just know i'm gonna slice my hand wide open.
keep your knife sharp and your focus sharper.
current collection:
C253GBBK, C258GFBL, C101GBBK2, C11GYW, C11FWNB20CV, C101GBN15V2, C101GODFDE2, C60GGY, C149G, C189, C101GBN2, MT35, C211TI, C242CF, C217GSSF, C101BN2, C85G2, C91BBK, C142G, C122GBBK, LBK, LYL3HB, C193, C28YL2, C11ZPGYD, C41YL5, C252G, C130G, PLKIT1
spyderco steels:
CPM 20CV, CPM 15V, CTS 204P, CPM CRUWEAR, CPM S30V, N690Co, M390, CPM MagnaCut, LC200N, CTS XHP, H1, 8Cr13MoV, GIN-1, CTS BD1, VG-10, VG-10/Damascus, 440C
current collection:
C253GBBK, C258GFBL, C101GBBK2, C11GYW, C11FWNB20CV, C101GBN15V2, C101GODFDE2, C60GGY, C149G, C189, C101GBN2, MT35, C211TI, C242CF, C217GSSF, C101BN2, C85G2, C91BBK, C142G, C122GBBK, LBK, LYL3HB, C193, C28YL2, C11ZPGYD, C41YL5, C252G, C130G, PLKIT1
spyderco steels:
CPM 20CV, CPM 15V, CTS 204P, CPM CRUWEAR, CPM S30V, N690Co, M390, CPM MagnaCut, LC200N, CTS XHP, H1, 8Cr13MoV, GIN-1, CTS BD1, VG-10, VG-10/Damascus, 440C
Re: any whittlers out there?
But a lot of these mentioned (kiwi and Nilakka) are discontinued. What's a good one that's still in production? A lot of people have mentioned Native 5 and Calypso.